Robotic dissolution systems

Aloba, O. T, Bergman, D. E., Miller, R., and Daly, R. E. Enhanced robotic dissolution system with concurrent off-line analysis. J. Pharm. Biomed. Ana 11 (10) 861—869, 1993. 

Functions to validate on automated dissolution systems may include bath operation, balance operation, media dispensing operations, media removal, sampling operations, media replacement, thermistor operation, robot operation, sample timing, sequence, and dilution. 

A validated robotic system for dissolution assay of an immediate-release/ 186... 

A VALIDATED ROBOTIC SYSTEM EOR DISSOLUTION ASSAY OE AN IMMEDIATE-RELEASE/SUSTAINED-RELEASE TABLET... 

Buegelsdijk et al. described a fully automated system for preparation of dissolved Pu metal samples using the Zymate II (Zymark Corporation) laboratory robot.67 The sample preparation steps included bar-code label reading, weighing the sample, and transfer to the dissolution vessel. 

The various applications of the analysis of tablets for dissolution testing, content uniformity, stability-indicating assays, and routine quality control assays have all been targets of automation using a robot system. 

It is the first stage of laboratory analytical methodologies which poses the greatest problems for automation (see Chapter 2). Operations such as weighing, dissolution, grinding and centrifugation are difficult to incorporate on-line in automatic analysers (whether batch or continuous). It is therefore here that robotic systems cover a field inaccessible to the remainder of automatic methodologies. 

In a Hrst arrangement the process control system includes automatic sampUng in the hot zone such as an explosion-proof container, the manual or automatic transfer of the sample to the laboratory, a robot to prepare the analysis, and transfer of the solution to be analyzed to an fiber-optic measurement cell [163]. This architecture is most commonly found today if the laboratory is habitually and directly involved in controlling the various steps in the process. It is JustiHed if the samples must also be prepared in a hot zone, or if the analysis requires semiautomatic operations such as dissolution of solid samples, or sophisticated techniques such as chromatography, mass spectrometry, or emission spec-... 

Luminescence molecular detectors have also been used for online monitoring of dissolution tests and the characterization of toxic residues using bioluminescence assays. Atomic (atomic absorption spectroscopy, inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES)) detectors have been coupled to robotic stations either through a continuous system acting as interface or by direct aspiration into an instrument from a sample vial following treatment by the robot. Mass spectrometric and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) detectors... 

Zymark has proposed simple and inexpensive workstations designed for specific tasks. Furthermore, some noncommercial systems for single tasks include a microwave digestion system for dissolution of Ti(IV) oxide and adaptations of workstations for special tasks such as the robotic-chromatographic method for the determination of glycosylated haemoglobin. 

Many of the techniques described above, excipient compatibility, blend uniformity by HPLC dissolution, and content uniformity/assay by HPLC can be effectively automated by robotic sample preparation. Each of these techniques requires that the sample under study be dissolved in an appropriate solvent and fully extracted from any excipients. There are a number of commercially available products that have proven to be effective and robust in this sample preparation role. This robotic process can reduce both the analyst hours required to prepare a number of samples, and turnaround time on the sample analysis, since the robotic systems will operate unattended over night and on weekends. There is of course a cost to pay for laboratory automation. There is a significant capital cost, and then an ongoing maintenance cost for the continued operation of the system. Also it is critical that a specialist be available in-house to care for the system, develop the methods, and troubleshoot any issues with the system. The cost of the system and specialist must be weighed against the advantages of speed and lab capacity enhancement realized with a successful automation implementation. 

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