Hovione has announced an expansion of its nasal drug delivery capabilities with the addition of a family of innovative nasal powder delivery devices developed in partnership with IDC.

Intranasal drug delivery is a good alternative to conventional delivery routes for both local and systemic drug delivery due to its simplicity, safety, and faster onset of action. Additionally, it is emerging as a promising pathway to deliver new drugs to the brain to treat diseases of the central nervous system (CNS).

Hovione and IDC have been working together to accelerate the development and commercialisation of two new active nasal powder delivery devices, one single-use and one multidose.

The devices enable broad and targeted nasal deposition flexibility while delivering maximum usability and reliability. By using standard capsules and filling equipment, they also have the potential to simplify drug product development and manufacturing.

"Intranasal drug delivery is gaining momentum across a number of applications, including mucosal vaccination and CNS treatments bypassing the blood-brain barrier", says Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux, Hovione's CEO. He adds: " Our partnership with IDC, a company with vast experience in industrial design, mechanical and electronic engineering of medical devices, enables Hovione to offer a complete solution for nasal powder delivery – covering Active Pharma Ingredients (APIs), formulation, filling, analytics and device design and manufacturing - that address the needs of pharmaceutical companies and patients".