Research Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy

The Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy has been doing research in the field of dry powder inhalation for the last ten years. The research has been focussed on the formulation and physical aspects of dry powder inhalers and the devices.

The group has build a significant expertise in the pulmonary drug delivery area due to their basic physico-pharmaceutical approach of formulation development, which is combined with knowledge on biopharmaceutical aspects of human inhalation (flow) and its variables.

 

Most work has been done in cooperation with industrial partners. Major achievements were the development of a complete new dry powder inhaler device (which will be marketed by the industrial partner by the end of this year), together with a number of formulations for different drugs that can be used with the inhaler device. This technology has been patented and can be licensed by other interested partners.

Furthermore, research of the group lead to the modification of the patient instruction for this inhaler.

 

Special formulations for dry powder inhalers and methods to produce these have been developed, for several drug substances with different physico-chemical properties. Based on the knowledge from these developments, appropriate formulations for new drug substances can de developed rapidly.

 

Currently six projects in the area of inhalation are ongoing in the department. Besides the own (purely scientific) projects, there are projects in cooperation with industry, governmental organizations and different hospitals.

Within these projects both new devices as well as innovative formulation techniques are developed for difficult drug substances such as peptides and proteins.

 

Within the department all major production equipment for the production of dry powder formulations is available. As is the equipment for evaluation of the formulations and their performance in different devices. Next to the standard cascade impactors, there is a sophisticated laser diffraction particle sizer with a self-developed inhaler-adaptor, which can determine the particle size distribution of the particle cloud generated during simulated inhalations. Equipment for simulation of different inhalation curves is available and can be coupled both to the different impactors as well as to the laser diffraction apparatus.

Furthermore all techniques which can be used for dry powder characterization are available, such as: surface area by BET measurements, water sorption isotherms by DVS measurements, mercury porosimetry or scanning electron microscopy.

 

Mission statement

The department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Biopharmacy and Industrial Pharmacy wishes to perform research in the field of dosage forms, their production and their interaction with the living organism. Our contribution to the advancement of pharmaceutics and the well being of the patient is achieved through:

§ Basic and applied research on the design and development of drug delivery systems, which provide an additional therapeutic value, through optimisation of the formulation and the drug delivery route. This is achieved through delivery of the drug via the most comfortable route of administration at the right time, at the right place, in the optimised amount.

§ Basic and applied research aimed at a fundamental understanding of the production process of drug dosage forms, to meet the desired quality attributes of the drug product, to rationalise and shorten development times of new processes and to improve the quality of the process.

§ Research into the development of new methods, equipment and techniques used for the evaluation of dosage forms and their performance.

§ Basic and applied research into the design and development of new excipients, which improve the production process or therapeutic value of the dosage form (functional excipients).