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3D printing of medicines: Engineering novel oral devices with unique design and drug release characteristics
Goyanes, A. ; Wang, J. ; Buanz, A.B.M. ; Martinez-Pacheco, R. ; Telford, Richard ; Gaisford, S. ; Basit, A.W.
Goyanes, A.
Wang, J.
Buanz, A.B.M.
Martinez-Pacheco, R.
Telford, Richard
Gaisford, S.
Basit, A.W.
Publication Date
2015-10-09
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(c) 2015 American Chemical Society. Full-text reproduced in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy.
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Abstract
Three dimensional printing (3DP) was used to engineer novel oral drug delivery devices, with
specialised design configurations loaded with multiple actives, with applications in personalised
medicine. A filament extruder was used to obtain drug-loaded - paracetamol (acetaminophen) or
caffeine - filaments of polyvinyl alcohol with characteristics suitable for use in fused-deposition
modelling 3D printing. A multi-nozzle 3D printer enabled fabrication of capsule-shaped solid
devices, containing paracetamol and caffeine, with different internal structures. The design
configurations included a multilayer device, with each layer containing drug, whose identity was
different from the drug in the adjacent layers; and a two-compartment device comprising a
caplet embedded within a larger caplet (DuoCaplet), with each compartment containing a
different drug. Raman spectroscopy was used to collect 2-dimensional hyper spectral arrays
across the entire surface of the devices. Processing of the arrays using direct classical least
squares component matching to produce false colour representations of distribution of the drugs
showed clearly the areas that contain paracetamol and caffeine, and that there is a definitive
separation between the drug layers.
Drug release tests in biorelevant media showed unique drug release profiles dependent on the
macrostructure of the devices. In the case of the multilayer devices, release of both drugs was
simultaneous and independent of drug solubility. With the DuoCaplet design it was possible to
engineer either rapid drug release or delayed release by selecting the site of incorporation of the
drug in the device, and the lag-time for release from the internal compartment was dependent
on the characteristics of the external layer. The study confirms the potential of 3D printing to
fabricate multiple-drug containing devices with specialized design configurations and unique
drug release characteristics, which would not otherwise be possible using conventional
manufacturing methods.
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Accepted manuscript
Citation
Goyanes A, Wang J, Buanz ABM, Martinez-Pacheco R, Telford R, Gaisford S and Basit AW
(2015) 3D printing of medicines: Engineering novel oral devices with unique design and drug
release characteristics. Molecular Pharmaceutics. 12(11): 3783-4174.
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The full-text of this article will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 10 Oct 2016.