The proposed team introduces a new paradigm for the design and manufacture of pharmaceutical dosage forms. The new platform technology, 3D Integrated Pharmaceuticals (3D IP), is inspired after the impressive progress realized by the 3D IC (3D Integrated Circuits) model. The underlying concept of the proposed approach, novel to the pharmaceutical industry, consists in looking at pharmaceutical products as integrated systems. With 3D IP, dosage forms are assembled from pre-fabricated working components, according to a pre-established blueprint instead of by blending and compressing powders. The result is a comparatively simple means of making pharmaceutical products with customized shape, physical dimensions, and most importantly, drug release profile.
3D IP is a novel platform that has focused on producing pharmaceutical oral dosage forms. Analogous to the design of 3D integrated circuits, built by the 3D layer stacking of multiple functional components, 3D IP dosage forms are assembled by stacking pre-fabricated functional components such as active ingredient carrier, solubilizing function, ID/anti-counterfeiting, and tamper prevention. The 3D IP technology has applications in areas where customizable release for a target or active compound is needed, which extend beyond oral pharmaceuticals, into transdermal markets, smart patches, agrochemicals, nutraceuticals and personal care products.
