Leveraging large-volume platforms for liquid-liquid drug delivery

Summary

"Leveraging large-volume platforms for liquid-liquid drug delivery" explores how SHL Medical and Stevanato Group are addressing a longstanding challenge in liquid-liquid combination product development: a standardized solution for delivering two incompatible liquid formulations that must remain separate until administration. Traditionally, such systems have relied on highly customized dual-chamber containers, bespoke delivery devices, and specialized fill-finish processes, resulting in increased development complexity, cost, risk, and longer timelines.

The article presents this standardized approach by combining Stevanato Group's EZ-fill® 3 mL internal-bypass dual-chamber cartridge with SHL Medical's Magnitude 3.0 autoinjector. Because both are platform technologies built around a standardized cartridge interface, they can be integrated without modifying the device architecture, creating a standardized container-device ecosystem for liquid-liquid drug delivery.

A feasibility study demonstrated that the integrated system consistently delivered approximately 2.7 mL with reliable injection performance, confirming compatibility between the platform technologies.

The authors conclude that leveraging pre-evaluated, standardized platforms can simplify development, reduce integration risk, enhance manufacturing flexibility, and accelerate time to market for future liquid-liquid combination products while still enabling drug-specific testing and optimization.

Key takeaways

• Liquid-liquid combination products often require formulations to remain separate until administration, historically driving the need for customized dual-chamber systems.
• Pairing Stevanato Group's EZ-fill® 3 mL internal-bypass dual-chamber cartridge with SHL Medical's Magnitude 3.0 autoinjector demonstrates a standardized platform approach to liquid-liquid drug delivery.
• The common cartridge interface enables integration without modifying the autoinjector architecture, reducing development complexity and integration risk.
• Feasibility testing demonstrated reliable delivery performance and successful administration of approximately 2.7 mL, supporting compatibility between the two platform technologies.
• Leveraging established container and device platforms can enhance manufacturing flexibility, streamline development, and accelerate time to market for future liquid-liquid combination products.

Document details

• Format: Article
• Authors/Spokespeople:

Thomas James, Customer Solutions Manager, SHL Medical 

Valerio Ravazzolo, Product Manager Cartridge Platform, Stevanato Group

• Page count: 5 pages
• Estimated read time: ~10 minutes