Application and Multi-Stage Optimization of Daylight Polymer 3D Printing of Personalized Medicine Products

Abstract

Additive technologies have undoubtedly become one of the most intensively developing manufacturing methods in recent years. Among the numerous applications, the interest in 3D printing also includes its application in pharmacy for production of small batches of personalized drugs. For this reason, we conducted multi-stage pre-formulation studies to optimize the process of manufacturing solid dosage forms by photopolymerization with visible light. Based on tests planned and executed according to the design of the experiment (DoE), we selected the optimal quantitative composition of photocurable resin made of PEG 400, PEGDA MW 575, water, and riboflavin, a non-toxic photoinitiator. In subsequent stages, we adjusted the printer set-up and process parameters. Moreover, we assessed the influence of the co-initiators ascorbic acid or triethanolamine on the resin’s polymerization process. Next, based on an optimized formulation, we printed and analyzed drug-loaded tablets containing mebeverine hydrochloride, characterized by a gradual release of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), reaching 80% after 6 h. We proved the possibility of reusing the drug-loaded resin that was not hardened during printing and determined the linear correlation between the volume of the designed tablets and the amount of API, confirming the possibility of printing personalized modified-release tablets.

3D Printing Technology as a Promising Tool to Design Nanomedicine-Based Solid Dosage Forms: Contemporary Research and Future Scope

“…Personalized medicine entails tailoring drug treatment, dosing intervals, drug combinations, and drug release rates to account for individual needs [ 72 ]. Nanotechnology, on the other hand, has played a key role in the development of novel drug delivery systems to meet the needs of individuals, contrary to the ‘one-size-fits-all’ hypothesis.…”

Natural and Naturally Derived Photoinitiating Systems for Light-Based 3D Printing

“…Pyteraf et al studied the use of vitamin C instead of TEOHA as co-initiator for RF in LCD 3D printing of mebeverine hydrochloride loaded hydrogels, and concluded that it leads to irregular, unreproducible results. 38 Furthermore, RF can be used to fabricate bioscaffolds for tissue engineering. Riboflavin-5'-phosphate (the coenzyme flavin mononucleotide, FMN) with TEOHA was applied in 2PLP of PEGDA to yield biocompatible scaffolds with high printing precision.…”

“…Additionally, recent works have been taken advantage of the biocompatibility of RF to produce hydrogels for extended and/or controlled drug release. [34][35][36][37][38] Martinez et al used the RF-TEOHA system for the fabrication of SLA 3D-printed ibuprofen-loaded PEGDA hydrogels. 34 Along these lines, Madzarevic et al prepared ibuprofen-loaded hydrogel tablets using DLP and LCD 3D printing at 405 nm.…”

“…Pyteraf et al studied the use of vitamin C instead of TEOHA as a co-initiator for RF in LCD 3D printing of mebeverine hydrochloride-loaded hydrogels, and concluded that it leads to irregular, unreproducible results. 38…”