Patent Application
20230053622
This invention relates to a nicotine lozenge giving an immediate release and uptake of nicotine and an extended release and uptake of nicotine as well as describing suitable manufacturing processes for such lozenge formulations and the use of the lozenge for the treatment of a human being suffering from cravings from tobacco and/or e-cigarette dependency.
According to WHO about six million people die from smoking related diseases each year, even though there are products (medicines) on the market to help a smoker to quit smoking; products such as e.g. nicotine comprising chewing gums, lozenges, sprays and transdermal patches.
One traditional way to produce a lozenge is to create a complex of nicotine with a cation exchange resin and to add this complex to a lozenge formulation.
Such lozenges are available on the market since many years, sold under, for example the trade mark Nicorette®. However, there are consumers that are looking for nicotine products (medicines) that could provide faster craving relief, closer to the craving relief of a cigarette and thus there is still an opportunity to develop new nicotine lozenges that could satisfy this population of consumers using tobacco and/or e-cigarettes.
One product on the market giving rise to a faster craving relief is the NicoretteTM QuickMistTM, a mouth spray to be applied to the oral mucosa, from which the nicotine compound is readily absorbed into the blood stream to give a fast craving relief.
WO2008140372 discloses a lozenge having nicotine in the core and with a coating wherein there is one or more amino acids in the coatings that acts as a buffer. The application is silent about nicotine in another portion/layer.
WO2007133141 discloses different formats wherein the examples disclose chewing gum and tablet. None of the examples discloses that nicotine should be present in two parts of the format.
However, there are consumers who could benefit from products that could provide both a fast and more prolonged craving relief from one and the same product.
The inventors have been exploring the possibility to create a lozenge giving rise to an immediate as well as an extended release and uptake of nicotine, while the lozenge still has good taste and palatability. To provide an immediate release and uptake from a nicotine lozenge product, the inventors approach has been to apply nicotine in a more readily available nicotine salt form, such as nicotine bitartrate or nicotine ditartrate dihydrate comprised in at least one outer layer/portion on the surface of a nicotine lozenge.
The pKa for nicotine is approximately 7.8. It is well known that the uncharged (free base form) could more easily and faster enter biological membranes, such as the oral mucosa, to obtain a fast systemic uptake, compared to the nicotine in its positively charged acid form.
Thus, if an acid drug salt like nicotine bitartrate is co-formulated in a product in such a way that the product also contains some readily available and fast released buffer(s), that are present in at least one film coating or at least one portion/layer on a lozenge, the buffer(s) can rapidly and transiently increase the pH of the solvent (in this case saliva) in order to convert nicotine into its' free base form resulting in a faster absorption of the nicotine released from at least one coating or portion/layer on the surface of a nicotine lozenge.
The average pH of the human saliva is normally just about 6-7.5.
By selecting and adding some readily and fast released buffer(s) to the at least one coating, or at least one portion/layer, a fast pH increase of the saliva of approximately one pH unit above the pKa of nicotine (thus in the range of at or above pH 9) could be achieved. This would result in that approximately about 90% of the nicotine disintegrated and dissolved from at least one portion/layer will be in its' free base form and immediately be absorbed into the systemic circulation to provide for a faster craving relief.
To be able to provide a transient and suitable pH increase there is a benefit of using a buffering system, such as one or more different buffer(s) (buffer species). Normally, buffering systems do not taste well and thus they need to be selected carefully and taste masked by e.g. sweeteners and flavors. In addition, the buffering capacity of one buffer (buffer species) might not be sufficient.
Nicotine free base form is not suitable to directly be formulated into semisolid or solid dosage forms since the nicotine base form is a highly volatile liquid at normal conditions.
To provide an extended release of nicotine from a nicotine lozenge, nicotine bound to a resin such as nicotine polacrilex is used. Nicotine polacrilex is normally used in the medicated lozenges available on the market and it provides an extended release over a time up to about 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the usage.
The invented nicotine lozenge provides new features in one and the same product, compared to currently available commercialized medicinal nicotine products.
The nicotine lozenge could also become an attractive product for consumers or patients that prefer nicotine lozenges as a format.
In a first aspect the invention relates to a lozenge comprising nicotine in the core and
In another aspect the invention relates to a manufacturing process for the production of such a lozenge.
In a final aspect the invention relates to the use of the chewing gum for the treatment of a human being suffering from cravings from tobacco dependency and/or e-cigarette dependency, i.e., to help a human quitting smoking.
There is no scaling in the drawings, and they are there to illustrate the invention.
In the context of the present application and invention the following definitions apply:
The term “nicotine” refers to the amount (mg) of nicotine in any salt form or bound to any carrier calculated as the amount of corresponding free base per piece of lozenge.
The term “portion/layer” is intended to mean a part that is fused or attached onto the lozenge at any place. It might be in any kind of form including a round portion (dot), square portion, conic portion, triangle etc. The portion may be in the form of a trade mark as well as having a color. The portion may also be a layer present on the surface of the lozenge, such as 40% of the lozenge surface for one layer, such as one side, or both sides of the lozenge. The et least one portion/layer may be deposited in a debossed smooth cavity(cavities) on the lozenge.
The term “buffer(s)” refers to two different kinds of buffer species also differentiating the corresponding acid-base pair of a buffer system.
As used herein, the term “extended release” (“ER”) refers to formulations which are characterized by that the nicotine present in the lozenge will be released over an extended period of sucking, normally for 10-20 minutes, the time a consumer or patient is sucking on (using) the lozenge. The release profile may be assessed via in vitro dissolution using techniques well known for a person skilled in the art.
The term “immediate release” (“IR”) as used herein is intended to mean the release of the nicotine comprised in the portion(s)/layer(s) on the surface of the lozenge. The released nicotine is aimed to be available for fast oromucosal absorption. The rate of release of nicotine is not prolonged by means of a controlled release matrix or other such means but it is dependent of the disintegration and dissolution of the portion(s)/layer(s) and water solubility of the polyol, polymer, nicotine salt and buffer(s). As described herein, an “immediate release” component is released shortly after the sugar alcohol and nicotine mixture is disintegrated and dissolved (in the saliva) which occurs shortly after the sucking on the lozenge begins.
The calculation of the amount of nicotine present in the lozenge is calculated and most often expressed as the amount of the corresponding free base form of nicotine.
The term “fused onto” used throughout the application is intended to be interchangeable with “attached to”, “fused to”, “sticked to”, “deposited onto”, “applied to”, “adhered to”, or “melted onto” or “printed on”.
In one embodiment the invention relates to a lozenge comprising nicotine in the core and
In another embodiment the lozenge comprises nicotine and at least one polymer-based film coating covering the lozenge comprising at least one flavor and at least one sweetener, and
The lozenge might be direct compressed or granulated and compressed.
The lozenge core comprises nicotine, such as nicotine bound to ion exchange resins, such as nicotine polacrilex, nicotine bound to zeolites and/or nicotine bound to beta cyclodextrin, preferably in the form as nicotine polacrilex. The nicotine present in the core (calculated as the free base) may be from about 1.0 to about 6.0 mg, about 2.0 to about 4.0 mg, such as 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 2.75, 3.0, 3.25, 3.5, 3.75, 4.0, 4.25, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5 or 6.0, calculated per piece of lozenge. The nicotine will be released from the core when the user is sucking on the lozenge and the release will occur over an extended time period, over a time up to about 10-20 minutes.
In addition, the core may comprise excipients including fillers, glidants, buffers, lubricants, sweeteners, flavors, coloring agents, binding/gelling agents and mixtures thereof well known for a person skilled in the art.
In one embodiment, at least one buffer is present in the at least one film forming polymer coating or the at least one portion/layer.
The at least one buffer is selected from the group consisting of sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium carbonate, potassium bicarbonate, trometamol base (Tris base), or the corresponding conjugated acid of trometamol such as Trometamol hydrochloride (Tris HCl), trisodium phosphate, disodium hydrogenphosphate, sodium dihydrogen phosphate, tripotassium phosphate, dipotassium hydrogenphosphate, potassium dihydrogen phosphate and mixtures thereof.
In some examples the at least one buffer is selected from the group consisting of sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, trometamol base (Tris base) or the corresponding conjugated acid of trometamol such as Trometamol hydrochloride (Tris HCl), and mixtures thereof.
However, the acidic nicotine salt and the alkaline buffers are not suitable to be present in the same portion/layer outside the lozenge, whereas interaction during the melting, solubilization, drying or cooling process could lead to transformation of nicotine to the its' free base form which is a volatile and unstable liquid, thus resulting in loss of nicotine from the portion outside of the lozenge or a chemically unstable product.
The at least one buffer may be present in a total amount from about 1.0 to about 7.5 mg (calculated per piece of lozenge), such as about 1.0 to about 6.0 such as about 2.0 to about 6.0 or about 2.0 to about 5.0 mg, or about 3.0 to about 6.0 or about 3.0 to about 5.0, such as 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 2.75, 3.0, 3.25, 3.5, 3.75, 4.0, 4.25, 4.5, 4.75, 5.0, 5.25, 5.5, 5.75, 6.0, 6.25, 6.5, 6.75, 7.0 7.25, or 7.5 mg.
In one example sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate may each be present in an amount of 0.5 mg to about 3.5 mg, such as 0.5 mg to 2.5 mg, such as 0.5 mg to 1.0 mg or 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, or 2.5 mg and trometamol base (Tris base), or the corresponding conjugated acid of trometamol such as Trometamol hydrochloride (Tris HC1), may be present in an amount of 1.5 mg to 5.0 mg, such as 2.0 to 5.0, 3.0 mg to 5.0 mg or 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 or 5.0 mg.
The film forming polymers may be chosen among hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC), methyl hydroxy ethyl cellulose (MHEC), hydroxy propyl cellulose (HPC), hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC), methacrylic acid copolymer-type C, sodium carboxy methyl cellulose , Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose phthalate, (HPMCP), ethyl hydroxyl ethyl cellulose (EHEC), and other film forming polymers such as, polydextrose, polyethylene glycols, acrylate polymers, polyvinyl alcohol-polyethylene glycol graft copolymers, complex of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), such as povidone, polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH or PVA), microcrystalline cellulose, carrageenan, pregelatinized starch, polyethylene glycol, and combinations thereof.
In one embodiment, the film-forming polymers are selected among hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC), methyl hydroxy ethyl cellulose (MHEC), hydroxy propyl cellulose (HPC), hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC), ethyl hydroxyl ethyl cellulose (EHEC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH or PVA).
If two polymer-based film coatings are applied (dual polymer coating), the same as well as different polymers and mixtures thereof could be used in the two coating layers. Examples for dual polymer coating are based on hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) or one is based on hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) an the other one is based on another film forming polymer such as polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH or PVA). The different film forming polymers may have different characteristics. For example, PVA is regarded to be more resistant against elevated pH and could thus be suitable to be used for the buffer containing film coating when there is an aim for a high pH.
HPMC provides a nice palatability as well as being able to provide a prolonged boost of flavor and sweetener when applied to a lozenge.
The film coating may have an average thickness from 10 to 500 microns, more preferably from 20 to 250 microns, such as from 30 to 150 microns. The film thickness may be measured using different methods known in the art such as SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy), digital micrometer, X-ray microtomography, terahertz pulsed imaging etc. See further e g Quantitative Analysis of Film Coating in a Pan Coater Based on In-Line Sensor Measurements, Jose D. Perez-Ramos et al, AAPS PharmSciTech 2005; 6 (1) Article 20, Nondestructive analysis of tablet coating thicknesses using terahertz pulsed imaging. J Pharm Sci. 2005; 94:177Y183. Fitzgerald A J, Cole B E, Taday P F., Hancock B, Mullarney M P. X-ray microtomography of solid dosage forms. Pharm Technol. 2005; 29:92Y100.
The lozenge, the at least one polymer-based film coating or at least one portion/layer may have additional ingredients such as at least one flavor and at least one sweetener.
In one embodiment one polymer-based coating comprises at least one buffer and another polymer-based coating at least one flavor and at least one sweetener.
Examples of flavoring agents/flavors include, fruit and berry flavors such as lime, orange, lemon, black current, blood orange, cranberry, cloudberry, goji berry, raspberry, strawberry, wild strawberry, sea buckthorn, cherry, melon, kiwi, papaya, pineapple, passion fruit, coconut, and other flavors such as honey, herbs, the, anise, water grass, lemon grass, cooling agent, ginger, coffee, eucalyptus, mangostan, peppermint, spearmint, wintergreen, tutti-frutti, cinnamon, cacao/cocoa, vanilla, liquorice, salt, pepper, chili, menthol, aniseeds, or mixtures thereof. The flavoring agents/flavors may be natural extracts as well as synthetic and semisynthetic versions as well as mixtures of flavors. The flavors may be the same or different and can be present in the lozenge, film coating(s), as well as in the outer portion(s)/layer(s). Suitable examples of flavors are mint family flavors, fruit and berry flavors.
In addition, the lozenge, has at least one artificial sweetener. The at least one artificial sweetener may be present in the lozenge, film coating(s) and/ or in the outer portion(s)/layer(s). Examples of artificial sweeteners are saccharin, sodium saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame K, neotame, thaumatin, glycyrrhizin, sucralose, cyclamate, dihydrochalcone, alitame, miraculin and monellin and mixtures thereof.
The polymer-based film coating may contain one or more plasticizer to the film-forming polymer to facilitate the spreading and film forming capability. Examples on useful plasticizers are glycerol, propylene glycol, polyethylene glycol (PEG 200-6000), organic esters e g triacetin (glyceryl triacetate), triethyl citrate, diethyl phtalate, dibutyl phtalate, dibutyl sebacete, acetyltriethyl citrate, acethyltributyl citrate, tributyl citrate, and oils/glycerides such as fractionated coconut oil, castor oil and distilled acetylated monoglycerides. Additionally, or alternatively, surfactants may be included to facilitate the incorporation of flavors and to improve penetration and spreading properties of the coating liquid. Non-limiting examples of surfactant are polysorbates derived from PEG-ylated sorbitan esterified with fatty acids such as Polysorbate 20 (Polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monolaurate), Polysorbate 40 (Polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monopalmitate), Polysorbate 60 (Polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monostearate), Polysorbate 80 (Polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monooleate) (e g Tween 80, Tween 40, Tween 20), sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS), poloxamer surfactants i.e. surfactants based on ethylene oxide--propylene oxide block copolymers and other surfactants with high HLB -value.
The portions may have the same size and weight or different sizes and weights, being placed on top of each other, beside each other or on different sides of the lozenge. The portions comprising nicotine and buffer(s) may be placed on top of each other, beside each other or on opposite sides of the lozenge. The et least one portion/layer may be deposited in a debossed smooth cavity(cavities) on the lozenge.
The above mentioned portion(s)/layer(s) may comprise a mixture of erythritol and xylitol in a proportional amount of about 90:10, 91:9, 92:8, 93:7, 96:4, 95:5, 96:4, 97:3, 98:2, 99:1 or 100:0 (% w/w of erythritol:xylitol). In another embodiment, the portion comprises at least erythritol.
The nicotine salt is evenly distributed in the nicotine containing at least one portion/layer outside the lozenge. In those embodiments wherein there are at least one portion/layer outside the lozenge comprising buffer(s), the buffer(s) is/are evenly distributed in the portion(s)/layer(s).
Nicotine salts present in the one or more portion(s) or layer(s) on the lozenge may be present in an amount of about 0.25 to about 2.5 mg, such as 0.5 to about 1 mg or 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.25 or 2.5 mg. In addition, one portion has a total weight of about 2-10% such as 2-5% of the total weight of the lozenge.
In another embodiment, one or more portion(s)/layer(s) comprising one or more buffer(s) could include a combination of erythritol and xylitol or erythritol. Such a portion(s)/layer(s) may have a weight up to 10% or even up to 15% of the total weight of the lozenge.
The outer portion(s)/layer(s) may be colored. The coloring agents include lakes and dyes being approved as a food additive and examples of coloring agents are artificial colors or natural colors. One example is when the portion is defined above and may be a dot, like the dots on a lady bird.
Examples of artificial colors approved for food use in the EU include: E104: Quinoline, Yellow, E122: Carmoisine, E124: Ponceau 4R, E131: Patent Blue V and E142: Green S. In the US, the following seven artificial colorings are generally permitted in food: FD&C Blue No. 1 — Brilliant Blue FCF, E133 (blue shade), FD&C Blue No. 2 — Indigotine, E132 (indigo shade), FD&C Green No. 3 — Fast Green FCF, E143 (turquoise shade), FD&C Red No. 3 — Erythrosine, E127 (pink shade, commonly used in glace cherries), FD&C Red No. 40 — Allura Red AC, E129 (red shade), FD&C Yellow No. 5 — Tartrazine, E102 (yellow shade), FD&C Yellow No. 6 — Sunset Yellow FCF, E110 (orange shade).
Examples of natural colors includes: Carotenoids (E160, E161, E164), chlorophyllin (E140, E141), anthocyanins (E163), and betanin (E162), Annatto (E160b), a reddish-orange dye made from the seed of the achiote, Caramel coloring (E150a-d), made from caramelized sugar, Carmine (E120), a red dye derived from the cochineal insect, Dactylopius coccus, Elderberry juice (E163), Lycopene (E160d), Paprika (E160c) and Turmeric (E100) or titaniumdioxide.
The nicotine polacrilex present in the core may be in an amount from about 1.0 to about 6.0 mg, about 2.0 to about 4.0 mg, such as 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0, 2.25, 2.5, 2.75, 3.0, 3.25, 3.5, 3.75, 4.0, 4.5, 5.0, 5.5 or 6.0, calculated as the free base per lozenge and the nicotine salt present in the at least one portion/layer or at least one film coating may be in an amount of from about 0.25 to about 2.5 mg, such as 0.25, 0.3, 0.35, 0.4, 0.45, 0.5, 0.55, 0.6, 0.65, 0.7, 0.75, 0.8, 0.85, 0.9, 0.95, 1.0, 1.05, 1.1, 1.15, 1.2, 1.25, 1.3, 1.35, 1.4, 1.45, 1.5, 1.55, 1.6, 1.65, 1.7, 1.75, 1.8, 1.85, 1.9, 1.95, 2.0, 2.05, 2.1, 2.15, 2.2, 2.25, 2.3, 2.35, 2.4, 2.45 or 2.5 mg, such as 0.25 to 1.0 mg or 0.25 to 1.5 or 0.25 to about 2.0 mg (calculated as the free base).
The relative amounts of nicotine salt as well as the amounts of buffer(s) located on the surface of the lozenge are important since the buffer(s) will enable a conversion of the nicotine salt to its free base form to promote a fast uptake of nicotine.
If too little buffer(s) in relation to the nicotine salt is available, the conversion of nicotine to its free base form will be negatively affected, which may lead to a higher portion of the nicotine in its acidic form, resulting in a lower fraction of nicotine available for absorption into the oral mucosa and instead being subject to transportation into the gastrointestinal tract and exposure to the so called first-pass metabolism. This could lead to a comparably slower and reduced absorption of nicotine affecting the nicotine concentrations in the systemic circulation and a comparably slower (and lower) nicotine craving relief.
MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF THE LOZENGE
Standard mixing equipment may be used for mixing together components of compositions of the invention. The mixing time period is likely to vary according to the equipment used, and the skilled person will have no difficulty in determining by routine experimentation a suitable mixing time for a given combination of ingredient(s). One way of producing the lozenges is found in the examples. The manufacturing process may as well comprise additional steps of granulation, drying and milling and/or sieving to obtain a lozenge.
Finally, the invention relates to the use of above defined lozenges for the treatment of a human beings suffering from cravings from tobacco dependency and/or e-cigarette dependency.
Example 1
All ingredients were purchased in pharmaceutical quality except for the flavoring agents that were of food grade.
The ingredients were blended.
The blending times were optimized to obtain a homogenous powder mixture obvious for a person skilled in the art.
The lozenges were produced by direct compression of the powder mix.
The lozenge shape was oblong with targeted lozenge weight of 600 mg.
The manufacturing was performed in manufacturing area with controlled temperature and humidity.
Example 2
The core of the lozenge was produced as in EXAMPLE 1.
The coating polymer was dispersed in warm water and then cooled down. The other raw materials were added into the coating solution.
The coating solution was homogenized.
The cores were then filmcoated and the film coating was controlled on the outlet air temperature of 45° C.
Examples for single polymer coating of lozenge
1)Majority of purified water is removed during film coating process
2)Coating preparation is pH adjusted with Hydrochloric (10%) acid to target pH
Examples for dual polymer coating of lozenge
1)Majority of purified water is removed during film coating process
2)Coating preparation is pH adjusted with Hydrochloric (10%) acid or NaOH (0.1M) to target pH
Dry content of coating preparation can be varied between 20 - 50 w/w% to facilitate the incorporation of various of amounts of buffering agents.
Preparation of different mixtures of portions containing nicotine and excipients
Manufacturing: all starting materials, polyols or mixtures of several polyols, nicotine source and dye, seeding agent or sweetener, if applicable where mixed in a glass beaker. The mixture was heated until melting under stirring of all the components except for titanium dioxide. 20 to 40 mg of the melted mass was deposited on the lozenge with aid of a micropipette. The droplet was occasionally flattened with a heated tool directly after deposition to reduce the thickness of the deposited droplet.
Use of Xylitol as the primary polyol gave too long solidification times to be utilized in commercial manufacturing. Use of seeding agents (Mannitol 25 μ or Titanium dioxide) did not shorten the solidification time. Isomalt had very fast solidification time but very high melting point (153° C.) which is not desirable from stability and safety perspective. Erythritol exhibited fast solidification and much lower melting temperature (121,5° C.).
Buffer-containing portions.
Procedure: all starting materials, polyol and buffer(s) where mixed in a glass beaker. The mixture was heated until melting under stirring of all the components except for titanium dioxide. 20 to 40 mg of the melted mass was deposited on the coated lozenge with aid of a micropipette. The droplet was occasionally flattened with a heated tool directly after deposition to reduce the thickness of the deposited droplet.
All example formulations 1 to 5 gained a clear solution upon gentle manual mixing and melting at 125° C. without any remaining residue particles by visual control. Solidification time upon deposition of portions on the lozenge was prolonged with increasing concentration of Trometamol but within limits for manufacturability.
Manufacturing: all starting materials, polyol and buffer(s) where mixed in a glass beaker. The mixture was heated until melting under stirring of all the components except for titanium dioxide. 20 to 40 mg of the melted mass was deposited on the lozenge with aid of a micropipette. The droplet was occasionally flattened with a heated tool directly after deposition to reduce the thickness of the deposited droplet.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2050030-2 | Jan 2020 | SE | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP2021/050705 | 1/14/2021 | WO |
