DENOVX, LLC — Department of Health and Human Services SBIR Phase II: 400

Description

PROJECT SUMMARY DeNovX’s technologies improve crystallization of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and proteins. Over 70% of APIs exhibit poor H2O solubility and bioavailability that contribute to drug failures. Co-crystallization mates an API with a supramolecular heterosynthon and is a crystal engineering approach to creating H2O soluble API compositions, but it is not yet reproducible for high throughput screening (HTS). A punch/die in an HTS format and a hydraulic press can be used for compressive mechanocrystallization to give reproducible shear forces adequate to form co-crystals. Phase I demonstrated a high confidence POC with a 48 well format for HTS mechanocrystallization of an API co-crystal and gave excellent reproducibility in a continuous variation study. A comparison of the solvent drop grinding benchmark with compressive mechanocrystallization showed that the latter can be conducted in 81% less time with 60% less material while yielding 25% more sample for analysis. Through subawards to Stanford’s Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) and Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source (APS), Phase II will integrate HTS mechanocrystallization with synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) analysis to give unparalleled minor constituent identification, quantitation, structure, and throughput. Specific Aim 1: Conduct replicate (n ≥ 6) studies of compressive mechanocrystallization using α-prototypes to identify variables most impacting API co-crystallization. Examine two benchmarks and ≥ 14 co-crystals from the acidic, basic, and neutral API classes matched appropriately to heterosynthons having complementary H-bonding behavior. Collect synchrotron PXRD by subawards to SSRL and APS. Specific Aim 2: Test ≥ 6 compressive mechanocrystallization ꞵ-prototypes that can serve as consumable sample holders for PXRD analyses of APIs and co-crystals. Four prototypes to be compatible with synchrotron PXRD and two lower multiplexed formats suitable for laboratory PXRD. API co-crystal samples in multiplexed holders to give synchrotron PXRD compositions within ±3σ of averages for n ≥ 6 continuous variation studies. Specific Aim 3: Conduct high throughput synchrotron PXRD data collection to demonstrate limit of detection ≤ 0.2% (w/w) for minor constituent API phases in a continuous variation study using 𝛾-prototype mechanocrystallization sample holders. Concurrently demonstrate PXRD pattern acquisition rates ≤ 90 s per sample while retaining data quality. Specific Aim 4: Demonstrate neat and solvent sparse compressive mechanocrystallization HTS of co-crystals with synchrotron PXRD at SSRL/APS for each of ≥ 6 high impact API targets relevant to pharmaceutical companies and NIH. Identify new co-crystal phases and preparative conditions enabling solubility/permeability studies by stakeholders. Reproducible tools for HTS mechanocrystallization of APIs and co-crystals will benefit Public Health by creating new or repurposed API compositions exhibiting superior in vivo solubility and bioavailability for a $1 trillion pharmaceuticals market.Project Narrative: Relevance to Public Health Research The impact to Public Health will derive from an acceleration and expansion in the discovery and characterization of new pharmaceutical co-crystal compositions that overcome the challenges of poor water solubility, which plagues over 70% of drugs in development. An innovative, reproducible mechanochemical high throughput screening co-crystallization approach to the preparation of novel pharmaceutical co-crystal compositions will be coupled with high throughput synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction to give unparalleled phase identification, quantitation, structural characterization, and throughput that will lead to pharmaceuticals with improved in vivo solubility, bioavailability, efficacy, and safety.