Fused deposition modeling of API-loaded mesoporous magnesium carbonate

Abstract: In this thesis, the incorporation of drug loaded mesoporous magnesium carbonate as an excipient for the additive manufacturing of oral tablets by fused deposition modeling was investigated. Cinnarizine, a BCS class II drug, was loaded into the pores of the mesoporous material via a soaking method, corresponding to a drug loading of 8.68 wt%. DSC measurements on the loaded material suggested that the drug was partially crystallized after incorporation, meanwhile the XRD diffractogram implied that the drug was in a state lacking long range order. The drug loaded material was combined with two pharmaceutical polymers, Aquasolve LG and Klucel ELF, and extruded into filaments with a single screw extruder. Filaments of Klucel ELF and drug loaded Upsalite (30:70 wt% ratio) were successfully implemented for the printing oral tablets, in contrast to the Aquasolve LG based filaments which were difficult to print due to thickness variations and non-uniform material distributions. The drug content obtained by TGA suggested drug loadings of 7.71 wt% and 2.23 wt% in the drug loaded Upsalite and tablets respectively. Dissolution studies using an USP II apparatus showed a slower API-release from the tablets in comparison to the crystalline drug, most probably due to slow diffusion of drug species through the polymeric matrix. For future studies, pharmaceutical polymers with higher aqueous solubility should be investigated in order to thoroughly examine the potential of utilizing the immediate release property of Upsalite.