This paper displays the potential of an in-line PAT system for early phase product development during pharmaceutical continuous manufacturing following a Quality by Design (QbD) framework. Hot melt extrusion (HME) is used as continuous manufacturing process and UV–Vis spectroscopy as an in-line monitoring system. A sequential design of experiments (DoE) (screening, optimisation and verification) was used to gain process understanding for the manufacture of piroxicam (PRX)/Kollidon® VA64 amorphous solid dispersions. The influence of die temperature, screw speed, solid feed rate and PRX concentration on the critical quality attributes (CQAs) absorbance and lightness of color (L*) of the extrudates was investigated using multivariate tools. Statistical analysis results show interaction effects between concentration and temperature on absorbance and L* values. Solid feed rate has a significant effect on absorbance only and screw speed showed least impact on both responses for the screening design. The optimum HME process conditions were confirmed by 4 independent studies to be 20% w/w of PRX, temperature 140 °C, screw speed 200 rpm and feed rate 6 g/min. The in-line UV-Vis system was used to assess the solubility of PRX in Kollidon® VA64 by measuring absorbance and L* values from 230 to 700 nm. Oversaturation was observed for PRX concentrations higher than 20% w/w. Oversaturation can be readily identified as it causes scattering in the visible range. This is observed by a shift of the baseline in the visible part of the spectrum. Extrudate samples were analyzed for degradation using off-line High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) standard methods. Results from off-line experiments using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) are also presented.

A key principle of developing a new medicine is that quality should be built in, with a thorough understanding of the product and the manufacturing process supported by appropriate process controls. Quality by design principles that have been established for the development of drug products/substances can equally be applied to the development of analytical procedures. This paper presents the development and validation of a quantitative method to predict the concentration of piroxicam in Kollidon® VA 64 during hot melt extrusion using analytical quality by design principles. An analytical target profile was established for the piroxicam content and a novel in-line analytical procedure was developed using predictive models based on UV-Vis absorbance spectra collected during hot melt extrusion. Risks that impact the ability of the analytical procedure to measure piroxicam consistently were assessed using failure mode and effect analysis. The critical analytical attributes measured were colour (L* lightness, b* yellow to blue colour parameters—in-process critical quality attributes) that are linked to the ability to measure the API content and transmittance. The method validation was based on the accuracy profile strategy and ICH Q2(R1) validation criteria. The accuracy profile obtained with two validation sets showed that the 95% β-expectation tolerance limits for all piroxicam concentration levels analysed were within the combined trueness and precision acceptance limits set at ±5%. The method robustness was tested by evaluating the effects of screw speed (150–250 rpm) and feed rate (5–9 g/min) on piroxicam content around 15% w/w. In-line UV-Vis spectroscopy was shown to be a robust and practical PAT tool for monitoring the piroxicam content, a critical quality attribute in a pharmaceutical HME process.

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The pharmaceutical industry is constantly evolving. The harmonization of production standards, with the aim of guaranteeing efficacy, safety and quality of medicines, is one of the greatest challenges. The concept of "Quality by design" (QbD) proposes a systematic approach, based on scientific knowledge and risk management associated with the manufacturing process. In this approach, quality is inversely proportional to variability. The implementation of the QbD concept is a promising tool for pharmaceutical production, since it allows the production of medicines by means of risk prediction, increasing the possibility of generating products with efficiency, safety and quality assured, together with the reduction of costs. The implementation of this concept requires not only new technologies, but the change in the concept of quality.Keywords: pharmaceutical processes; quality by design; process analytical techniques. RESUMOO setor farmacêutico está em constante evolução. A harmonização de normas de produção, com o intuído de garantir eficácia, segurança e qualidade dos medicamentos, consiste em um dos maiores desafios. O conceito "qualidade baseada no projeto" (Quality by design, QbD) propõe uma abordagem sistemática, fundamentada no conhecimento científico e no gerenciamento do risco associado ao processo de fabricação. Nesta abordagem, qualidade é inversamente proporcional a variabilidade. A implementação do conceito de QbD constitui uma ferramenta promissora para a produção farmacêutica pois permite a produção de medicamentos por meio da previsão de riscos, ampliando a possibilidade de gerar produtos com eficácia, segurança e qualidade assegurados, aliado a redução de custos. A implementação deste conceito exige não somente novas tecnologias, mas a mudança no conceito de qualidade.Palavras-chave: processos farmacêuticos; qualidade baseada no projeto; técnicas analíticas de processo INTRODUÇÃO A produção de medicamentos inclui uma série de processos farmacêuticos, caracterizados por uma sequência de operações unitárias, que realizam transformações químicas ou físicas em matérias-primas, com o fim de gerar produtos com eficácia, segurança e qualidade assegurados (1). Estabelecidos durante o desenvolvimento dos produtos, os processos farmacêuticos devem ser submetidos a aprovação por órgãos regulatórios para concessão de registro de comercialização, o qual assegura que a empresa comprovou ter condições de fornecer produtos de qualidade desejada de forma consistente, conforme as exigências regulatórias (2,3).Apesar do rigor das agências regulatórias na elaboração de normas e guias para a produção farmacêutica, estes requerimentos apresentam limitações, e falhas nos processos farmacêuticos são comumente observadas, o