Based in Denmark, Fertin has a dominant position in the market for chewing gum that delivers active pharmaceutical ingredients via its MediChew technology. It manufactures the lion's share of gums that deliver nicotine and other APIs for medical uses, including the GlaxoSmithKline's NiQuitin CQ and Novartis' Nicotinell.
But one major impediment to the broader use of gums in drug delivery is that if you want to deliver an API that is lipophilic (i.e. poorly soluble in water), the compound tends to want to stay in the gum base rather than being released for absorption, according to Dr Gordon Nelson, technical director at Micap.
This has been a headache for gum companies for years, and even affected peppermint, one of the most widely used gum flavours. Companies get around this using encapsulation or the addition of emulsifiers, he told In-Pharmatechnologist.com,, but these have limitations that are overcome using the yeast encapsulation process.
One of the key advantages of Micap's technology is that it can carry much higher concentrations of lipophilic compounds than other encapsulation methods.
In addition, yeast offers a targeted delivery mechanism, depositing its payload on contact with the mucous membranes in the mouth. Other encapsulation forms rely on physical disruption, which is less effective in bringing the drug to the membranes for absorption as drug is often retained in the gum. Yeast encapsulation also does away with the need for solubilising additives.
Another advantage is that Micap's technology can also combine additional compounds alongside active drugs in the same microcapsule. This means, for instance, that an unpalatable drug could be delivered alongside taste-masking flavours or substances that prevent irritation in the mouth, said Dr Nelson, which should have the benefit of improving patient compliance
The initial agreement between Fertin and Micap covers a preliminary feasibility study, but the details of this are not yet available. If positive, the intention is that Fertin would take an exclusive license to use the Micap technology for gum-based delivery of active compounds.
Fertin said that it has committed 'significant resources' to an evaluation of the project at its own expense, which could culminate in clinical trials involving the evaluation of the Micap system with the UK partner sharing rights to all information generated.