Molecular interactions between the
active pharmaceutical ingredient
and polymer have potentially substantial impacts on the physical stability
of amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs), presumably by manipulating
molecular mobility and miscibility. However, structural details for
understanding the nature of the molecular contacts and mechanistic
roles in various physicochemical and thermodynamic events often remain
unclear. This study provides a spectroscopic characterization of posaconazole
(POSA) formulations, a second-generation triazole antifungal drug
(Noxafil, Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA), at molecular
resolution. One- and two-dimensional (2D) solid-state NMR (ssNMR)
techniques including spectral editing, heteronuclear 1H–13C, 19F–13C, 15N–13C, and 19F–1H polarization transfer,
and spin correlation and ultrafast magic angle spinning, together
with the isotopic labeling strategy, were utilized to uncover molecular
details in POSA ASDs in a site-specific manner. Active groups in triazole
and difluorophenyl rings exhibited rich but distinct categories of
interactions with two polymers, hypromellose acetate succinate and
hypromellose phthalate, including intermolecular O–H···OC
and O–H···F–C hydrogen bonding, π–π
aromatic packing, and electrostatic interaction. Interestingly, the
chlorine-to-fluorine substituent in POSA, one of the major structural
differences from itraconazole that could facilitate binding to the
biological target, offers an additional contact with the polymer.
These findings exhibit 2D ssNMR as a sensitive technique for probing
sub-nanometer structures of pharmaceutical materials and provide a
structural basis for optimizing the type and strength of drug–polymer
interactions in the design of amorphous formulations.