Sample Preparation of Posaconazole Oral Suspensions for Identification of the Crystal Form of the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient

Abstract

Determination of the polymorphic form of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in a suspension could be really challenging because of the water phase and the low concentration of the API in this formulation. Posaconazole is an antifungal drug available also as an oral suspension. The aim of this study was to develop a sample-preparation method for polymorphic identification of the dispersed API by increasing the concentration of the API but with no compromise of polymorph stability. For this purpose, filtration, drying and centrifugation were tested for separating the API from the suspending medium. Centrifugation was selected because it succeeded in separating Posaconazole API with no polymorph transformation during the process. During this study, it was found that Posaconazole in oral suspensions is Form-S. However, when slower scanning rates were used for acquiring an XRPD pattern with better signal/noise ratio, Posaconazole was converted to Form I due to water loss. In order to protect the sample from conversion, different approaches were tested to secure an airtight sample including a commercially available XRPD sample holder with a dome-like transparent cap, standard polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) sample holders covered with Mylar film, transparent pressure-sensitive tape and a transparent food membrane. Only usage of the transparent food membrane was found to protect the API from conversion for a period of at least two weeks and resulted in a Posaconazole Form-S XRPD pattern with no artificial peaks.

Formation and Characterisation of Posaconazole Hydrate Form

“…Posaconazole Form I was stable in all mixtures apart from the mixture of posaconazole Form I with water. The characteristic peaks of posaconazole Form-S at 10.2° and 24.6° 2-theta, as described in our previous study [ 30 ] were detected ( Figure 1 Form I AD). Therefore, the only excipient responsible for the polymorphic transition of posaconazole Form I to posaconazole Form-S was found to be water.…”

“…Posaconazole Form I, which is the thermodynamically stable polymorph of posaconazole, is mainly used for the production of posaconazole oral suspensions. Nevertheless, in the oral suspensions, posaconazole is detected as Form-S, as already mentioned in the introductory section, which was converted back to Form I upon evaporation of the liquid constitiuents [ 30 ]. In order to investigate the reasons for this polymorphic transition in the oral suspensions, posaconazole API Form I was mixed with each excipient, separately, in the exact ratios used for the production of posaconazole oral suspensions ( Table 1 ) [ 14 ].…”

“…Among these polymorphic forms and solvates of posaconazole, crystalline Form I is mainly used as raw material for manufacturing posaconazole oral suspensions [ 29 ]. However, it has already been demonstrated that a conversion of posaconazole Form I to Form-S is observed in the oral suspensions [ 30 ]. The reasons for this polymorphic transition, though, have not been elucidated previously, while no other information for posaconazole Form-S is available except for its XRPD pattern [ 26 , 30 ].…”

“…However, it has already been demonstrated that a conversion of posaconazole Form I to Form-S is observed in the oral suspensions [ 30 ]. The reasons for this polymorphic transition, though, have not been elucidated previously, while no other information for posaconazole Form-S is available except for its XRPD pattern [ 26 , 30 ].…”