The objective of this study was to identify critical formulation and processing variables affecting aggregation of bovine IgG during freeze-drying when no lyoprotective solute is used. Parameters examined were phosphate buffer concentration and counterion (Na versus K phosphate), added salts, cooling rate, IgG concentration, residual moisture level, and presence of a surfactant. No soluble aggregates were detected in any formulation after either freezing/thawing or freeze-drying. No insoluble aggregates were detected in any formulation after freezing, but insoluble aggregate levels were always detectable after freeze-drying. The data are consistent with a mechanism of aggregate formation involving denaturation of IgG at the ice/freeze-concentrate interface which is reversible upon freeze-thawing, but becomes irreversible after freeze-drying and reconstitution. Rapid cooling (by quenching in liquid nitrogen) results in more and larger aggregates than slow cooling on the shelf of the freeze-dryer. This observation is consistent with surface area measurements and environmental electron microscopic data showing a higher surface area of freeze-dried solids after fast cooling. Annealing of rapidly cooled solutions results in significantly less aggregation in reconstituted freeze-dried solids than in nonannealed controls, with a corresponding decrease in specific surface area of the freeze-dried, annealed system. Increasing the concentration of IgG significantly improves the stability of IgG against freeze-drying-induced aggregation, which may be explained by a smaller percentage of the protein residing at the ice/freeze-concentrate interface as IgG concentration is increased. A sodium phosphate buffer system consistently results in more turbid reconstituted solids than a potassium phosphate buffer system at the same concentration, but this effect is not attributable to a pH shift during freezing. Added salts such as NaCl or KCl contribute markedly to insoluble aggregate formation. Both sodium and potassium chloride contribute more to turbidity of the reconstituted solid than either sodium or potassium phosphate buffers at similar ionic strength, with sodium chloride resulting in a substantially higher level of aggregates than potassium chloride. At a given cooling rate, the specific surface area of dried solids is approximately a factor of 2 higher for the formulation containing sodium chloride than the formulation containing potassium chloride. Turbidity is also influenced by the extent of secondary drying, which underscores the importance of minimizing secondary drying of this system. Including a surfactant such as polysorbate 80, either in the formulation or in the water used for reconstitution, decreased, but did not eliminate, insoluble aggregates. There was no correlation between pharmaceutically acceptability of the freeze-dried cake and insoluble aggregate levels in the reconstituted product.

The inherent instability of many proteins during freeze-drying and storage necessitates the addition of excipients to protect the proteins. It is emphasized in the literature that lyophilized sugar/protein composites should be stored at temperatures below their glass transition temperature (T(g)) to prevent crystallization of excipients. The influence of bovine somatotropin (rbSt) concentration on inhibition of sucrose crystallization at different relative humidities (RH) was of interest. Thermally modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC) was used to measure T(g) and sucrose crystallization temperatures (T(c)) of the composites. Sorption isotherms of the various sucrose/rbSt mixtures were determined gravimetrically with a controlled atmosphere microbalance (CAM) and verified by Karl Fischer analysis of selected samples. The CAM was also used to determine lag times and sucrose crystal growth rates by monitoring weight losses resulting from water liberation upon crystallization of sucrose at 23 degrees C. Results obtained by MDSC indicate that the T(c) increased linearly from approximately 110 degrees C for pure sucrose to approximately 140 degrees C with 20% rbSt at very low water content (<0.1%). Similarly, at 22% RH (4.4% H2O), T(c) increased from approximately 70 degrees C to 120 degrees C. In neither case was T(g) impacted significantly by increasing protein from 0 to 20%. No T(c) could be noted for samples with > or = 30% rbSt in nonisothermal conditions. Plasticization by water decreased both T(g) and T(c) quite similarly but didn't impact the noted effect of protein on T(c). Induction time for sucrose crystallization (i.e. nucleation) at approximately 45% RH (23 degrees C) increased almost 10-fold by addition of 10% rbSt, whereas rates of water loss due to crystallization decreased by no more than 2-3-fold. The overall results strongly indicate that formulations of higher protein concentration will be more resistant to sucrose crystallization and thus more robust when transiently exposed to storage temperatures above their T(g).