Stable dry powder composition comprising biologically active microorganisms and/or bioactive materials and methods of making

Abstract

The present invention relates to embedding live or dead microorganisms and / or bioactive materials in a protective dry formulation matrix, wherein the formulation includes the bioactive microorganism or material, a formulation stabilizer agent, and a protective agent. The formulation is prepared by dispersing all the solid components in a solution, with or without a vacuum, and cooling the solution to a temperature above its freezing temperature. The methods include a primary drying step of the formulation at a desired temperature and time period, and an accelerated secondary drying step under maximum vacuum and elevated temperature, to achieve a final desirable water activity of the dry material.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Nos. 61 / 181,248 and 61 / 223,295 filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on May 26, 2009 and Jul. 6, 2009, respectively, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]1. Field of the Invention[0003]The present invention is in the field of protection of bioactive microorganism and / or materials in high temperature and humid conditions. In particular, the invention relates to embedding live microorganisms and / or bioactive materials in a protective dry formulation matrix.[0004]2. Related Background Art[0005]Bioactive microorganisms, such as live or dead bacteria and viruses, or bioactive materials, such as proteins, vitamins, minerals, hormones and cells are generally unstable when stored under conditions of high temperature and humidity. For example, many commercially available probiotic bacteria ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0023]In preferred methods, the formulation is mixed under vacuum at room temperature (e.g., from 20° C. to 30° C.). After mixing to homogeneity, the formulation is then cooled to a temperature above the freezing temperature of the formulation. Typically, the formulation is cooled to between −10° C. to +10° C., more preferably the formulation is cooled to between −5° C. and +5° C. In a preferred embodiment, the cooled formulation is then transferred to a drying chamber where heating is applied (20° C. or more) while controlling an initial vacuum pressure at a level to maintain the original pre-cooling temperature. Typically, the desirable vacuum pressure is below 7 Torr but no less than 3 Torr. Under these preferred conditions a controlled expansion of the formulation and subsequent faster primary drying of the formulation is achieved. To accelerate the secondary drying, a maximum vacuum pressure is applied and heat supply temperature may be further elevated to from 30° C. to 60° C. To maximize the stability of the final product the formulation is preferably dried for a time sufficient to reduce the water activity of the formulation to Aw=0.3 or less. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the secondary drying comprises removal of water at a pressure of less than 1 Torr, and in an especially preferred embodiment to less than 0.2 Torr.

Problems solved by technology

Bioactive microorganisms, such as live or dead bacteria and viruses, or bioactive materials, such as proteins, vitamins, minerals, hormones and cells are generally unstable when stored under conditions of high temperature and humidity.

Other methods, such as spray drying, supercritical fluid drying, and desiccation are generally not suitable for sensitive bioactives such as live or attenuated bacteria and viruses because of the high drying temperatures used in these methods which result in significant damage to the microorganism itself.

In addition, they may not sufficiently dry the material to the specific residual moisture requirements for product stability, and thus an additional drying step by other means, may be required.

However, the requirement for sub-zero temperatures is energy intensive, and the low surface area to volume ratios of the frozen material necessitates the use of long drying time (up to several days per batch cycle).

For this reason, bioactive microorganism or materials such as viruses, bacteria, and cells that possess a cell wall or lipid membrane, pose significant challenges to the freeze-drying process.

However, such protective agents may not penetrate adequately into the cell to protect active components within the intracellular volume.

Therefore, a significant challenge remains to develop an optimal drying process and formulation that minimizes drying losses while achieving adequate storage stability of the dried material.

However, boiling and foaming require input of a significant amount of heat to provide the necessary eruption of the solution.

Such a drying process is not well adapted to drying of sensitive biologicals, such as viable viruses, cells or bacteria because the applied heat accelerates enzymatic processes (e.g., proteolysis), and chemical processes (e.g., oxidation and free radical attacks), which can destroy the activity or viability of the biological material.

The drying process described above is also limited in its ability to be scaled to a large industrial process.

The most significant disadvantage of the above processes is the inability to control and limit the expansion of the foam within the vessel, tray or vial.

The uncontrollable eruption and often-excessive foam formation makes it practically impossible to develop an industrial scale process.

The eruption and foaming nature of the boiling step results in a portion of material being splattered on the walls of the vessel and into the drying chamber.

Once again, these protocols are difficult to implement in industrial level and they are difficult to reliably replicate with different formulations.

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