Dive Brief:
- Aprecia Pharmaceuticals, which uses 3-D printing technology to manufacture fast melt formulations of pharmaceuticals, entered a $30 million debt financing agreement with Hercules Capital Inchas Tuesday.
- The proceeds from will be used to "purchase additional manufacturing equipment, fund the development and approval of Aprecia’s pipeline product candidates and continue to advance its ZipDose technology platform," according to the press release.
- The Pennsylvania-based pharmaceutical company's first FDA-approved product manufactured using 3-D printing, SPRITAM, was made available to the U.S. market earlier this year.
Dive Insight:
Aprecia, which has an exclusive license to use 3-D printing technology to manufacture pharmaceutical products, has manufacturing facilities in New Jersey and Ohio. Its ZipDose technology platform uses 3D printing to manufacture pharmaceuticals that can disintegrate in the patient's mouth with a sip of liquid — offering a new option for patients who struggle to take their medicine.
SPRITAM was approved by the FDA in 2015 and treats partial onset seizures, myoclonic seizures, and primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures. It is available in four unit-dose strengths - 250 mg, 500 mg, 750 mg, and 1,000 mg.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a draft guidance in May seeking feedback on the its recommendations for using additive manufacturing (AM) to create medical devices.