How microfluidics can make microencapsulation of drugs a reality

Dolomite says it has developed a microfluidics technology which could make microencapsulation more widely accessible for drug manufacturers.

The modular components of the group’s Telos droplet system provide scientists with process control, as well the ability to choose from a range of particle diameters between 10 and 50 µm on a single piece of hardware, according to Dolomite.

PLGA, or poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), is a copolymer commonly used for drug microencapsulation. Precise manipulation of particle size, shape and architecture is extremely important to the efficacy of the candidate drug.

However, conventional emulsion-based batch methods result in uneven API distribution and particle polydispersity, requiring additional size-selection and leading to low particle yields and significant loss of API.

Dolomite says that its continuous flow microfluidic method overcomes these obstacles, providing almost 100 percent encapsulation within precisely controlled, monodisperse PLGA particles, in a single reproducible step.

Mark Gilligan, CEO and founder of Dolomite Microfluidics, said: “For over 15 years, we have been developing microfluidic technologies to enable efficient microencapsulation.

“We understand that uniform API distribution, reproducibility and the ability to scale up are critical in drug delivery applications. With Dolomite technology, microencapsulation has never been easier.”