Abstract: The invention relates to a method for determining in vitro release rate of at least one active principle ingredient from at least one semisolid form.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for determining in vitro release rate of at least one active principle ingredient from at least one semisolid form.

Abstract: Drug delivery systems for reducing the quantity of residual antibiotics reaching the colon following oral or parenteral antibiotic therapy, and for delivering metallo-dependent enzymes, and methods of use thereof, are disclosed. The drug delivery systems include pectin beads that encapsulate the active agent (which can be a metallo-dependent enzyme). The pectin is crosslinked with zinc or other divalent cations, and the pectin beads are coated with Eudragit®-type polymers. The delivery of the active agent can be modulated to occur at various pre-selected sites of delivery within the intestinal tract. A stable metallo-dependent enzyme formulation can be delivered to the lower intestine or colon. The use of zinc cations to crosslink the pectin is particularly preferred when the metallo-dependent enzymes are zinc dependent, where other cationic used to gel the pectin beads might adversely affect the activity of such metallo-dependent enzymes.

Abstract: Compositions which deliver adsorbents, alone or in combination with active drug “degrading molecules,” in a site-specific manner to the intestine, and which eliminate or at least lower the concentration of residual unwanted material within the intestine, are disclosed. Methods of treatment using the compositions are also disclosed. The material to be eliminated can include residual active antibiotics, metabolites, bacterial or other toxins, and drugs which cause side effects in the gastrointestinal tract. The adsorbents can be formulated in capsules, tablets or any acceptable pharmaceutical composition, and are ideally designed to specifically release the adsorbents in a programmed manner at a specific site of the intestinal tract. The programmed delivery prevents adsorbents from interfering with the normal absorption process of a given molecule after oral absorption, until it reaches the lower part of the small intestine.

Abstract: Drug delivery systems for delivering agents capable of reducing the quantity of residual antibiotics reaching the colon following oral or parenteral antibiotic therapy, and for delivering metallo-dependent enzymes, and methods of using the drug delivery systems, are disclosed. The drug delivery systems include pectin beads that encapsulate the active agent (which can be a metallo-dependent enzyme), where the pectin is crosslinked with zinc or any divalent cation of interest and the pectin beads are coated with Eudragit®-type polymers. The drug delivery systems are orally administrable, but can deliver the active agents to the colon. In some embodiments, they can administer the agents to various positions in the gastro-intestinal tract, including the colon. One metallo-dependent enzyme is the ?-lactamase L1 from Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, and agents that inactivate macrolide, quinolone, fluoroquinolone or glycopeptide antibiotics can also be used.

Abstract: Drug delivery systems that can deliver therapeutic and/or diagnostic agents to the colon are disclosed. The systems include pectin beads crosslinked with zinc or any divalent cation of interest, which beads are then coated with Eudragit®-type polymers. The drug delivery systems are orally administrable, but can deliver the active agents to the colon. In some embodiments, they can administer the agents to various positions in the gastro-intestinal tract, including the colon. The agent can be a small molecule, peptide, protein, nucleic acid, or complex structures of natural, recombinant or synthetic origin. In still other embodiments, the agent is a diagnostic agent. The agents can be used to diagnose, treat or investigate humans and animals for a variety of conditions, including infectious diseases, inflammatory diseases, cancers and the like. Colon-specific delivery is obtained by formulating a prophylactic, therapeutic, and/or diagnostic agent with specific polymers that degrade in the colon, such as pectin.

Abstract: Compositions which deliver adsorbents, alone or in combination with active drug “degrading molecules,” in a site-specific manner to the intestine, and which eliminate or at least lower the concentration of residual unwanted material within the intestine, are disclosed. Methods of treatment using the compositions are also disclosed. The material to be eliminated can include residual active antibiotics, metabolites, bacterial or other toxins, and drugs which cause side effects in the gastrointestinal tract. The adsorbents can be formulated in capsules, tablets or any acceptable pharmaceutical composition, and are ideally designed to specifically release the adsorbents in a programmed manner at a specific site of the intestinal tract. The programmed delivery prevents adsorbents from interfering with the normal absorption process of a given molecule after oral absorption, until it reaches the lower part of the small intestine.