A new analysis technology for coated tablets available from Melbourn Scientific can generate precise 3D images of solid dosage systems to provide new insights into controlled drug release.
Terahertz pulsed imaging, a quick non-destructive technology developed by TeraView for Melbourn Scientific, generates precise 3D images to identify and quantify key quality attributes such as coating uniformity, thickness and porosity.
The result is the creation of chemometric models which accurately relate the product’s performance to its physical characteristics, to provide new insights into modified release and controlled release drugs, which account for about 25% of all launched products today.
Melbourn Scientific CEO Mark Hammond said that the new service enables, for example, the analysis of the tablet coating prior to its dissolution.
“This provides new insights and will enable us to quickly correlate the release of the active ingredient with the density or thickness of the coating,” Hammond said.
The product has been vetted by the US Food and Drug Administration, which has described it as an attractive replacement for wet dissolution testing in product development and eventually for process analysis.
