In Situ Eutectic Formation in a Polymeric Matrix via Hot-Melt Reactive Extrusion and the Use of Partial Least Squares Regression Modeling for Reaction Yield Determination

There has been a significant volume of work investigating the design and synthesis of new crystalline multicomponent systems via examining complementary functional groups that can reliably interact through the formation of noncovalent bonds, such as hydrogen bonds (H-bonds). Crystalline multicomponent molecular adducts formed using this approach, such as cocrystals, salts, and eutectics, have emerged as drug product intermediates that can lead to effective drug property modifications. Recent advancement in the production for these multicomponent molecular adducts has moved from batch techniques that rely upon intensive solvent use to those that are solvent-free, continuous, and industry-ready, such as reactive extrusion. In this study, a novel eutectic system was found when processing albendazole and maleic acid at a 1:2 molar ratio and successfully prepared using mechanochemical methods including liquid-assisted grinding and hot-melt reactive extrusion. The produced eutectic was characterized to exhibit a 100 °C reduction in melting temperature and enhanced dissolution performance (>12-fold increase at 2 h point), when compared to the native drug compound. To remove handling of the eutectic as a formulation intermediate, an end-to-end continuous-manufacturing-ready process enables feeding of the raw parent reagents in their respective natural forms along with a chosen polymeric excipient, Eudragit EPO. The formation of the eutectic was confirmed to have taken place in situ in the presence of the polymer, with the reaction yield determined using a multivariate calibration model constructed by combining spectroscopic analysis with partial least-squares regression modeling. The ternary extrudates exhibited a dissolution profile similar to that of the 1:2 prepared eutectic, suggesting a physical distribution (or suspension) of the in situ synthesized eutectic contents within the polymeric matrix.