Title of Invention

"COMPOSITIONS OF ANTI VIRAL COMPOUND"

Abstract An oral pharmaceutical composition comprising free flowing ribavirin and one or more pharmaceutical^ acceptable excipients, wherein the free flowing ribavirin is prepared by agglomerating the non-free flowing ribavirin using a solvent or by controlling the crystallization during synthesis of ribavirin.
Full Text

Field of the invention
The present invention relates to composition of an anti-viral compound. More particularly, the present invention relates compositions comprising free flowing ribavirin.
The present invention also relates to a process for the preparation of compositions comprising free flowing ribavirin.
Background of the invention
Ribavirin is a synthetic nucleoside analog with broad-spectrum antiviral activity and known to be useful in the treatment of hepatitis C as well as various other disease states. Chemically, ribavirin is l-(p)-D-ribofuranosyl-lH-l,2,4-triazole-3-carboxamide and is commercially available in the US as tablets under the trade name of copegus®; as capsule, oral solution under the trade name of Rebetol® and as inhalation solution under the trade name of virazole®. Ribavirin is currently indicated for use as a combination therapy with interferon for Hepatitis C. As such, ribavirin is administered in large dosages, e.g., a dose as large as 1200 mg per day, together with interferon injections.
Ribavirin is a colorless, water-soluble, stable material and is known to have two polymorphic forms. It is very fluffy, non- free flowing powder, which makes it difficult for filling in capsules or as such compressing into tablets. Even after mixing ribavirin with fillers and lubricants, the composition cannot have sufficient flow and density of blend is not suitable for filling into capsules or compressing into tablets.
US patent Nos. 5,914,128; 5,916,594; 6,051,252; 6,335,032; and 6,337,090 disclose rapidly dissolving compacted ribavirin composition comprising ribavirin and disintegrant and further disclose the composition having a tap density of at least about 0.6 g/mL. Dry compaction utilizes high pressure to form a ribbon of ribavirin that is subsequently reduced to a free flowing powder by milling. The undesirable

side effects of manufacturing ribavirin by dry compaction include creation of excessive dust, a potential health hazard, as well as the risk that high pressure, which can produce high heat, may change the polymorphic forms of ribavirin, which are unacceptable for obtaining health registration.
It is disclosed in US 5,914,128 patent that ribavirin is marketed in Canada as capsules under trade name Virazole®. The ribavirin composition used in Virazole® capsules is a non-free flowing powder with low and variable tap densities in the range of 0.320 to 0.449 g/mL, and comprises lactose monohydrate, microcrystalline cellulose, and magnesium stearate as excipients. It is further disclosed that it would be desirable for the ribavirin composition to have a uniformly high tap density of at least 0.6 g/mL to fill any capsule and to avoid excessive weight variation and suggested the dry compaction method to improve the flow.
There are few other patents/publications which disclose ribavirin formulation technologies, some of them are as given below:
US patent No. 6,720,000 discloses a process for preparing ribavirin pellets by extrusion and spheronization. However, the pellets prepared by this method are costlier and time consuming.
US 2003/0104050 discloses quick dissolving ribavirin composition prepared by wet granulation process in the presence of water with disintegrant and filler.
WO 2004/096187 discloses a pharmaceutical composition containing ribavirin as active substance in the mixture with at least one pharmaceutically acceptable excipient characterized in that it is a freely flowing granulate prepared by wet granulation of a mixture of ribavirin, wetted with water, and at least one pharmaceutically acceptable filler selected from the group including cellulose and its derivatives and carbonates, phosphates, sulfates and silicates of metals, and optionally at least one pharmaceutically acceptable excipient.

EP 1455801 discloses a process for preparing ribavirin granules, comprising preparing granulate solution which involves mixing of a binding agent with an isopropanol/water or ethanol/water-mixture, then stirring the granulate solution into a mixture of ribavirin-powder with sieving and drying the granulates.
The above prior art references discloses various technologies for preparing ribavirin composition. However, still there is a need for making ribavirin composition, which involves simple process and does not involve high pressure compaction process and costlier pelletization technique. The inventors of the present invention during their continuous effort to develop ribavirin compositions, found that blending of free flowing ribavirin with other excipients produces composition which have uniform dissolution profile and does not cause the formation of undesired ribavirin polymorphic forms.
Objective of the invention
Accordingly, the main objective of the present invention is to provide composition comprising free flowing ribavirin.
Yet, another embodiment of the present invention is to provide simple, cost effective and efficient process for preparing ribavirin composition.
Yet another obj ective of the present invention is to provide ribavirin composition in such a way that it will comply with the reference product in terms of in vitro parameters like dissolution, disintegration, etc and in vivo parameters like bioequivalence.
Summary of the Invention
According to the main embodiment, the invention provides a composition comprising free flowing ribavirin and one or more pharmaceutically acceptable excipients, wherein the free flowing ribavirin is prepared by agglomerating the non-free flowing ribavirin using a solvent or by controlling the crystallization during synthesis of ribavirin.

The invention also provides a process for preparing ribavirin compositions wherein the composition is prepared by mixing free flowing ribavirin with one or more excipients and finally filling into capsules or compressing into tablets.
Detailed description of the invention
The present invention describes a composition comprising free flowing ribavirin prepared by a simple process from non free flowing ribavirin without using any excipients or procedures where high pressure is required such as compaction.
The free flowing ribavirin is prepared by dissolving ribavirin crude product in a mixture of water and methanol at 65 to 70 °C. The resulting mixture is treated with charcoal and cooling the filtrate slowly at 50 to 70 °C, at which temperature the product starts crystallizing resulting into a slurry. Maintaining such slurry at this temperature without agitation for 15-20 min for formation of crystals and stirring for 2.0 hrs and drying the product to obtain free flowing crystals of ribavirin.
The free flowing ribavirin is also prepared by adding solvent to non free flowing ribavirin powder in a mixer, kneading the wet mass, sieving the wet
agglomerate, and drying at 60 to 80 °C. The dried granules are shifted through suitable sieves to obtain free flowing ribavirin.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the free flowing ribavirin used according to the present invention has bulk density not less than 0.36g/ml and not more than 0.66g/ml, tapped density of not less than 0.4g/ml and not more than 0.8g/ml. The particle size of the free flowing ribavirin used is not more than 600 \i.
The ribavirin composition prepared by process of the present invention is uniform, free flowing, and have adequate bulk and tapped density for processing into capsules or tablets. Furthermore, the ribavirin compositions are substantially free of polymorphic forms of ribavirin, i.e., there are no signs of change in polymorphic nature of ribavirin.

In an embodiment, the ribavirin composition of the present invention may be filled into capsules, compressed into conventional or sustained release tablets.
In an embodiment, the ribavirin composition of the present invention comprising one or more pharmaceutically acceptable excipients selected from fillers, disintegrants, binders, lubricants, polymers etc.
The sustained release tablets further comprise polymers selected from hydoxypropyl methylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, and polyethylene oxide or a combination thereof.
The ribavirin composition of present invention complies with the reference product in terms of in vitro parameters like dissolution, disintegration, etc and in vivo parameters like bioequivalence.
Suitable solvents used for preparing free flowing ribavirin include water, acetonitrile, acetone, chloroform, methylene chloride, methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol or a combination thereof.
Suitable fillers used according to the present invention are selected from lactose monohydrate, microcrystalline cellulose, starch, pregelatinized starch, modified starch, dibasic calcium phosphate dihydrate, calcium carbonate, dextrose, sucrose, mannitol, and sorbitol or a combination there of.
Suitable disintegrants used according to the present invention are selected from croscarmellose sodium, sodium starch glycolate, crospovidone, pregelatinized starch, and sodium carboxymethyl cellulose or a combination there of.
Suitable binders of the invention are selected from hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose, polyvinylpyrrolidone, starch, pregelatinized starch and the like.
Suitable lubricants used according to the present invention are selected from magnesium stearate, calcium stearate, zinc stearate, talc, stearic acid, vegetable oil, and sodium lauryl sulfate or a combination there of.

The following examples further exemplify the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It is obvious to those skilled in the art to find out the composition for other dosage forms and substitute the equivalent excipients as described in this specification or with the one known to the industry.
Example 1 Ribavirin capsules

Example 2 Ribavirin capsules

The processing steps involved in manufacturing ribavirin capsules are :
i) free flowing ribavirin was loaded in a blender,
ii) lactose, microcrystalline cellulose, croscarmellose sodium or sodium starch
glycolate, and povidone were added to free flowing ribavirin and mixed,
iii) lubricated the blend obtained from step (ii) with magnesium stearate, and
iv) filled the uniform blend into capsules.

Example 3
Immediate release ribavirin tablets

Example 4
Immediate release ribavirin tablets

The processing steps involved in manufacturing ribavirin immediate release tablets
are :
i) free flowing ribavirin was loaded in a blender,
ii) pregelatinized starch, microcrystalline cellulose, croscarmellose sodium or sodium
starch glycolate, and povidone were added to free flowing ribavirin and mixed,
iii) lubricated the blend obtained from step (ii) with magnesium stearate, and
iv) compressed the blend to obtain tablets.
Example 5
Sustained release Ribavirin tablets


The processing steps involved in manufacturing ribavirin sustained release tablets
are:
i) free flowing ribavirin was loaded in a blender,
ii) pregelatinized starch, microcrystalline cellulose, polymers, and povidone were
added to free flowing ribivirin of step (i) and mixed,
iii) lubricated the blend obtained from step (ii) with magnesium stearate, and
iv) compressed the blend to obtain sustained release tablets.



We claim :
1. A composition comprising free flowing ribavirin and one or more
pharmaceutical^ acceptable excipients, wherein the free flowing ribavirin is
prepared by agglomerating the non-free flowing ribavirin using a solvent or by
controlling the crystallization during synthesis of ribavirin.
2. The free flowing ribavirin as claimed in claim 1, prepared by dissolving ribavirin crude product in a mixture of water and methanol at 65 to 70 °C, treating the resulting mixture with charcoal, cooling the filtrate slowly at 50 to 70 °C, at which temperature the product starts crystallizing resulting into a slurry, maintaining the slurry at this temperature without agitation for 15-20 min for formation of crystals and stirring for 2.0 hrs and drying the product to obtain free flowing crystals of ribavirin.
3. The free flowing ribavirin as claimed in claim 1, prepared by adding solvent to non free flowing ribavirin powder in a mixer, kneading the wet mass, sieving the wet agglomerate, drying at 60 to 80 °C and sifting dried the granules through suitable sieves to obtain free flowing ribavirin.
4. The free flowing ribavirin as claimed in claim 3, wherein the solvent used is selected from water, acetonitrile, acetone, chloroform, methylene chloride, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol or a combination thereof.
5. The free flowing ribavirin as claimed in claim 1, having bulk density not less than 0.36g/ml and not more than 0.66g/ml, tapped density of not less than 0.4g/ml and not more than 0.8g/ml and particle size of less than 600(i.

6. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein pharmaceutical^ acceptable excipient is selected from fillers, disintegrants, binders and lubricants.
7. The composition as claimed in claim 6, wherein filler is selected from lactose monohydrate, microcrystalline cellulose, starch, pregelatinized starch, modified

starch, dibasic calcium phosphate dihydrate, calcium carbonate, dextrose, sucrose, mannitol, sorbitol or a combination there of.
8. The composition as claimed in claim 6, wherein disintegrant is selected from
croscarmellose sodium, sodium starch glycolate, crospovidone, pregelatinized starch,
sodium carboxymethyl cellulose or a combination there of.
9. The composition as claimed in claim 6, wherein lubricant is selected from
magnesium stearate, calcium stearate, zinc stearate, talc, stearic acid, vegetable oil,
sodium lauryl sulfate or a combination there of.
10. The composition as claimed in claim 1, which is filled into capsules, compressed
into conventional or sustained release tablets.


Documents:

http://ipindiaonline.gov.in/patentsearch/GrantedSearch/viewdoc.aspx?id=jFZLXerLvQdj1RbP/y7obQ==&loc=egcICQiyoj82NGgGrC5ChA==


Patent Number 279483
Indian Patent Application Number 906/CHE/2005
PG Journal Number 04/2017
Publication Date 27-Jan-2017
Grant Date 24-Jan-2017
Date of Filing 08-Jul-2005
Name of Patentee AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED
Applicant Address AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED PLOT NO.2 MAITRIVIHAR COMPLEX, AMEERPET, HYDERABAD-500 038(A.P) ANDRA PRADESH INIDA
Inventors:
# Inventor's Name Inventor's Address
1 AMOD VISHVANATH DHABU AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED PLOT NO.2 MAITRIVIHAR COMPLEX, AMEERPET, HYDERABAD-500 038(A.P) ANDRA PRADESH INIDA
2 MOHINDER PAUL PAKHETRA AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED PLOT NO.2 MAITRIVIHAR COMPLEX, AMEERPET, HYDERABAD-500 038(A.P) ANDRA PRADESH INIDA
3 ASHISH GOGIA AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED PLOT NO.2 MAITRIVIHAR COMPLEX, AMEERPET, HYDERABAD-500 038(A.P) ANDRA PRADESH INIDA
4 MEENAKSHISUNDERAM SIVAKUMARAN AUROBINDO PHARMA LIMITED PLOT NO.2 MAITRIVIHAR COMPLEX, AMEERPET, HYDERABAD-500 038(A.P) ANDRA PRADESH INIDA
PCT International Classification Number A61K 31/00
PCT International Application Number N/A
PCT International Filing date
PCT Conventions:
# PCT Application Number Date of Convention Priority Country
1 NA