Particle engineering company Enavail recently announced it has obtained an exclusive license from The University of Texas at Austin for a portfolio of particle engineering technologies that will be utilized for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and nutraceutical applications. Enavail is an Emergent Technologies, Inc. (ETI) portfolio company, headed by Dr. Brian Windsor, President, and Dr. Breca Tracy, Assistant Managing Director. Enavail’s scientific team is led by Chief Scientist Robert O. (Bill) Williams III, PhD.

The US drug delivery system industry is $80.2 billion, and demand is expected to grow 10% annually through 2012, according to a 2008 Freedonia Group study. One of the most challenging problems for the pharmaceutical industry in development of new drugs is poor solubility of lead compounds. Poorly water-soluble NCE exhibiting therapeutic activity is a major hurdle and can delay and even prevent commercialization. Development of compounds that are potentially very promising can be halted due to insolubility, and marketed drugs with poor or erratic bioavailability have a greater risk of adverse side effects.

“Promising drug candidates often fail in their early development due to poor bioavailability,” said Mr. Windsor. “Poor bioavailability even affects a large number of marketed drugs, so improving solubility can have a tremendous impact on NCEs, reformulations, and even biologics. Whatever the case, Enavail’s proprietary particle design technologies provide solutions that get molecules off the shelf and back into the pipeline. Ultimately, this technology will allow healthcare patients worldwide to realize the benefits of new medications with decreased side effects.”

Enavail uses a suite of proprietary, proven, and scalable technologies for generating amorphous or crystalline materials with greatly enhanced bioavailability and high potency. A highly controllable bottom-up approach is taken, allowing for precise control of particle size and polydispersity. For proteins and peptides, this means high surface area, non-denatured powder forms of labile compounds. For small molecules, Enavail can generate crystalline or amorphous forms of poorly soluble molecules, providing high potency and greatly enhanced dissolution.

The technology allows for a versatile approach that is amenable to multiple routes of administration - oral, pulmonary, intranasal, parenteral - offering the benefits of enhanced bioavailability and high potency to therapeutics across the spectrum. Enavail offers custom, economical solutions to partners from initial drug screening (even microgram quantities) through to cGMP manufacturing of materials for clinical trials.

Utilizing its state-of-the-art lab and cGMP facilities in Austin, Texas, Enavail seeks collaborative partners in drug development interested in screening, product development, and clinical-scale manufacturing. Co-development projects usually begin with feasibility studies for development of customer-tailored solutions directed to their specific active ingredient. These are followed by cGMP clinical batch production and licensing of the Enavail technologies for commercialization of products.

Enavail is a particle engineering company founded on the pioneering research of Dr. Robert O. (Bill) Williams III, Dr. Keith Johnston, and their teams. With state-of-the-art research and cGMP manufacturing facilities located in Austin, Texas, Enavail provides particle engineering expertise for pharmaceutical, biotech, and nutraceutical companies. Enavail’s core technologies are focused on two key areas: (1) generating crystalline or amorphous forms of poorly water-soluble compounds, providing high potency and greatly enhanced dissolution and bioavailability, and (2) producing high surface area, non-degraded powder forms of labile proteins and peptides. Enavail is managed and funded by Emergent Technologies, Inc., a life sciences investment and management company.

SOURCE: Web of Drug Delivery Technology