Lubrizol Life Science Health (LLS Health)’s Joey Glassco, MBA, senior global market manager for Injectable Drug Delivery, and Nick DiFranco, MEM, global market segment manager for Oral Treatments share the API solubility puzzle that the pharma industry faces and how to solve it.
Key insights:
- When selecting a drug formulation method, factors such as properties of the API, intended final dosage form, and commercialisation need to be considered.
- An API that exhibits poor solubility will need a higher dosing or more frequent administration to achieve the desired therapeutic effect, which can increase the incidence of side effects.
- Excipients, such as the polyamino acid-based polymers developed by Lubrizol, have been designed for low usage levels, minimising the risk of side effects.
Solubility continues to challenge the pharma industry. The growth of poorly soluble active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and new chemical entities (NCEs) in the drug pipeline are well known. However, as the sector looks to meet the therapeutic demands of a growing and ageing population, it’s necessary to readdress solubility and investigate new solutions.