Cristal Delivery has developed a unique approach to transform drugs into advanced drug delivery systems, namely via Cristal Delivery’s Polymeric Technologies, shortly abbreviated as CriPec®. CriPec® comprises all key factors for a successful drug: it allows for tailor-made products that take the (physico)chemical properties of the drug, the desired concentration at the target site and the route of administration into account. The result is a controlled drug delivery product designed to have superior clinical profile with higher effectiveness, improved drug disposition, reduced side effects, easier dosing schedules, and improved patient compliance.
The principle of CriPec® is depicted in the figure below:
The prodrug is combined with an aqueous solution of a novel class of highly tuneable polymers. Simple heating of the resulting mixture results in self-assembled nanoparticulate drug formulation. Gradual cleavage of the linker releases the original drug in time according to a predetermined rate, thereby creating a long-acting therapeutic effect. The inherent chemical self-cleaving properties make drug release independent of enzyme activity and tissue conditions. Meanwhile, the delivery system disintegrates into fragments, which are removed from the body by renal clearance. These nanoparticles are accordingly transiently stable. Stable because they are initially inert in the dynamic environment of biological matrices and transient as the drug is released in time and the particles are disintegrated.
A variety of linker and polymer types with dissimilar characteristics allow for sustained release time frames ranging from hours up to several weeks. There is an excellent correlation between the in vitro and the in vivo linker cleavage rates, thereby assuring drug release profiles to be easily evaluated and optimised in vitro, and reducing the development costs. A PEG-shield surrounding the nanoparticles prevents undesired interaction with blood components and recognition by the immune system upon (intravenous) administration. The surface can be modified with special compounds to delivery drugs even more efficiently to target cells. The versatility of CriPec® enables the conceptual design of a broad range of drug delivery solutions. Currently, CriPec® is applied for two delivery system morphologies: nanoparticles (CriPec-M) and hydrogels (CriPec-H), but CriPec®-based products for new applications and indications are continuously being developed.