Investigation of compressibility and compactibility parameters of roller compacted Theophylline and its binary mixtures.

Roller compaction is a dry granulation method which results in tablets with inferior tensile strength comparing to direct compaction. The effect of roller compaction on compressibility and compactibility of tablets prepared from Theophylline anhydrate powder, Theophylline anhydrate fine powder and Theophylline monohydrate was investigated by measuring tensile strength of tablets as well as calculating compressibility and compactibility parameters by Leuenberger equation. The tablets under the same conditions were prepared by direct compaction and roller compaction. The binary mixtures of Theophylline anhydrate powder, Theophylline anhydrate fine powder, Theophylline monohydrate and microcrystalline cellulose were prepared in order to determine the optimal ratio of active material and excipients which delivers a sufficient mechanical strength of tablets. Tensile strength of MCC tablets and compactibility parameters calculated by Leuenberger equation after roller compaction was significantly decreased, while THAP, THAFP and THMO tablets showed only a minor reduction in compactibility and compressibility. Adding MCC to a mixture with Theophylline showed that the right choice and ratio of excipients can enable a sufficient mechanical strength of the tablets after roller compaction.

Impairment of the in vitro release of carbamazepine from tablets.

Carbamazepine belongs to the class II biopharmaceutical classification system (BCS) which is characterized by a high per-oral dose, a low aqueous solubility and a high membrane permeability. The bioavailability of such a drug is limited by the dissolution rate. The present study deals with the formulations of immediate release tablets of poorly soluble carbamazepine. As model tablets for this investigation, two formulations (named "A" and "B" formulations) of carbamazepine tablets labeled to contain 200 mg were evaluated. The aim of this study was to establish possible differences in dissolution profile of these two formulations purchased from the local market. The increased crystallinity together with enlarged particle size, enhanced aggregation and decreased wettability of the drug, resulted in insufficient dissolution rate for formulation "B". From the dissolution point of view, this formulation was inferior to the formulation "A", due to the solubilization effect.

Roller compaction of different pseudopolymorphic forms of theophylline: Effect on compressibility and tablet properties.

The effect of roller compaction on disintegration time, dissolution rate and compressibility of tablets prepared from theophylline anhydrate powder, theophylline anhydrate fine powder and theophylline monohydrate was studied. In addition, the influence of adding microcrystalline cellulose, a commonly used excipient, in mixtures with these materials was investigated. Theophylline anhydrate powder was used as a model drug to investigate the influence of different compaction pressures on the tablet properties. Tablets with same porosity were prepared by direct compaction and by roller compaction/re-compaction. Compressibility was characterized by Heckel and modified Heckel equations. Due to the property of polymorphic materials to change their form during milling and compression, X-ray diffraction analysis of theophylline anhydrate powder, theophylline anhydrate fine powder and theophylline monohydrate powders and granules was carried out. After roller compaction the disintegration time and the dissolution rate of the tablets were significantly improved. Compressibility of theophylline anhydrate powder and theophylline anhydrate fine powder was decreased, while theophylline monohydrate showed higher compressibility after roller compaction. Microcrystalline cellulose affected compressibility of theophylline anhydrate powder, theophylline anhydrate fine powder and theophylline monohydrate whereby the binary mixtures showed higher compressibility than the individual materials. X-ray diffraction analyses confirmed that there were no polymorphic/pseudopolymorphic changes after roller compaction.

Investigation of intrinsic dissolution behavior of different carbamazepine samples.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of the variability of commercially available carbamazepine (CBZ) samples on the intrinsic dissolution behavior in order to recommend a strategy to maintain product quality by monitoring the variability of critical parameters of the bulk drug. Extensive physical characterization of nine anhydrous CBZ samples from three different sources and their respective dihydrates showed that the commercial anhydrous CBZ samples exhibited the same polymorphic form, but different morphology and particle size distribution which led to a variation in the kinetics of conversion from anhydrous to the dihydrate CBZ and therefore to variation in the kinetics of solubility. Disc intrinsic dissolution rate (DIDR) tests showed different intrinsic dissolution behavior of the samples, whereby the transition points of anhydrous to dihydrate conversion varied between 15 and 25 min. On the other hand, converting the anhydrous CBZ's to dihydrate eliminated the variation in intrinsic dissolution behavior. Tablets of the different CBZs and Ludipress were prepared by direct compression. The amount of CBZ dissolved after 15 min showed the same rank order as the rank order of the transition points determined by intrinsic dissolution test. Therefore, the intrinsic dissolution test with specific acceptance criteria can be a valuable and simple tool for monitoring, respectively reducing the variability of the CBZ bulk material.