Multiparticulate Drug Delivery System Technologies

Proven multiparticulate drug delivery system technologies (MPs)

MP formulations continue to grow in application due to their inherent advantages, including the greater flexibility they offer compared with monolithic formats. They:

Offer a wide range of flexibility in drug-release profile for single or multiple drug combinations and enable formulation as modified release, immediate release, bioavailability-enhanced, and/or taste-masked dosage forms
Provide predictable and consistent GI transit and lower chances of undesirable events associated with tablets (e.g. dose dumping)
Can facilitate ease of swallowing, an attribute increasingly important in targeted medications for pediatric and geriatric populations
Can be formulated into encapsulated, tablet or sachet formats. The selection of a specific MP technology is typically dependent upon the API characteristics and target product profile.

Our range of multiparticulate technologies



	MP Range	Process	Amorphous / Solubilized Form	Taste Making	Immediate Release	Delayed / Burst	Controlled Release
Fluid Layered MP's	pH trigger	Fluid bed
	Time trigger	Fluid bed
	Diffusion control	Fluid bed
Matrix MP's	Lipid matrix	Melt-spray congeal		Plus coating if needed
	IR and MR granules	Wet / Dry granulation		Coating
	Mini-tablets	Tableting		Coating

Spray-layered multiparticulates (SLMs) and lipid multiparticulates (LMPs)

SLMs are layered spherical particles approximately 100 to 1500 µm in diameter that contain one or more active ingredients. Typical applications include modified and programmed release, enhanced bioavailability and fixed-dose combination therapies. SLMs are produced by using a bottom-spray fluidized-bed coater to apply one or more coatings to a coating substrate.

LMPs are round, smooth matrix multiparticulates produced from safe, precedented excipients. Typically, 50 to 300 µm in diameter, they can be used for applications requiring bioavailability enhancement, modified release, taste-masking, high-dose actives and fixed-dose combination therapies. Using a continuous spinning-disk atomization process developed by Lonza, a drug is uniformly distributed within a carrier with optional drug release-rate modifiers.

MP drug delivery System

Fluid layered MP’s: pH trigger, time trigger, diffusion control
Matrix MP’s: lipid matrix, erosion control granules, mini-tablets.

Granules and mini-tablets with optional encapsulation

Wet and dry granulation are flexible processes used to produce particles through agglomeration, typically polydisperse and 100 to 500 micrometers in diameter. In addition to being common intermediates to tableting, granulations may also be directly dosed in suspension or encapsulated and can be functionally coated for certain applications. Roller compaction and wet granulation through either extrusion or top spray fluid bed coating is routinely utilized for manufacturing granulated intermediates. These approaches can be used to develop drug products with a range of release profiles, provide dose flexibility, and to administer combination therapies in a single dosing unit.

Mini-tablets are typically 2 to 3-mm tablets produced on a rotary tablet press by direct compression. They can be coated using aqueous or solvent-based films using fluidized-bed or pan coaters and then encapsulated to produce an immediate or modified-release multiparticulate dosage.

Multiparticulate drug delivery system

Taste and odor masking
Delayed release / burst
Controlled release

Meet Jonathan Cape

Head of Multiparticulate Technology

Lonza Bend

“I've had the opportunity to work in multiple technology areas. I've worked in the biologics area and I've done a significant amount of work in the capsule areas as well. Most recently, I've come into the multiparticulate technology area, and that's been really rewarding to be able to work in different fields and make contributions in each one, always maintaining a scientific focus in our work.”

Watch the video to learn more about how Jon and his team are using multiparticulate technology in different functions, ranging from taste masking to controlled and modified release, to improving the stability of compounds.

Services enabled by this technology

Oral Drug Products

We focus on specialty and enhanced drug products with premier capabilities in bioavailability enhancement and low dose/highly potent applications.

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Pediatric Drug Product Development Services

We provide specialized drug product development for pediatric and geriatric populations. Learn more.

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