Capsugel has unveiled its Vcaps Enteric capsule delivery system that provides enteric protection and delayed drug release without the need for functional coating.
The new capsules were designed to complement Capsugel’s enTRinsic delivery technology that debuted last year, the company said.
The pill technology incorporates enteric polymers to form the primary capsule structure, which the company expects will accelerate both drug development and get them to market faster while also reducing costs.
Intrinsically enteric capsule technology can trim up to 6 months of development time through Phase I and by more than 12 months through Phase III for acid-sensitive or gastric-irritating compounds.
"Finding better ways to deliver drugs to the small intestine, formulate acid-sensitive active ingredients and protect the stomach are significant challenges for the biopharmaceutical industry,” Keith Hutchison, senior vice president of R&D for Capsugel, said in a statement. “In this case, we are standardizing the enteric barrier and bypassing the need for film coat development and the process scale-up steps that can be involved with enteric coating."
Vcaps Enteric capsules are capable of delivering a wide range of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), while the enTRinsic Drug Delivery Technology can be used for APIs with high acid or enzyme sensitivity, such as certain peptides, proteins, vaccines and microbiomes. Both solutions are composed of approved pharmaceutical grades of cellulose-based derivatives that provide enteric protection.
- here’s the release
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