Chemicals and biotechnology solutions firm Lonza recently launched a Center of Excellence for Dry Powder Inhaler (DPI) drug product development at its existing site in Bend, OR, where the company will use its expertise in particle engineering to help customers create and evaluate formulations.

“Drug delivery via the lung is an increasingly viable treatment option for a number of therapeutic areas,” said Christian Dowdswell, SVP of Lonza Pharma and Biotech, said in a company release issued Wednesday. “We have determined a growing market need for service partners that have both particle engineering as well as integrated product development solutions that can effectively advance customer molecules utilizing the DPI format while minimizing program risk and complexity.”

Services offered at the new center in Bend include head-to-head comparison of particle engineering approaches, including spray drying and micronization, and capsule-based DPI formulation design and development. 

“The key challenge for respiratory delivery systems remains the ability to engineer stable drug particles. We provide DPI formulation services based on our vast experience in particle engineering, formulation design, and encapsulation techniques tailored to the target product profile and delivery device,” Herbert Chiou, subject matter expert – DPI Formulations for Lonza, said in a statement. 

Lonza scientists at the center can create capsule-based DPI formulation for feasibility studies in about 12 weeks.