Think formulation design, says software firm

UK software company Intelligensys has launched a new product that promises a step forward in the application of artificial intelligence technologies to formulation design.

The software package, called FormRules, is based on a 'neuro fuzzy logic,' which couples the strengths of fuzzy logic with the learning capabilities of neural networks. The software automatically mines knowledge from experimental data which is presented to the researchers as a series of "If … Then" statements. These can be used to create models and rules that point to the best directions to follow for further experiments, according to the company.

"It's like having an extra gear you can use to shift up your formulation research to a new level, early on in a project,"​ said Neil Robertson, Intelligensys' commercial director.

The advance of biological therapies, including peptides, proteins, monoclonal antibodies and gene-based drugs, is putting more pressure on delivery system design and require specialised formulation approaches. As a general rule, the actives tend to be unstable in aqueous form and are sensitive to environmental changes.

"These trends are fuelling the growth of and elevating further then importance of formulation research, and formulators rely more and more on information science support to make sense of the data coming from these new advances,"​ according to Intelligensys.

Improvements in formulation measurement systems, increasing excipient complexity and the application of new drug discovery technologies require developers to determine if a formulation approach is valid as early as possible in the drug development process.

The company's product director, Elizabeth Colbourn, is presenting the company's formulation software packages, including FormRules, later today at the Controlled Release Society's annual meeting​ in Glasgow, Scotland.