Foster Delivery Science has added comprehensive lab services in an effort to expedite the screening of early stage formulations, process development, and post-extrusion studies of solid dose drug delivery forms using hot melt extrusion (HME). The company’s analytical services include thermal analysis, spectroscopy, and chromatography equipment specifically designed for solid oral doses produced from this method.
 
Foster’s new thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) equipment allow for screening of drug-polymer combinations with suitable mixing characteristics. With the addition of analytical services, the company is able to provide rapid screening of drug-polymer candidates suitable for HME, and leverage this information to establish extrusion conditions for initial trials. With this approach the company aims to enhance evaluation and development time of dosage forms using HME.
 
“We have more than two decades of HME experience in healthcare applications, and in the pharmaceutical industry there are really no other contract service providers that focus only on this process for solid dose drug delivery. The addition of in-house characterization services allows us to accelerate time to market for our customers with rapid data-based decision making throughout the development cycle,” said Tony Listro, managing director at Foster Delivery Science.