Utilizing differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) solutions a phase diagram was constructed for the TBA-water system. By utilizing thermal treatment during the DSC measurements the metastable states were eliminated. The phase diagram fit that for a congruently melting compound in which compound formation occurred with a maximum at 70% TBA representing pure TBA hydrate. Two eutectics occurred at 20% (Eutectic A) and 90% (Eutectic B). A freeze-drying microscope revealed that TBA altered the crystal habit of ice. A concentration of 3% TBA was required before large needle-shaped ice crystals became evident. The addition of 10% TBA to the system resulted in even finer needle-shaped ice crystals. At the eutectic compositions (20% and 90% TBA), the frozen eutectic mixture could not be resolved with the microscope because eutectic crystals are very small. The 70% TBA solution, which corresponds to the melting of pure TBA hydrate, formed very large hydrate crystals. The rate of sublimation of the TBA and water molecules was found to be concentration dependent. At concentrations below 20% TBA (water rich portion of the phase diagram) water molecules sublimed faster while at concentrations above 20% TBA (TBA rich portion of the phase diagram) TBA molecules sublimed faster. At the eutectic A composition, both TBA and water molecules sublimed at the same rate. This may be because all of the TBA molecules are strongly associated with each other in the form of a clathrate hydrate.
The objective of this study was to characterize the thermal properties of systems containing various ratios of amorphous and crystalline components using both differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and freeze-drying microscopy. The glycine/sucrose system was used as a model system, since it is routinely used in protein formulations. DSC analysis revealed that the addition of glycine to sucrose solutions resulted in a decrease in the glass transition (T'g) of the system. The T'g of a pure sucrose solution (7% w/v) decreased from -32.3 to -51.5 degrees C for a mixture containing a sucrose/glycine ratio of 2:5. The glass transition of the sucrose/glycine mixture decreased linearly as more glycine was added to the system. This decrease in glass transition resulted in severe collapse during freeze-drying of these mixtures above T'g. However, collapse was not observed during freeze-drying if the DSC thermogram of the sucrose/glycine mixture exhibited a transition resulting from recrystallization of the amorphous glycine. Mixtures having a sucrose/glycine ratio of 3:4 and 2:5 had a glass transition of -48 degrees C and -51.5 degrees C, respectively. Despite their low glass transition temperatures, these samples freeze-dried readily at a product temperature > T'g using a fast freeze-drying cycle (primary drying at a shelf temperature of +20 degrees C and chamber pressure of 100 mTorr) without any sign of collapse. The crystallization of the amorphous glycine from the frozen mixture of sucrose and glycine provided support during freeze-drying which prevented the macroscopic collapse of the final product. Freeze-drying microscopy visually revealed the crystallization and allowed for prediction of cake quality upon lyophilization. Although the freeze-drying microscope is not as sensitive as the DSC in detecting all transitions (it cannot detect a glass transition), it clarifies the interpretation of DSC, and together they provide valuable information regarding the relevance of each of the transitions to the final freeze-dried product elegance.
The addition of low concentrations of tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) (3-10% w/v) was shown to influence the crystal habit of ice by causing the formation of needle-shaped ice crystals. The sublimation of these needle-shaped ice crystals resulted in a dry product layer with little resistance. Using a microbalance technique it was shown that the primary drying stage for 5% w/v sucrose solution was considerably shorter when 5% w/v TBA was added due to a lower resistance of the dried cake above the frozen solution. In the absence of TBA the frozen solution had an initially high resistance of approximately 60 cm2 torr hr/gm due to the formation of a skin; once the skin cracked the resistance reached a constant value of 10 cm2 torr hr/gm. The solution containing TBA had a dried product resistance in the range of 0.5-3 cm2 torr hr/gm. The total time required to dry the product in the absence of TBA in the microbalance was 100 hours as compared to 10 hours for the solution containing 5% w/v TBA. The specific surface area of the freeze-dried cake produced from a 5% w/v sucrose solution containing 5% w/v TBA was 8.57 m2/gm as compared to 0.67 m2/gm for solutions not containing TBA. The addition of TBA to the sucrose solution did not change the collapse temperature, but the rapid rate of sublimation prevented the product from ever reaching the collapse temperature.
The purpose of this study was to develop a long-acting injectable formulation of bG-CSF for veterinary use. However, in order to achieve sustained in vivo activity it was first necessary to stabilize the protein at the injection site. Preformulation studies, as well as literature, suggest that bG-CSF aggregates at neutral pH ranges (i.e., pH 6-8) and at temperatures of approximately 40 degrees C. Therefore, bG-CSF will not retain its activity for an extended period of time at the injection site. During this study we determined that HEPES buffer has a very significant impact on protein stability as well as on biological performance. Recombinant bovine granulocyte colony stimulating factor (rbG-CSF) was formulated in 1 M HEPES buffer for subcutaneous injection into cows. bG-CSF formulated in 1 M HEPES buffer resulted in sustained in vivo activity of bG-CSF compared to the "control" formulation (control formulation: 5% mannitol, 10 mM acetate buffer, 0.004% tween-80, pH 4). White blood cell (WBC) count was used as a marker to evaluate in vivo activity of the formulation. WBC numbers remained above a threshold value for only 24-30 h for the control formula. However, when bG-CSF was formulated in 1 M HEPES, the WBC remained above threshold for 3 days or 72 h. Formulating bG-CSF in 1 M HEPES at pH 7.5 also resulted in greater solution stability. This was surprising since bG-CSF is intrinsically not stable at neutral pH. The effect of 1 M HEPES on the T(M) (temperature at maximum heat flow on calorimetry scan) of bG-CSF was determined by microcalorimetry. In the absence of 1 M HEPES buffer the T(M) was 48 degrees C (onset approximately 40 degrees C), while bG-CSF formulated in 1 M HEPES buffer has a T(M) of 59 degrees C (onset approximately 50 degrees C). Similar organic buffers, such as MOPS, HEPPS, TES, and tricine, also resulted in improved solution stability as well as in sustained in vivo activity. The dramatic effect of these buffers on stability and biological performance of bG-CSF is not well understood. One hypothesis is that the electrostatic interaction between the zwitterionic form of these buffers and bG-CSF provides stabilization against denaturation.
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