Indian Pharmaceutical Association in Mumbai, India, organized the 2-day seminar on “Advances in Pulmonary & Nasal Drug Development” on October 4th – 5th, 2007. The programme was sponsored by Valois S.A.S, Pfeiffer, Pamasol, Malvern Instruments Ltd., Ineous Flour Ltd., Presspart Mfg. Ltd. & Friesland Foods DOMO. Innova Systems Inc. was the cosponsor of the event.

The opening presentation of the seminar was made by Dr. Richard Dalby, Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland. In his talk on “pMDI formulation strategies with HFA propellants”, Dr. Dalby discussed the issues with HFA propellant formulations. Mr. Paul Sullivan, MD, D.H. Industries, in the following presentations on “PAT on the pMDI filling line” & “Manufacturing Technology – New Equipment Developments”, elaborated on the latest technological breakthroughs in the manufacture of pMDIs. Dr. Tim Noakes, Business Manager, Medical Propellants, Ineous Flour Ltd., gave a wonderful insight on the applications & advantages of HFAs as propellants vis a vis the more conventional propellants, in his talk on “Medical HFAs – An upto date picture”. In the post – lunch session, Mr. Guillaume Brouet, Associate Director, Business Development, MDI, Valois S.A.S, apprised the delegates about the latest developments in valve technology, their design & fabrication. Mr. Richard Turner, Director, Business Development, Pharmaceutical Division, Presspart Mfg. Ltd., spoke about the recent advances in can design & fabrication, in his presentation titled “HFA Can Technology – Challenges & Solutions”. Dr. Richard Dalby wrapped up the first day of the programme with his exhaustive presentation on “Advanced Pulmonary Drug Delivery Devices”. Dr. Dalby discussed the finer nuances of the different devices available & the criterion to be applied while selecting the right one for a given formulation.

Dr. Sarma Duddu, MD, Nektar Therapeutics (India) Pvt. Ltd., delivered the first lecture of he second day of the seminar. Dr. Duddu, in his talk on “New Developments in Inhalation Therapy”, expounded on the advances in systemic administration thro’ nasal & pulmonary delivery. Mr. Harry Peters, Technical Pharma Manager, Friesland Foods, DOMO, discussed the effect of sieving & milling of lactose on functionality of DPIs. The specifications for evaluating bioavailability & bioequivalence of products for nasal delivery were discussed by Dr. Gur Jai Pal Singh, Director, Watson Labs, California, in his talk titled “Developments & Applications of the FDA Nasal BA / BE Guidances”. Mr. Herve Pacaud, Director, Business Development, Pumps, Valois S.A.S., elaborated on the recent advances in metering pump for nasal delivery, in his presentation. The post-lunch session began with an insightful presentation by Dr. Gerallt Williams, Director, R&D Lab Services, Valois S.A.S., on “Nasal Delivery for Systemic Use”. Dr. Julie Suman, Cofounder & President, Next Breath, LLC, informed the delegates about the innovative analytical tools for nasal pulmonary drug delivery devices. Dr. Paul Kippax deliberated on the issues of particle sizing of aerosols. Interactive panel discussions with all the speakers of the day as panelists were conducted at the culmination of both the days, with an enthusiastic participation by the delegates.

A poster session, with contributed papers from the leading pharmacy colleges of India, was organized in parallel with the invited speaker sessions. Dr. Sarma Duddu evaluated the posters for their technical content & innovative research work & declared the best poster awards. Mr. Deepak Singh & Mr. Jayesh Parmar, research students from Bombay College of Pharmacy, bagged the first & second prizes for their posters “Poloxamer Coated Fluticasone Microparticles For Pulmonary Delivery – I” & “Sustained Release Budesonide Liposomes: Lung Depositon & Efficacy Evaluation” respectively.

Photo Gallery