A new acquisition by MonoSol LLC (Portage, IN) will allow the specialty films company to expand its fast-dissolving drug capabilities.
MonoSol recently acquired Aquafilm Ltd. (Worcestershire, UK), a producer of blown extruded water-soluble films. The move will likely give rise to MonoSol�s MonSolRx division. That division was formed when MonoSol acquired Kosmos Pharma Ltd. (Great Falls, VA) earlier this year. Kosmos Pharma�s FDTAB drug-delivery system, also acquired by MonoSol, employs a film shaped like a postage stamp that dissolves instantly on the tongue.
The Aquafilm acquisition will accelerate MonoSol�s planned entry into the pharmaceutical market. According to Scott Bening, CEO of MonoSol, both acquisitions were designed with that in mind. �We want to really speed up our company�s commercialization of edible film strips as a fast-dissolve oral-drug- delivery platform,� he says. �Right now, the commercialization is in process, and we�re making and shipping product. We�ve cut our teeth on nutraceuticals, and now is the right time for us to get into the pharma market.�
MonoSol is currently making breath strips and OTC nutraceutical products using its new film technology in a recently built GMP facility in Portage, IN. It has also expanded its facilities in Tennessee. The company recently launched a line of breath freshener and pet training oral films in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
MonoSol will use the fast-dissolve film to manufacture a variety of drugs, such as meloxicam, an antiinflammatory drug. The company will also add to its vitamin supplement business, says Bening.
The Aquafilm acquisition gives MonoSol added warehouse space and expanded sales and distribution teams. In addition, the company�s production of cast water-soluble films has expanded in Europe, maintaining Aquafilm�s existing UK operations.
