PHARMA FOCUS//Excipients FOCUS
Your partner in direct compression expertise Meggle Excipients & Technology is a specialist in lactose-based excipients required for DC tabletting and processing. Its industry leading and comprehensive pharmaceutical excipient portfolio covers various solid dosage forms, from tablets, capsules and sachets to powder formulations and dry powder inhalation, including a number of exclusive proprietary formulations.
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epresented in South Africa
• fine milled alpha-lactose
benefits including very good flowability
by Amchem, Meggle’s direct
monohydrate crystals
and compactibility, low hygroscopicity,
compression (DC) lactose
• crystalline alpha-lactose monohydrate
excellent stability, superior blending
offering extends beyond
• co-processed hypromellose lactose for
characteristics and rapid disintegration.
products, manufacture and supply
direct compression
As a result, it supports a wide range of
to technical expertise, process and
• alpha-lactose monohydrate and
useful applications, including low-dose DC
development consultancy.
maize starch.
formulations, capsule and sachet filling,
DC is the most accessible form of oral
effervescent tablets, artificial sweeteners
dosage production, involving the fewest
Milled lactose
process stages and quickest production. The
Sieved, milled or micronised lactose is
choice of ideal DC excipient is defined by a
ideal for optimum granulation, for use with
range of factors, including:
limited flowability compounds that demand
Co-processed monoparticulate lactose and cellulose
• the need for particle engineered DC
granulation before tabletting. Because
Alpha-lactose monohydrate and cellulose
excipients to ensure correct flow and
of its good compression and blending
powder are functional excipients used in
compression characteristics
properties, lactose is the most frequently
oral solid dosage forms. Both are naturally
• consideration of active ingredient dosage
used excipient for granulation. Meggle’s
derived and well-established for use in the
levels, with DC occupying a ‘sweet spot’
GranuLac and SorboLac both offer small
pharma industry.
between 0.5 and 50mg
particle size distributions, supporting a range
• compatibility with other ingredients with
and orally disintegrating tablets.
In an effort to create synergistic
of applications including wet granulation,
functional performance, such as improved
a ‘classic’ DC powder mixture usually
dry compression, premixes, triturations,
compactability and mixing characteristics,
containing a binder and a lubricant and
fermentation and flavour off-set.
Meggle uses co-spray drying to integrate
sometimes a disintegrant and glidant.
These formulations offer the following
alpha-lactose monohydrate and cellulose
Generally, the selection of pharmaceutical
convincing advantages:
excipients for DC is more critical than for
• good compactibility
granulation, or wet granulation in particular.
• ideal blending properties
the flow and compaction properties
Few traditional excipients combine the
• narrow particle size distribution
necessary for direct compression tabletting,
functional characteristics, specifically
• long lasting storage stability
comprising 75 percent alpha-lactose
powder flow and compactibility required for
• high batch-to-batch consistency.
monohydrate and 25 percent powdered
robust DC. This makes modifying traditional excipients a necessity.
In addition, Meggle’s milled lactose formulations include the InhaLac range of sieved, milled or micronised pharmaceutical
powder into a monoparticulate system. Cellactose 80 was developed to provide
cellulose, both maintaining their individual chemical identities. Although it’s designed for direct
DC excipients
lactose, particularly suited to dry powder
compression tabletting, Cellactose 80 can
Meggle offers more than 50 different lactose-
inhalation drug delivery applications.
be used in other formulation applications
based excipients suitable for DC, under
such as dry granulation and capsule filling.
a range of brands, including Tablettose,
Agglomerated lactose
In comparison to a corresponding physical
FlowLac, DuraLac, Cellactose, MicroceLac,
The Tablettose range from Meggle is
blend of the individual components,
StarLac, CombiLac, RetaLac, and InhaLac.
manufactured using a continuous spray
Cellactose 80 provides improved
These brands cover the following eight
agglomeration process, where water is used
compactability, superior flowability and
main categories:
as the binder and sprayed onto fluidised
increased adherence capacity, which
• sieved, milled or micronised lactose for dc
fine milled lactose particles, creating liquid
reduces segregation tendencies typical of
• agglomerated lactose
bridges to form agglomerated lactose.
simple powder blends, making it ideal for
• co-processed monoparticulate lactose and cellulose
Tablettose is purpose-designed for DC,
• integrated, lactose-based, co-
crystals and the high compressibility of fine
processed excipient
milled lactose.
• alpha-lactose monohydrate and microcrystalline cellulose
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| MSRCH 2020 | P C Review
low-dose formulations.
combining the flowability of coarse lactose
Featuring a broad range of particle size distributions, Tablettose offers a range of
Integrated, lactose-based coprocessed excipient Meggle’s high-functionality excipient, CombiLac is specifically designed to ease
