Eurand Pharmaceuticals, Ltd.

Eurand America, Inc.

Aptalis Pharmatech, Inc.

Adare Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Shire Pharmaceuticals Ireland Limited

Phillip J Percel

Gopi M Venkatesh

Krishna S Vishnupad

Thomas C Powell

Marie Jean Bettman

Der Yang Lee

Dan L Hensley

Marie J Bettman

A unit dosage form, such as a capsule or the like for delivering drugs into the body in a circadian release fashion, is comprising of one or more populations of propranolol-containing particles (beads, pellets, granules, etc.). Each bead population exhibits a pre-designed rapid or sustained release profile with or without a predetermined lag time of 3 to 5 hours. Such a circadian rhythm release cardiovascular drug delivery system is designed to provide a plasma concentration&#x2014;time profile, which varies according to physiological need during the day, i.e., mimicking the circadian rhythm and severity/manifestation of a cardiovascular disease, predicted based on pharmaco-kinetic and pharmaco-dynamic considerations and in vitro/in vivo correlations.

Timed, sustained release systems for propranolol

A unit dosage form, such as a capsule or the like for delivering drugs into the body in a circadian release fashion, is comprising of one or more populations of propranolol-containing particles (beads, pellets, granules, etc.). Each bead population exhibits a pre-designed rapid or sustained release profile with or without a predetermined lag time of 3 to 5 hours. Such a circadian rhythm release cardiovascular drug delivery system is designed to provide a plasma concentration-time profile, which varies according to physiological need during the day, i.e., mimicking the circadian rhythm and severity/manifestation of a cardiovascular disease, predicted based on pharmaco-kinetic and pharmaco-dynamic considerations and in vitro/in vivo correlations.

A unit dosage form, such as a capsule or the like for delivering drugs into the body in a sustained release fashion similar to that produced by INDERAL&#xae; LA indicated for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, comprises two populations of propranolol-containing particles (beads, pellets, granules, etc.). Each bead population exhibits a pre-designed rapid release profile (i.e., substantially complete release within 60 minutes) or sustained release profile over a period of 24 hours. Such a cardiovascular drug delivery system is designed by combining immediate release (IR) beads and sustained release (SR) beads. SR beads may be obtained by membrane coating IR beads with a water-insoluble polymer such as ethylcellulose or a mixture of a water insoluble polymer and a water-soluble polymer such as hydroxypropylcellulose at a ratio of from about 65/35 to 95/5.

Extended release dosage forms of propranolol hydrochloride

A pharmaceutical dosage form such as a capsule capable of delivering therapeutic agents into the body in a time-controlled or position-controlled pulsatile release fashion, is composed of a multitude of multicoated particulates (beads, pellets, granules, etc.) made of one or more populations of beads. Each of these beads except an immediate release bead has at least two coated membrane barriers. One of the membrane barriers is composed of an enteric polymer while the second membrane barrier is composed of a mixture of water insoluble polymer and an enteric polymer. The composition and the thickness of the polymeric membrane barriers determine the lag time and duration of drug release from each of the bead populations. Optionally, an organic acid containing intermediate membrane may be applied for further modifying the lag time and/or the duration of drug release. The pulsatile delivery may comprise one or more pulses to provide a plasma concentration-time profile for a therapeutic agent, predicted based on both its pharmaco-kinetic and pharmaco-dynamic considerations and in vitro/in vivo correlations.

Timed pulsatile drug delivery systems

A unit dosage form, such as a capsule or the like for delivering drugs into the body in a circadian release fashion, is comprising of one or more populations of propranolol-containing particles (beads, pellets, granules, etc.). Each bead population exhibits a pre-designed rapid or sustained release profile with or without a predetermined lag time of 3 to 5 hours. Such a circadian rhythm release cardiovascular drug delivery system is designed to provide a plasma concentration&mdash;time profile, which varies according to physiological need during the day, i.e., mimicking the circadian rhythm and severity/manifestation of a cardiovascular disease, predicted based on pharmaco-kinetic and pharmaco-dynamic considerations and in vitro/in vivo correlations.

The present invention provides taste-masked microcapsules of Linezolid or the like (any member of the orally effective oxazolidinone or macrolide antibiotics), suitable for oral administration as a suspension, a fast-disintegrating, effervescent or chewable tablet, and more specifically relates to such oral dosage forms in which the bitter taste of Linezolid contained therein is masked by a combination of microencapsulation by solvent coacervation and subsequent functional membrane coating on said microcapsules. The taste-masked granules thus obtained release less than 5%, most preferably less than 3%, at a pH of 4.0 to 6.0 (pH of the saliva) but rapidly release (as a burst) at pHs of the upper intestinal tract. The taste-masked granules are optionally blended with other pharmaceutically acceptable excipients and filled into unit dose containers or compressed into fast-disintegrating/effervescent/chewable tablets. The contents of the Linezolid unit dose containers are suspended in an aqueous medium prior to oral administration to pediatric and geriatric patients, who are unwilling and/or find it difficult to swallow Linezolid tablets. In contrast, fast-disintegrating tablets on administration without water rapidly disperse into taste masked granules in the mouth.

Functional coating of linezolid microcapsules for taste-masking and associated formulation for oral administration

A pharmaceutical MR (modified release) multiparticulate dosage form such as a capsule (once-a-day MR Capsule) of Methylphenidate indicated for the treatment of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), capable of delivering a portion of the dose for rapid onset of action and the remainder of the dose in a controlled manner for about 12 hours, is composed of a multitude of multicoated particles made of two populations of drug layered beads, IR (immediate release) and ER (extended release) Beads. The IR beads preferably are made by layering an aqueous solution comprising a drug and a binder on to non-pareil sugar spheres and then applying a seal coat to the drug coated cores. The ER Beads are made by applying an extended release coating of a water insoluble dissolution rate controlling polymer such as ethylcellulose to IR Beads. The MR Capsules are manufactured by filling IR and ER Beads in a proper ratio; the dose and the ratio required for an efficacious, cost effective and patient compliant treatment of children with ADHD were determined from extensive clinical investigations and in vitro- in vivo correlations performed as per FDA Guidelines, Guidance for Industry: Extended Release Oral Dosage Forms.

Methylphenidate modified release formulations

Taste masked effervescent microcapsules are provided each microcapsule containing an effervescent admixture of sodium bicarbonate and citric acid microencapsulated with ethylcellulose, the effervescent microcapsules being useful in formulating taste masked effervescent chewable tablets also containing microencapsulated, unpleasant tasting drugs such as non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory, NSAID drugs.

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Troy, OH, United States of America

Phillip J Percel