Feeling ill? Take a Polymer Pill!
Nanomedicine Research Group, ICTMumbai
Nanomedicine Research Group at ICT is doing disruptive research in the area of applied biotechnology
Disease- the word itself makes us feel very unpleasant, doesn’t it? Feeling weak, helpless, and having your loved ones worry make us want to avoid any disease. All of us, at some time point, have been affected due to minor health ailments and have recovered with the help of pharmaceutical drugs that are readily over-the-counter or are prescribed by our doctors. However, there are some diseases that affect very few people, and their treatments are not readily available. Such diseases are known as orphan diseases, which are rare as they affect very few people. Their prevalence is only about 6.5-10 in 10,000. Examples of such orphan diseases include cystic fibrosis, Lou Gehrig's disease, Job syndrome, acromegaly, gigantism etc. Since the number of people affected by these diseases and hence needing treatment is very low, pharmaceutical drug manufacturers are not incentivised to produce these drugs. Moreover, manufacturing drugs and their dosage forms in the pharmaceutical industry is mostly done on a large scale. Thus, we now have a unique problem to deal with,? that is we need medicines for people with special requirements but we do not have the resources to make them efficiently. However, technological developments have provided solutions to these challenges!
The 3D printing technology allows researchers to fabricate structures with the desired and intricate specifications. Moreover, it enables consistent production of such structures, with a lot of precision, and can be used to produce them even on a small scale. Since every 3-D printed structure is produced individually, it is suitable for small-scale production. Furthermore, capability for customization makes it highly suitable for tailoring them as per individual requirements. Our PhD scholar Ms. Pankti Ganatra is working on personalised manufacturing of pharmaceutical tablets, using the 3D printing technology, to help people afflicted with rare diseases. Through her research, she hopes to develop a 3D printer that may facilitate an easy, quick and foolproof way of developing medications for people afflicted with rare diseases.?
Throughout her doctoral tenure, Pankti studied various polymers and tried to determine the conditions that would allow them to be used for making tablets. She presented her work with two polymers, viz. Klucel and Affinisol. Tablets of these polymers were prepared using the hot melt extrusion technique, wherein the polymers were melted and then extruded into a tablet form via a tool known as an auger. Pankti optimised a special design for the auger so that polymer could be smoothly extruded and also evaluated different polymers in forms like powders and granules for loading into the hot melt extrusion system.?
Also, Pankti is working with 3D printing of gummies using the polymer, pectin, as a vehicle for the drug, simethicone, which is used to manage flatulence. Gummies are a highly customisable way to deliver drugs and their shape, size and colour can be changed easily, which makes them appealing to patients across all age groups. She has? developed an optimum formulation of pectin and simethicone to produce a gummy and then optimised 3-D printing parameters to ensure that the resulting gummy is printed with a good resolution, which can be achieved by minimising movements of the printer nozzle while depositing the material. After printing the gummies, she analysed their characteristics like hardness, chewiness, resilience and gumminess.?
Pankti ended her presentation by listing the publications from her research! She is currently filing a patent for the design of the auger that she has developed for the hot melt extrusion of her polymer tablets. With her research, Pankti contributes to the efforts of researchers who are developing medications for rare diseases! We wish her the very best!
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?References:?
Pankti’s Publications:
Hey there! ?? It's incredible what you're doing. As Steve Jobs once said, "The only way to do great work is to love what you do." Keep chasing what sets your soul on fire, and you'll illuminate the path for others. ???? Keep shining!
Specialist and consultant in analytical instrumentation. HPLC is my first love, though!
1 年Very interesting work. There will be regulatory hurdles to overcome before personalised 3D printing of pharmaceuticals becomes available commercially, but the technical feasibility is amply demonstrated in your work. While on the subject, you may want to consider 3D printing of nutraceuticals and/or dietary supplements. The regulatory requirements may not be as stringent as mainline pharmaceuticals.