Microfluidics Unveils Breakthrough Microfluidics Reaction Technology for Drug Formulation

Microfluidics presented a significant discovery in their development program called Microfluidics Reaction Technology (MRT) during a poster presentation at the Nano Science and Technology Institute (NSTI) Nanotech 2007 Conference on Tuesday, May 22, 2007. MRT provides the next-generation in nanosuspension processes to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies develop and ultimately manufacture difficult to formulate drugs.

“The advent of MRT could potentially unlock uncounted drugs, vaccines and drug delivery systems that to date could not be formulated. It provides a critical advancement in the field of drug formulation and positions MFIC as a clear technology leader,” said Bob Bruno, President & COO. “We anticipate introducing a line of equipment to facilitate the MRT process in the fourth quarter of this year, providing our customers with an additional effective and efficient solution for the creation of promising, new therapeutics.”

MRT advances the manufacturing of nanosuspensions “bottom up” by chemical reactions or physical processes such as crystallization. It has been demonstrated for a variety of drugs using solvent and anti-solvent crystallization. This approach allows for a greater ability to control the growth rates of nanoparticles to produce uniform, optimally-sized nanoparticles in a more efficient, cost-effective manner. Conventional “top down” processes reduce particle sizes to the nano-level through a process of wet-milling, homogenization, micronization, and other techniques. MRT works by pumping liquid reactants through a coaxial feed system within a Microfluidizer® reaction chamber, which is based on impinging jet principals. The system provides precise control of the feed rate and mixing location.

“Through the use of MRT, MFIC engineers were able to produce nanosuspensions for several drugs, including two antibiotics, an antihistamine, an anticonvulsant and a non-steroidal antiinflammatory,” said Dr. Thomai Panagiotou, Vice President of Research and Development and the lead investigator and presenter of the study. “Importantly, MRT was demonstrated to be more effective in producing nanosuspensions than standard, particle size reducing methods,” concluded Dr. Panagiotou.

The MRT technology and applications are outlined in the poster presented at the NSTI meeting.