COPOLYMER-1, PROCESS FOR PREPARATION AND ANALYTICAL
METHODS THEREOF
Related application:
This application claims benefits of Indian Provisional Application No.
409/MUM/201 1 filed on 14th February 201 1.
Field of the invention:
The present invention relates to analytical methods such as molecular weight
determination of polypeptide, in particular Glatiramer acetate. The present invention
further relates to an improved process for preparation of polypeptides or
pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, particularly Glatiramer acetate also knbwn
as Copolymer- . The present invention further relates to characterization of
Glatiramer acetate by peptide mapping.
Background of the invention: .
One of the more common neurologic diseases in human adults is multiple sclerosis.
This condition is a chronic, inflammatory CNS disease characterized pathologically
by demyelination in the brain and spinal cord. Glatiramer acetate (GA), also known
as Copolymer- 1, has been shown to be effective in treating multiple sclerosis (MS).
Daily subcutaneous injections of Glatiramer acetate (20 mg/injection) reduces
lesions, relapse rates and progression of disability (Johnson K. P. et al., Neurol.,
1995, 45(7): 1268-76). Glatiramer acetate reduces the proportion of new MS lesions
evolving into "black holes" (Filippi M. et al., Neurol., 2001, 57:731-733).
Glatiramer acetate (Copolymer- 1) is marketed under the brand name COPAXONE®.
It is approved for reducing the frequency of relapses in patients with Relapsing-
Remitting Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS). Glatiramer acetate consists of the acetate salts
of synthetic polypeptides, containing four naturally occurring amino acids: Lglutamic
acid, L-alanine, L-tyrosine and L-lysine with an average molar fraction of
0.141, 0.427, 0.095 and 0.338 respectively. It is synthesized by chemically
polymerizing the four amino acids to yield the product with the desired molecular
weight range. The average molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate is 4,700-1 1,000
daltons [US label for lyophilized powder] or 5,000-9,000 daltons [US label for prefilled
syringe/Summary of Product Characteristics]. Copaxone comprises a mixture
of polypeptides having different molecular weights and sequences.
The structural formula of Copaxone is
(Glu, Ala, Lys, Tyr) . xCH COOH
(C5H9NO4. C3H7 0 .C6H 1 20 2.C9H 1 1N03)x . xC2H 0 2
The process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate is described in Euro. J . Immun. 1,
242-248 (1971) [Tietelbaum et al] and US3849550 [Tietelbaum et al]. US3849550
discloses a process, wherein the N-carboxyanhydrides of tyrosine, alanine, -benzyl
glutamate and --trifluoroacetyl lysine are polymerized at ambient temperature in
anhydrous dioxane with diethylamine as initiator. The deblocking of the -carboxyl
group of the glutamic acid is effected by hydrogen bromide in glacial acetic acid
which is followed by the removal of the trifluoroacetyl groups from the lysine
residues by 1M piperidine.
Process for preparation of copolymer- 1 is also disclosed in US5800808, INI 90759,
US5981589, US6054430, US6342476, US6362161 and WO00/05250. These
documents elaborate on the process for preparing copolymer- 1 involving
polymerization of four N-carboxyanhydrides of amino acids to obtain protected
copolymer and deprotection of the protected copolymer using hydrogen bromide in
acetic acid and piperidine to obtain deprotected copolymer which is then subjected to
dialysis for purification and salt exchange.
Protected copolyma
L-Alanine NCA -benzyl-L-GLU NCA TFA-L-Lysine NCA L-Tyrosine NCA
1) dialysis a inst
HBr-Acetic NHCOCF, acid NH water to pH = 8
Protected copolymer Copolymer Copolymer Glatiramer acetate
C0 H C0 H 2) dialysis against 0.3%
acetic acid to pH = 6
3) dialysis against water
Intermediate 1 Intermediate 2
Scheme I
US20060 172942 discloses process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate which
involves polymerizing N-carboxyanhydrides of tyrosine, alanine, -benzyl glutamate
and trifluoroacetyl lysine to obtain protected polypeptides. The benzyl protecting
group from the protected polypeptides is removed by catalytic hydrogenolysis
followed by removal of the trifluoroacetyl protecting group by contacting the
polypeptide with an organic base. The free trifluoroacetyl groups and low molecular
weight impurities are removed from the polypeptide mixture by ultrafiltration
followed by contacting the polypeptide mixture with an aqueous solution of acetic
acid to obtain the acetate salt of polypeptide.
US7049399 describes a process for the preparation of a polypeptide comprising
polymerization of a mixture of the N-carboxyanhydrides of L-alanine, L-tyrosine, a
protected L-glutamate and a protected L-lysine to obtain protected copolymer or salt
thereof; deprotection of the protected copolymer (or salt thereof) to produce
polypeptide or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof in one single step;
separation and purification of the polypeptide (or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt)
to obtain a purified polypeptide. The deprotection of the protected copolymer is
carried out either by catalytic transfer hydrogenation or catalytic hydrogenation
under hydrogen pressure ranging from 40-100 psi and at temperature ranging from
50° - 80°C.
The disadvantage with respect to the process disclosed in these documents is that
hydrogenolysis requires high pressure and temperature, which in turn needs
additional operation precaution on large scale, thus increasing the production cost.
Since Copaxone is stable at a low temperature of 2°C to 8°C, high temperature during
final step may result in degradation of the product thereby reducing the quality and
yield of the desired product.
WO2006050122 describes a two step process for preparing Glatiramer acetate. The
process involves polymerizing a mixture of N-carboxyanhydride of L-tyrosine, Ncarboxyanhydride
of L-alanine, N-carboxyanhydride of protected L-glutamate and
N-carboxyanhydride of N-protected L-lysine, in a polar aprotic solvent in presence
of an initiator to form a protected Glatiramer; adding an acid and/or organic or
inorganic base to the formed protected Glatiramer to form Glatiramer; and treating
the obtained Glatiramer with acetic acid to form Glatiramer acetate. The
deprotection of the protected Glatiramer is carried out by two different methods.
First method for deprotection is by treatment with an acid and second method for
deprotection is accomplished by treatment with alkaline earth metal hydroxide. The
disadvantage of this process is that use of alkaline earth metal hydroxide for
deprotection of peptides result in slow reactions and formation of high levels of the
diastereomer resulting from racemization/epimerization of the stereogenic centers
(Ahmed F. Abdel-Magid et. al., Tetrahedron Letters 39, 3391 (1998)).
WO2006029393 discloses a process of producing a mixture of trifluoroacetyl
polypeptides which do not all have the same amino acid sequence, where each
polypeptide consists essentially of alanine, glutamic acid, tyrosine and lysine,
wherein the mixture has a desired average molecular weight comprising deprotecting
a mixture of polypeptides each consisting essentially of alanine, -benzyl glutamate,
tyrosine and trifluoroacetyl lysine with a solution of hydrobromic acid in acetic acid,
which solution comprises less than 0.5% of free bromine and less than 1000 ppm of
metal ion impurities. It further discloses that solution of hydrobromic acid in acetic
acid having less than 0.5% of free bromine can be achieved by pretreating the
solution with a bromine scavenger, preferably phenol to decrease the level of free
bromine. It also discloses the use of 10% to 36% of hydrobromic acid in acetic acid.
US20080021200 discloses a process for preparing a polypeptide comprising Ltyrosine,
L-alanine, L-glutamate and L-lysine, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt
thereof, wherein said process comprises, (a) polymerizing a mixture of Ncarboxyanhydride
of L-tyrosine, N-carboxyanhydride of L-alanine, Ncarboxyanhydride
of a protected L-glutamate and N-carboxyanhydride of a protected
L-lysine, in a polar aprotic solvent in the presence of an initiator, to form a protected
polypeptide; (b) admixing an acid with the protected polypeptide formed in Step (a)
and a solvent, to form a product; and (c) admixing a substance selected from the
group consisting of diisopropylamine, isopropylamine, ammonia, and mixtures
thereof, with the product formed in Step (b), and water or a mixture of a solvent and
water, to form a deprotected polypeptide or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt
thereof. It further discloses that diisopropylamine and isopropylamine were the only
amines that successfully removed the N -trifluoroacetyl group of lysine moiety. It
also discloses that when diisopropylamine or isopropylamine is used for removal of
trifluoroacetyl groups, a clear solution is obtained after about 1 hr or after about 1.5
hrs respectively.
WO20090 16643 describes a process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate
(Copolymer- 1) where the trifluoroacetyl copolymer- 1, obtained after the
debenzylation reaction, is washed with an organic solvent to remove reactive benzyl
bromide, generated as a reaction by-product. The released benzyl bromide is a highly
reactive electrophile and reacts with nucleophiles like primary and secondary amines
to generate unwanted N-alkylated products. Also it is highly lachrymatory and
handling it in large quantities on commercial scale is hazardous and unsafe. WO"643
also discloses debenzylation reaction of protected copolymer- 1 for shorter duration
of time at a higher temperature and a method to remove benzyl bromide from the
reaction mixture. Removal of benzyl protecting group of glutamic acid is affected by
33% hydrogen bromide in acetic acid at 35-45°C for 1-5 hours thereby reducing the
reaction time, and in order to eliminate benzyl bromide the filtered product is
washed with an organic solvent. This method employs an additional organic solvent
which is undesirable on a commercial scale. Thus the processes for preparation of
Glatiramer acetate as disclosed above are industrially not feasible.
The inventors of the present invention have developed a simple, cost effective,
efficient, commercially viable and consistent process for preparation of copolymer- 1
(Glatiramer acetate). Use of 33% HBr leads to cleavage of the peptide bonds in the
polymer resulting in low molecular weight compounds. The present invention
provides a more commercially viable process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate
by using about 7% to 20% HBr, preferably about 15% HBr in acetic acid for
removal of the benzyl protecting group at room temperature, preferably at about 23
°C to 30°C, more preferably at about 25°C, most preferably at 25°C±0.2°C. The
present invention further provides a process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate
where the wet solid obtained after the first deprotection step is not subjected to
drying and is used as such for the further reaction which saves considerable time and
hence is considered to be an industrially viable process. The present invention
further provides a process for removal of the trifluoroacetyl protecting group using
amine, preferably secondary amine such as dialkyl amine selected from
diethylamine, dimethyl amine or diisopropylamine, preferably diethyl amine.
Prior art provides methods for determination of molecular weight of Polypeptides, in
particular Glatiramer acetate. WO2000 18794 (WO"794) discloses use of a plurality
of molecular weight markers to establish a relationship between retention time on a
chromatographic column and molecular weight for determination of average
molecular weight of glatiramer acetate batches. Each of these molecular weight
markers disclosed in WO"794 is a polypeptide and has a pre-determined amino acid
sequence and defined molecular weight. The present invention provides the use of
polypeptide fractions (molecular weight markers), obtained by subjecting
Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate/Glatiramoids to Size Exclusion Chromatography
(SEC) or Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC), for determination of molecular
weight of Glatiramer acetate batches. The polypeptide fractions (molecular weight
markers) obtained by the process of the present invention has a defined molecular
weight. However, the amino acid sequence of these polypeptide fractions are
random.
Another analytical technique used for characterizing a polypeptide/protein is Peptide
Mapping. Peptide mapping is a comparative procedure where the information
obtained, compared to a reference standard or reference material similarly treated,
confirms the primary structure of the polypeptide/protein. This helps in detecting
whether alterations in structure have occurred and demonstrates process consistency
and genetic stability. WO2010 129851 provides a process whereby hydrolysis
enzymes are used to digest a standard of a complex mixture of polypeptides such as
Glatiramer acetate, into several peptide fragments. The peptide fragments are
analyzed by mass spectrometry. The mass spectrometric results of each sample are
used as the fingerprint for comparison with other samples. Each peptide fragment
detected by the first mass analyzer is selected and subjected to second mass
spectometric analysis to cleave the precursor peptide ions into even smaller
fragments. The mass spectra obtained from MS/MS analysis are analyzed by the
software such as Biotools to obtain the sequence of each peptide fragment.
Expert Opin. Pharmacother. (2009) 10(4) discloses that polypeptide mapping using
capillary electrophoresis separation of polypeptide fragments obtained after
digestion with trypsin and mapping based on proteolytic hydrolysis by
carboxypeptidase P followed by separation of the fragments by reverse-phase HPLC
are methods of discerning sequence differences among GA structures and those of
other glatiramoids. Carboxypeptidase P is an expensive reagent and not easily
available. The inventors of the present invention tried various combinations of
proteolytic enzymes. It was found by the inventors of the present invention that a
mixture of polypeptides treated with trypsin followed by treatment with
carboxypeptidase B provides results similar to that of carboxypeptidase P.
Object of the invention:
An object of the present invention is to provide molecular weight markers and use
thereof in determining the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batches by GPC.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple, cost effective,
commercially viable and consistent process for the preparation of polypeptides, in
particular Glatiramer acetate.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a process for the preparation of
trifluoroacetyl copolymer by treating the protected copolymer with about 7 % to
20% HBr to obtain copolymer- 1.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a process for the preparation
of Copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) by treating protected copolymer or
trifluoroacetyl copolymer with dialkylamine selected from diethylamine,
dimethylamine, or diisopropylamine, preferably diethylamine to obtain partially
deprotected copolymer or completely deprotected copolymer.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a process for preparation of
Glatiramer acetate where the wet solid obtained after the first deprotection step is not
subjected to drying and is used as such for the further reaction which saves
considerable time and hence is considered to be an industrially viable process.
Another object of the present invention provides a method of characterizing a
polypeptide mixture, in particular Glatiramer acetate using trypsin and
carboxypeptidase B.
Summary of the invention:
The present invention provides a process for preparation of polypeptide fractions
with random amino acid sequence similar to that of Glatiramer acetate, which serve
as molecular weight markers for Glatiramer acetate, comprising the steps of,
a) subjecting a polypeptide mixture, which is similar to Glatiramer acetate
in terms of amino acid composition and molar ratio of amino acids, to
Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC)/Size Exclusion Chromatography
(SEC) to obtain polypeptide fractions having molecular weights in the
range of 2kD to 30kD;
b) selecting polypeptide fractions to be used as molecular weight markers
from said polypeptide fractions obtained in step a) in such a way that one
of the fractions represent the peak apex molecular weight and other
fractions are distributed on either side of the peak apex molecular
weight;and
c) determining tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions.
Preferably, tailing factor of selected polypeptide fractions is in the range of 0.8 to 1.
Preferably, polydispersity of said selected polypeptide fractions is less than or equal
to 1.20.
Preferably, polypeptide mixture is Glatiramer acetate.
Another aspect of the present invention provides the use of polypeptide fractions,
obtained by the process of the present invention, as molecular weight markers for
determining the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch by a process
comprising the steps of,
a) calibrating the SEC-HPLC column using said selected polypeptide fractions;
b) establishing a relationship between retention time and log molecular weight
of these selected fractions by means of a calibration curve;
c) subjecting Glatiramer acetate batch whose molecular weight is to be
determined to SEC-HPLC to obtain the retention time;
d) using the relationship between the retention time and log molecular weight to
determine the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch.
Preferably, SEC-HPLC column is selected from Superose-12 or Superdex-75;
mobile phase is selected from 0.1 to 0.3 M ammonium acetate or ammonium
formate; and the flow rate is adjusted in the range of 0.4 to 0.6 ml/min.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a method of testing the consistency
and reproducibility of the process for preparation of molecular weight markers, the
method comprising the steps of,
a) obtaining multiple set of molecular weight markers, using the process of
present invention, from different batches of Glatiramer acetate/Copaxone,
each set containing molecular weight markers having molecular weight in
the range of 2000 to 13000 daltons;
b) assigning molecular weight markers from each set obtained in step a)
using statistical process of randomization to further generate a larger set
of molecular weight markers; and
c) using these larger sets obtained in step b) as molecular weight markers to
determine the molecular weight of a Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batch
by GPC.
Preferably, molecular weight markers used in step c) provide predictable results
based on 95% confidence interval.
Preferably, Glatiramer acetate used for the preparation of molecular weight markers
is prepared by a process comprising the steps of,
a) treating protected copolymer with about 7% to 20% HBr in acetic acid at
about 25°C for about 2 1 - 23 hours to obtain trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
b) treating said trifluoroacetyl copolymer with diethylamine to obtain
completely deprotected copolymer;
c) converting completely deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate.
Another aspect of the present invention provides process for preparation of
Glatiramer acetate comprising the steps of,
a) treating protected copolymer with about 7% to 20% HBr in acetic acid at
about 25°C for about 2 1 - 23 hours to obtain trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
b) treating said trifluoroacetyl copolymer with a base selected from
diethylamine, dimethylamine or diisopropylamine to obtain completely
deprotected copolymer;
c) converting completely deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate.
Preferably, the treatment in step a) is carried out at 25°C ±0.2°C; said HBr in acetic
acid is optionally pre-treated with a scavenger selected from phenol, resorcinol,
tyrosine, sodium bisulfite, sodium thiosulphate, naphthalene, 1-naphthol or 2-
naphthol; and said base is selected from diethylamine.
Another aspect of the present invention provides conversion of completely
deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate comprising the steps of,
a) concentrating an aqueous solution of completely deprotected copolymer to
minimum volume using Tangential Flow Filtration (TFF) by passing through
a cassette of polyether sulphone membrane having molecular weight cut off
(MWCO) of 1 D;
b) washing the concentrated solution of step a) with water till pH 8 to 9 is
achieved followed by washing with 0.3% acetic acid solution for salt
exchange to get Glatiramer acetate; and
c) washing Glatiramer acetate obtained in step b) with water till pH 5.5 to 7 is
achieved to get pure Glatiramer acetate.
Preferably, Glatiramer acetate obtained by the process of the present invention has
brominated tyrosine content not more than 0.15% and diethylamide content not more
than 5000 ppm. Preferably, Glatiramer acetate obtained by the process of the present
invention has an average molecular weight in the range of 5000-9000 Daltons.
Preferably, Glatiramer acetate obtained by the process of the present invention is
used in the preparation of pharmaceutical composition either as a lyophilized solid
or as an aqueous solution containing Glatiramer acetate in the concentration range of
about 25 - 45 mg/ml.
Another aspect of the present invention provides process for characterization of
Glatiramer acetate by peptide mapping using trypsin and carboxypeptidase B
comprising the steps of,
a) enzymatic treatment of Glatiramer acetate using trypsin to obtain peptide
fragments of short chain lengths;
b) treating the obtained peptide fragments with carboxypeptidase B resulting in
further fragmentation of peptide chain;
c) separating and analyzing the peptide fragments obtained in step b) using
HPLC-UV to obtain the chromatogram; and
d) comparing the chromatogram thus obtained with the chromatogram of
reference standard to determine the structural similarity.
Preferably, the reference standard used for peptide mapping is Copaxone®
(marketed formulation).
Brief description of the drawings:
Fig. 1: Graph showing fractionation of Copaxone® batch no. P53289.
Fig. 2 : Overlaid peak profile of selected fractions (molecular weight markers).
Fig. 3: Calibration curve of fractionated molecular weight markers.
Fig. 4: Molecular weight determination of Copaxone® batch no. 531 19 by GPC using
fractionated molecular weight markers.
Fig. 5: Graph showing fractionation of Glatiramer acetate prepared by the process of
the present invention.
Fig. 6 : Calibration curve of fractionated Glatiramer acetate prepared by the process
of the present invention.
Fig.7 : Molecular weight determination of Glatiramer acetate using the markers
provided in Table 4.
Fig. 8: Overlaid chromatogram comparing the cleavage pattern of Copaxone® and
Glatiramer acetate, obtained by the process of the present invention, when treated
with Trypsin enzyme.
Fig. 9: Overlaid chromatogram comparing the cleavage pattern of Copaxone® and
Glatiramer acetate, obtained by the process of the present invention, when treated
with Trypsin followed by Carboxypeptidase B enzyme.
Detailed description of the invention:
The present invention provides molecular weight markers for determining the
molecular weight of polypeptides, in particular Glatiramer acetate (Copolymer- 1).
Molecular weight markers used in the present invention are polypeptide fractions
consisting of polypeptides with random amino acid sequence similar to that of
Glatiramer acetate. Preferably, these molecular weight markers contain alanine,
glutamic acid, tyrosine and lysine in the same molar ratio as present in Glatiramer
acetate.
One embodiment of the present invention provides polypeptide fractions with
random amino acid sequence similar to that of Glatiramer acetate, which serve as
molecular weight markers for Glatiramer acetate, prepared by a process comprising
the steps of,
a) subjecting a polypeptide mixture which is similar to Glatiramer acetate in
terms of amino acid composition and molar ratio of amino acids to Gel
Permeation Chromatography (GPC)/Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC)
to obtain polypeptide fractions having molecular weights in the range of 2kD
to 3 kD;
b) selecting polypeptide fractions to be used as molecular weight markers from
said polypeptide fractions obtained in step a) in such a way that one of the
fractions represent the peak apex molecular weight and other selected
fractions are distributed on either side of the peak apex molecular weight;and
c) determining tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions.
Preferably, the tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions is in the range of
0.8 to 1. Peak symmetry as measured by tailing factor is of great importance in
chromatographic analysis. When the tailing factor increases, integration becomes
less reliable.
Tailing factor can be calculated as per the USP method.
Preferably, polydispersity of these selected polypeptide fractions is less than or equal
to 1.20.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a process for preparation of
polypeptide fractions with random amino acid sequence similar to that of Glatiramer
acetate, which serve as molecular weight markers for Glatiramer acetate, comprising
the steps of,
a) subjecting a polypeptide mixture which is similar to Glatiramer acetate in
terms of amino acid composition and molar ratio of amino acids to Gel
Permeation Chromatography (GPC)/Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC)
to obtain polypeptide fractions having molecular weights in the range of 2kD
to 30 kD;
b) selecting polypeptide fractions to be used as molecular weight markers from
said polypeptide fractions obtained in step a) in such a way that one of the
fractions represent the peak apex molecular weight and other selected
fractions are distributed on either side of the peak apex molecular weight;and
c) determining tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions.
Preferably, the tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions is in the range of
0.8 to 1. Polydispersity of these selected polypeptide fractions is preferably less than
or equal to 1.20.
Preferably, the polypeptide mixture is Copaxone®or Glatiramer acetate obtained by
the process of the present invention or by any other known process.
Column used in the chromatographic technique is selected from Superose-12 or
Superdex-75, preferably Superose-12. Mobile phase is selected from ammonium
acetate or ammonium formate. Ammonium acetate or ammonium formate is used in
concentration range of 0.1 to 0.3M, preferably 0.2M. The pH of the mobile phase is
about 4 to 6, preferably 5. The flow rate and amount of Copaxone ®/Glatiramer
acetate solution to be loaded on to the column depends on the radius and length of
the column. Detectors used for the chromatographic technique are selected from UV
detector, refractive index detector, MALLS, fluorescence detector or combination
thereof.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Copaxone ®/Glatiramer acetate
about 0.5 to 4mg, preferably 2mg is subjected to GPC (SEC) on a Superose-12 or
Superdex-75 column using 0.2M ammonium formate or ammonium acetate pH 5.0
as mobile phase. 22 individual fractions are collected in an interval gap of 1 minute
as in Fig. 1. All fractions are lyophilized separately. Out of the 22 fractions, five
fractions are selected in such a way that two from each side of the peak apex and the
peak apex fraction are selected. The tailing factor of these polypeptide fractions is
determined. The tailing factor is preferably in the range of 0.8 to 1. These selected
fractions are suspended in 0.2M ammonium acetate or ammonium formate pH 5.0
and the final concentration of each of these fractions is made to 1-lOmg/ml,
preferably 6mg/ml. Molecular weight of these selected fractions are determined
using SEC-MALLS. Mp (Peak apex molecular weight), Mw (Weight-average
molecular weight), Mn (Number-average molecular weight) and polydispersity of
each selected fraction are determined. Nearly identical values of Mp, Mw and Mn
suggest that these fractions are almost monodisperse. Polydispersity of these
fractions are less than 1.05. These characterized fractions are used as molecular
weight markers for the determination of Mp, Mw and Mn of Glatiramer acetate
batches. Each of these polypeptide fractions consists of polypeptide with random
amino acid sequence. Calibration curve is plotted using the log molecular weight and
retention time of these fractions as shown in Fig. 3. Correlation coefficient (R2) for
the calibration curve is 0.996.
SEC-HPLC conditions used for fractionation of Copaxone ®are as provided in Table
1 below,
Table 1: Chromatographic conditions for SEC-HPLC
HPLC Waters HPLC
Detectors UV, P and MALLS
Software Empower 2 and Astra
Column Superose 12 (10/300 GL) or Superdex-75
Mobile Phase 0.2 M Ammonium acetate pH 5.0 or 0.2M
Ammonium formate pH 5.0
Flow rate 0.5 ml/min.
UV detection 275 nm
RI conditions Sensitivity: 32, Temp. : 30°C
MALLS Wyatt MiniDawn Treos
Mp (Peak apex molecular weight), Mw (Weight-average molecular weight) and Mn
(Number-average molecular weight) for the selected fraction are provided in Table 2
below,
Table 2: Characterized Fractions used as molecular weight markers
The polydispersity index (PDI) is a measure of the distribution of molecular mass in
a given polymer sample. It is calculated by dividing weight average molecular
weight by the number average molecular weight. Nearly identical values of Mp, Mw
and Mn suggest that these fractions are almost monodisperse.
In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, Glatiramer acetate about
40mg is subjected to GPC on a Superose- 12 (10/300) GL system using 0.2M
ammonium acetate pH 5.0 as mobile phase. Glatiramer begins to elute after 20
minutes. About 30 fractions are collected at an interval of 0.5min. 12 to 15 fractions
are selected. These fractions are analyzed for tailing factor, molecular weight and
polydispersity. Fractions are selected in such a way that one of these fractions
represents the peak apex molecular weight and other fractions are distributed on
either side of the peak apex molecular weight. Fractions having polydispersity of less
than 1.2 are selected and lyophilized. Fractions having polydispersity of more than
1.2 are subjected to further purification so as to obtain fractions having
polydispersity less than 1.2. Preferably fractions having molecular weight 3kD, 5kD,
7kD, lOkD and 12kD are selected to be used as molecular weight markers.
GPC conditions used for fractionation of Glatirramer acetate prepared by the process
of the present invention are provided in Table 3 below,
Table 3: Chromatographic conditions for Gel Permeation Chromatography
Molecular weight of these selected fractions are determined using SEC-MALLS. Mp
and polydispersity of these selected fractions are shown in Table 4 below,
Table 4: Characterized Fractions used as molecular weight markers
Fraction Mp(kD) Polydispersity
PD=Mw/Mn
Fraction # 16 12.56 1.05
Fraction # 18 10.05 1.08
Fraction # 22 7.38 1.17
Fraction # 24 5.06 1.1 1
Fraction # 26 3.2 1.05
Any number of fractions can be selected to be used as markers. The criteria for
selection is that one of the fractions must represent peak apex molecular weight and
other fractions which are selected must be distributed on either side of the peak apex
molecular weight.
Preferably, the tailing factor of these selected fractions is in the range of 0.8 to 1.
These selected polypeptide fractions to be used as molecular weight markers are
further characterized by NMR and amino acid ratio. The process for preparation of
molecular weight markers as per the present invention is consistent and
reproducible. The molecular weight markers obtained by the process of the present
invention mimic Glatiramer acetate in terms of hydrodynamic volume.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides use of selected polypeptide
fractions which serve as molecular weight markers for determining the molecular
weight of a Glatiramer acetate batch, by a process comprising the steps of,
a) calibrating the SEC/GPC column using selected polypeptide fractions;
b) establishing a relationship between retention time and log molecular weight
of these selected fractions by means of a calibration curve;
c) subjecting Glatiramer acetate batch whose molecular weight is to be
determined to SEC/GPC to obtain the retention time;
d) using the relationship between the retention time and log molecular weight to
determine the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a process for determining the
molecular weight of a Glatiramer acetate batch using the selected polypeptide
fractions which serve as molecular weight markers, comprising the steps of,
a) calibrating the SEC/GPC column using selected polypeptide fractions;
b) establishing a relationship between the retention time and log molecular
weight of these polypeptide fractions by means of a calibration curve;
c) subjecting a Glatiramer acetate batch whose molecular weight is to be
determined to SEC/GPC to obtain the retention time;
d) using the relationship between the retention time and log molecular weight to
determine the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch.
Preferably, the peak apex molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate is determined.
In a preferred embodiment, peak apex molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate is
determined by SEC-HPLC using molecular weight markers mentioned herein. SECHPLC
column is calibrated using selected polypeptide fractions which serve as
molecular weight markers as mentioned herein. A relationship between the retention
time and log molecular weight of these molecular weight markers is established by
plotting a calibration curve as shown in Fig. 3. Copaxone®/Glatiramer acetate is
subjected to SEC-HPLC on a Superose-12 or Superdex-75 column, preferably
Superose-12 (10 x 300 mm) using 0.2M ammonium formate or ammonium acetate
pH 5.0, preferably ammonium acetate as mobile phase. Injection volume of 501
sample having a concentration of about 2mg/ml is loaded onto the column. Flow rate
is maintained at 0.5ml/min and the total run time is 60min. The peak apex molecular
weight is determined using UV detector at wavelength of 275nm. Using the standard
curve, two batches of Copaxone® and Glatiramer acetate are analyzed as shown in
Fig. 4, using the molecular weight markers mentioned in Table 2 above and the
results are as shown in Table 5 below:
Table 5: Molecular weight of Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batches usin the
molecular weight markers mentioned in Table 2 above (Calibration curve):
Batch No. Mp (kDa) M (kDa) Mn (kDa)
RECTIFIED SHEET RULE 9 1 ISA EP
Example 7 7.98 8.76 5.91
Example 8 7.73 8.87 6.1
Cop 53119 6.98 8.46 5.98
Cop.# 53289 7.87 9.55 6.55
The test results for GPC of COPAXONE® using molecular weight markers
mentioned in Table 2 above, are as summarized in Table 6 below:
Table 6: GPC of COPAXONE
Two batches of Copaxone® and Glatiramer acetate are analyzed as shown in Fig. 7,
using the molecular weight markers mentioned in Table 4 above and the results are
as shown in Table 7 below:
Table 7: Molecular weight of Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batches using the
molecular weight markers mentioned in Table 4 above (Calibration curve):
RECTIFIED SHEET RULE 9
Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batches analyzed by this method shows an average
molecular weight between 5000-9000 Daltons.
Glatiramer acetate batch, molecular weight of which is determined using the above
method can be used for the preparation of molecular weight markers as mentioned
herein.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a method for testing the
consistency and reproducibility of the process for preparation of molecular weight
markers by using statistical techniques.
The method involves the following steps:
a) obtaining multiple set of molecular weight markers, using the process of
present invention, from different batches of Glatiramer acetate/Copaxone,
each set containing molecular weight markers having molecular weight in the
range of 2000 to 13000 daltons;
b) assigning molecular weight markers from each set obtained in step a) using
statistical process of randomization to further generate a larger set of
molecular weight markers; and
c) using these larger sets obtained in step b) as molecular weight markers to
determine the molecular weight of a Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batch by
GPC.
In a preferred embodiment, five sets of molecular weight markers are generated
using different batches of Glatiramer acetate. Each set contains seven molecular
weight markers having different molecular weights in the range of 2000 to 13000
daltons, as shown in Table 8 below,
Table 8 :
Statistical process of randomization is applied to these five sets of molecular weight
markers to generate a larger set of molecular weight markers, each set containing
seven molecular weight markers as in Table 9 below,
Table 9:
These larger sets of markers are then used to determine the peak apex molecular
weight of Glatiramer acetate batch and the results are as shown below in table 10,
Table i0:
Batch I Min Max Diff Mean SD RSD Confidence
No. interval
(95% level)
Batch 1 681 1 7108 297 6916 95.00 1.37 6971
Batch 2 6739 7036 297 6842 95.61 1.40 6897
Batch 3 6763 7060 297 6867 95.37 1.39 6922
This randomization study reveals that any permutation-combination of molecular
weight markers taken from different sets will provide predictable results based on
95% confidence interval. This indicates that the process of the present invention for
preparation of molecular weight markers is consistent, reproducible and is not
affected by batch to batch variation of the starting material. Molecular weight
markers generated using the process of present invention from different batches of
Glatiramer acetate provides predictable results based on 95% confidence interval.
In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, molecular weights of
Glatiramer acetate can be determined by using Glatiramoids as molecular weight
markers. Glatiramoids are heterogenous polypeptide mixture comprising the four
amino acids, L-Glutamic acid, L-Alanine, L-Lysine and L-Tyrosine in the same
molar ratio as Glatiramer. Glatiramoids of various molecular weights are obtained by
quenching the reaction mixture at various time intervals during HBr-acetic acid
deprotection stage followed by deprotection using amines such as diethylamine,
dimethylamine, diisopropylamine or piperidine, preferably diethylamine.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides an improved process for the
preparation of polypeptides, particularly Glatiramer acetate also known as
Copolymer- 1, with average molecular weight of 5000-9000 Daltons, from amino
acids, namely, L-tyrosine, L-alanine, L-glutamic acid and L-lysine or
pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.
According to one embodiment of the present invention there is provided a process
for preparing copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) with an average molecular weight of
5000-9000 daltons comprising:
a) treating protected copolymer with about 7% to 20% HBr in acetic acid at
about 25°C for about 21- 23 hours to obtain trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
b) treating said trifluoroacetyl copolymer with a base to obtain completely
deprotected copolymer;
c) converting completely deprotected copolymer to Copolymer .
Protected copolymer is obtained by polymerizing a mixture of N-carboxyanhydride
of L-alanine, N-carboxyanhydride of -protected L-glutamate, N-carboxyanhydride
of --protected L-lysine and N-carboxyanhydride of L-tyrosine in presence of an
initiator to get the protected copolymer. The protecting group (PG) for the free -
carboxy group of L-glutamic acid is selected from substituted or unsubstituted alkyl,
aryl or aralkyl group, preferably benzyl group or substituted benzyl group and the
protecting group (PG) for the free - amino group of L-lysine is selected from acyl or
substituted acyl where the substituents are selected from alkyl, aryl or halo,
preferably trifluoroacetyl group.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a mixture of Ncarboxyanhydride
of L-alanine, N-carboxyanhydride of -benzyl L-glutamate, Ncarboxyanhydride
of NMrifluoroacetyl L-lysine and N-carboxyanhydride of Ltyrosine,
is dissolved in a suitable solvent, preferably anhydrous dioxane over a
period of 1 hour, preferably 30 min, more preferably 15 min. To this mixture, 1%
diethylamine in anhydrous dioxane is added in one lot. The reaction mixture is
stirred at room temperature for 24 hrs at 200-215 rpm. After the completion of
reaction, deionized water is added to the reaction mixture to get the protected
copolymer as a white solid. The obtained solid is filtered under vacuum, washed
with deionized water and dried till loss on drying (LOD) NMT 10 % is achieved.
Protected copolymer is treated with about 7% to 20% of hydrogen bromide (HBr),
preferably about 15% HBr in acetic acid and the mixture is stirred at about 25 °C,
preferably at 25°C ±0.2°C for about 21-23 hours at 200-215 rpm to obtain
trifluoroacetyl copolymer. The reaction mixture is then poured into ice cold water to
get a white solid which is then neutralized by treating with ammonia solution till pH
6-7 is achieved and is stirred for 24 hr. The solid is filtered and washed with water.
This treatment of the obtained solid suspension with ammonia solution also
decomposes benzyl bromide which is generated during the reaction.
The partially deprotected copolymer, trifluoroacetyl copolymer thus obtained is
converted to Glatiramer acetate by the process disclosed in our pending Indian
Patent Application 1082/MUM/2009 dated 23 Apr 2009 or by any other known
method.
The prior art describes the removal of benzyl protection group of glutamic acid by
using 33% hydrogen bromide in acetic acid. Use of 33% HBr-acetic acid (harsh
conditions for peptides) can lead to inconsistent and random cleavage of the peptide
bonds in the polymer which on further deprotection results in Glatiramer acetate
having inconsistent molecular weight. The process of the present invention employs
the use of about 7% to 20% HBr, preferably about 15% at about 25°C for about 21-
23 hours for the removal of the benzyl protecting group, which on further
deprotection results in Glatiramer acetate having molecular weights which are
consistent and reproducible.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, about 7% to 20% HBr,
preferably about 5% HBr in acetic acid is taken in a temperature controlled reactor
at room temperature and stirred at 200-215 rpm for 20-60 minutes, preferably 30
minutes until about 25°C is reached. Scavenger is added to the reaction mixture and
stirred for 1-3 hours, preferably for 2 hours at room temperature, preferably at about
25°C at 200-215 rpm followed by addition of protected copolymer in to the reactor
and stirring at room temperature, preferably at about 25°C, more preferably at 25°C
±0.2 °C at 200-215 rpm for 20-25 hours, preferably 21-23 hours. The reaction
mixture is quenched in cold water to obtain white solid followed by addition of
ammonia solution till pH of 6-7 is achieved and is stirred for 24 hr. The obtained
solid, trifluoroacetyl copolymer is filtered, washed with water and air dried.
Scavenger used to reduce the free bromine content are selected from phenol,
resorcinol, tyrosine, sodium bisulfite, sodium thiosulphate, naphthalene, 1-naphthol
or 2-naphthol, preferably phenol or resorcinol.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a process for preparation of
Glatiramer acetate which comprises subjecting the protected copolymer to particle
size reduction, so as to obtain uniformity in particle size, prior to deprotection. This
ensures consistency and reproducibility in molecular weights of Glatiramer acetate
batches. In a preferred embodiment, protected copolymer is passed through 30 mesh
sieve so as to obtain uniform particle size.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a process for preparation of
Copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) which comprises treating protected copolymer or
trifluoroacetyl copolymer with dialkyl amine such as diethylamine, dimethylamine,
diisopropylamine, preferably diethylamine to obtain partially deprotected copolymer
or completely deprotected copolymer and converting the obtained partially
deprotected copolymer or completely deprotected copolymer to Copolymer-
1(Glatiramer acetate).
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the partially deprotected
copolymer, trifluoroacetyl copolymer is suspended in a suitable solvent, preferably
water and treated with diethylamine followed by stirring for 20-30 hours, preferably
24 hours at room temperature. The reaction mixture is passed through 0.2 filter,
subjected to tangential flow filtration through a cassette having molecular weight cut
off (MWCO) of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water until pH 8-9 is achieved,
then with 0.3 % aqueous acetic acid followed by washing with deionized water until
pH 5.5-7.0 is achieved. The obtained solution is then lyophilized to obtain
Copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) with the desired molecular weight range. The
obtained solid exhibits average molecular weight in the range of 5000 to 9000
Daltons as determined by GPC and MALLS. Alternatively, the above solution can
be taken as such for formulation.
In the process of the present invention, diethylamine is used as an initiator as well as
a deprotecting agent. Diethylamine, when used in smaller amounts in the range of
0.5% to 5% with respect to the NCAs of L-amino acids acts as an initiator and when
used in higher amounts in the range of 1 to 5 times the weight of protected
copolymer acts as a deprotecting agent for the removal of the N -trifluoroacetyl
groups.
This reaction scheme is as shown in Scheme II below:
t fe p re r
A r CA A-L-L NCA T rcsi NCA
1) H fi a i i g - t
NHCOCF HBrAcetic a id E¾HH N¾ watertopH =
Refected c p r — Copolymer opo er Glatuamer acetate
or Piperidine
GOj CC¾H 2) il afi l ati n aga t03
acetic acid
3) l a arnn ga s t
ed ate 1 Infemt;diaie2
ate r p =5.
Scheme II
In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the process for the
preparation of Copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) comprises the steps of,
a) polymerizing a mixture of N-carboxyanhydride of L-alanine, Ncarboxyanhydride
of -protected L-glutamate, N-carboxyanhydride of --
protected L-lysine and N-carboxyanhydride of L-tyrosine in presence of
initiator to get protected copolymer;
b) optionally treating the protected copolymer to obtain uniform particle size;
c) treating protected copolymer from step a) or b) with about 7% to 20% HBr,
preferably about 15% HBr in acetic acid at room temperature, preferably at
about 25°C, more preferably at 25°C±0.2°C for about 21-23 hr to obtain
partially deprotected copolymer, trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
d) treating the obtained partially deprotected copolymer, trifluoroacetyl
copolymer with diethylamine to obtain completely deprotected polymer;
e) subjecting completely deprotected copolymer to purification and salt
exchange.
Preferably protected copolymer of uniform particle size can be obtained by passing
protected copolymer through a sieve of desired mesh size, preferably 30 mesh sieve.
An alternate embodiment of the present invention provides a process for the
preparation of Glatiramer acetate where the deprotection sequence is reversed
comprising first treating the protected copolymer with diethyl amine to remove the
trifluoroacetyl group and then with HBr/acetic acid to remove the benzyl group.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides a process for the preparation
of Glatiramer acetate where the wet solid obtained after the first deprotection step is
not subjected to drying and is used as such for the further reaction which saves
considerable time and hence is considered to be an industrially viable process. The
reaction scheme is as shown in Scheme III below,
Protected copolymer
L-Alanine NCA "5-benzyl-L-GLU NCA TFA-L-Lysine CA -Tyrosine NCA
) ultrafiltration against
NH, water to pH = 8
1) HBr-Acetic acid
Protected copolymer Copolymer - Glatiramer acetate
¾ Et NH C0 H 2) ultrafiltration against 0.3%
acetic acid
Intermediate 3) ultrafiltration against
waterto pH =5.5- 7.0
Scheme H I
Another embodiment of the present invention provides process for purification and
salt exchange of completely deprotected copolymer (Glatiramer) by ultrafiltration,
comprising the steps of,
a) concentrating an aqueous solution of completely deprotected copolymer
(Glatiramer) to minimum volume using Tangential Flow Filtration (TFF) by
passing through a cassette of polyether sulphone membrane having molecular
weight cut off (MWCO) of 1 KD;
b) washing the concentrated solution of step a) with water till pH 8 to 9 is
achieved followed by washings with 0.3% acetic acid solution for salt
exchange to get Glatiramer acetate;
c) washing the obtained Glatiramer acetate with water till pH 5.5 to 7 is
achieved to get pure Glatiramer acetate.
The water used for the above process is preferably RO (Reverse osmosis) water or
WFI (water for Injection).
The undesired low molecular weight polypeptides formed during the process are
removed by filtration. Filtration techniques employed, to remove the undesired
molecular weight polypeptides can be selected from dialysis, ultrafiltration or
tangential flow filtration.
Glatiramer acetate obtained by the process of the present invention has brominated
tyrosine content not more than about 0.15% when tested by Reverse Phase-HPLC
method and diethylamide content not more than about 5000 ppm, when tested by Ion
Chromatography method.
N-carboxyanhydride (NCA) of L-amino acid such as L-tyrosine, L-alanine, protected
L-glutamic acid and protected L-lysine can be prepared as disclosed in our pending
Indian Patent Application 1082/MUM/2009 dated 23 Apr 2009 or by any other
known method.
Copolymer- 1 (Glatiramer acetate) obtained according to the present invention,
characterized by MALDI, IR, NMR, GPC, CD, UV and amino acid analysis (AAA),
is found to be equivalent to COPAXONE®.
Glatiramer acetate, prepared by the present invention has an average molecular
weight between 5000-9000 D and is substantially free of high molecular weight
species having molecular weight equal to or greater than about 35 KD. Molecular
weight of Glatiramer acetate obtained according to the present invention can be
determined using the markers described herein.
Glatiramer acetate is a mixture of polypeptides composed of a mixture of Alanine,
Glutamic acid, Lysine and Tyrosine in a molar ratio of approximately 4.6:1.5:3.6:1
respectively. The corresponding molar fractions are approximately 0.427 for alanine,
0.141 for glutamic acid, 0.338 for lysine and 0.095 for tyrosine, which may vary by
about ±10%. The molar fractions of Amino Acid is determined by Ultra Performance
Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) using AccQ.Tag Ultra Column (2.1x100 mm, 1.7
) and an UV detector. A gradient system is used as the mobile phase.
The molar fraction measured for innovator sample (COPAXONE®) and Copolymer-
1 (Glatiramer acetate) prepared according to the present invention is found to be in
the range mentioned in Table 11.
The standard molar fraction range for amino acids are summarized in Table 1 :
Yet another method for characterizing polypeptides is peptide mapping. It involves
chemical or enzymatic treatment of polypeptide resulting in the formation of peptide
fragments followed by separation and identification of the fragments in a
reproducible manner. Peptide mapping is a comparative procedure, because the
information obtained, compared to a reference material similarly treated, confirms
the primary structure of the polypeptide. A peptide map may be viewed as a
fingerprint of a protein/polypeptide.
Another embodiment of the present invention provides analytical method for
characterization of polypeptides, in particular Glatiramer acetate using trypsin and
carboxypeptidase B, comprising the steps of,
a) enzymatic treatment of polypeptides in particular Glatiramer acetate using
trypsin to obtain peptide fragments of short chain lengths;
b) treating the peptide fragments obtained in step a) with carboxypeptidase B
resulting in further fragmentation of the peptide chain;
c) separating and analyzing the peptide fragments obtained in step b) using
HPLC technique to obtain the chromatogram; and
d) comparing the chromatogram thus obtained with the chromatogram of
reference standard to determine the structural similarity.
Preferably, the reference standard is Copaxone® (marketed formulation).
In a preferred embodiment, Glatiramer acetate obtained by the present invention is
subjected to enzymatic treatment using trypsin (treated with tosyl-L-phenyl alanine
chloromethyl ketone) at a temperature of about 37°C and pH of about 8. This
treatment is continued for about 4 hours to obtain peptide fragments of short chain
lengths.This mixture of peptide fragments obtained after trypsin treatment is
subjected to carboxypeptidase B treatment at 37°C for about 18 hours which results
in further fragmentation of the peptide chain. These fragments are separated and
analyzed on a CI 8, 250 x 4.6 mm HPLC column to obtain a chromatogram.
Chromatogram thus obtained is compared with the chromatogram obtained by
subjecting Copaxone® to the same treatment as mentioned above.
Overlaid chromatogram of Copaxone® batch 53378 and Glatiramer acetate batches
obtained by the process of the present invention treated with trypsin alone is as
shown in Fig. 8. Overlaid chromatogram of Copaxone® batch 53378 and Glatiramer
acetate batches obtained by the process of the present invention treated with trypsin
followed by carboxypeptidase B is as shown in Fig. 9. These chromatogram profiles
indicate structural similarity between Copaxone and Glatiramer acetate batches,
obtained by the process of the present invention.
In Fig. 8 and Fig. 9, (1) represents the blank solution; (2) represents the
fragmentation pattern for reference standard .i.e., Copaxone® batch 53378; and (3)
and (4) represent the fragmentation pattern for two batches of Glatiramer acetate
obtained by the process of the present invention.
Prior art discloses the use of trypsin and carboxypeptidase P for peptide mapping of
Glatiramer acetate. It has been found by the inventors of the present invention that
Glatiramer acetate treated with trypsin followed by treatment with carboxypeptidase
B provides a cleavage pattern similar to that of carboxypeptidase P.
Carboxypeptidase B is selected over carboxypeptidase P due to its easy availability
and cost effectiveness.
According to another embodiment, the invention provides pharmaceutical
composition in the form of an injectable dosage form comprising an effective
amount of glatiramer acetate; and a pharmaceutically acceptable tonicity agent.
According to a preferred embodiment, the invention provides pharmaceutical
composition in the form of a subcutaneous injection comprising a unit dose of 1ml of
an aqueous solution comprising:
a) 20 mg of glatiramer acetate; and
b) 40 mg of mannitol.
According to another embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing a
pharmaceutical composition in the form of a subcutaneous injection comprising:
a) providing concentrated solution of glatiramer acetate with concentration
(assay) ranging from 25 mg/ml to 45 mg/ml;
b) dissolving the tonicity agent in part quantity of water for injection to form a
solution;
c) adding the required quantity of concentrated solution of glatiramer acetate to
solution of step (b);
d) making up of the final volume of solution using Water for Injection;
e) filtering the solution of step (d) through 0.2sterilizing grade filter to obtain
filtered solution;
f ) filling said filtered solution into vials.
In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing a
pharmaceutical composition in the form of a subcutaneous injection comprising:
a) providing concentrated solution of glatiramer acetate with concentration
(assay) ranging from 30 mg/ml to 40 mg/ml;
b) dissolving mannitol in part quantity of water for injection;
c) adding the required quantity of concentrated solution of glatiramer acetate to
solution of step b);
d) making up of the final volume of solution using Water for Injection;
e) filtering the solution of step d) through 0.2sterilizing grade filter to obtain
filtered solution;
f) filling said filtered solution into vials.
According to another embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing a
pharmaceutical composition in the form of a subcutaneous injection comprising:
a) providing glatiramer acetate;
b) dissolving the tonicity agent in part quantity of water for injection to form a
solution;
c) dissolving glatiramer acetate in the solution of step b);
d) making up of the final volume of solution using Water for Injection;
e) filtering,the solution of step d) through 0.2sterilizing grade filter to obtain
filtered solution;
f) filling said filtered solution into vials.
According to a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing
a pharmaceutical composition in the form of a subcutaneous injection comprising:
a) providing glatiramer acetate;
b) dissolving mannitol in part quantity of water for injection to form a solution;
c) dissolving glatiramer acetate in the solution of step (b);
d) making up of the final volume of solution using Water for Injection;
e) filtering the solution of step (d) through 0.2sterilizing grade filter to obtain
filtered solution;
f) filling said filtered solution into vials.
Glatiramer acetate is used in the preparation of pharmaceutical composition either as
a lyophilized solid or as an aqueous solution containing Glatiramer acetate in the
concentration range of about 25-45 mg/ml.
Glatiramer acetate may be used in the range of about 1.0% to 4.0% by weight of
total composition. Tonicity agents may be used in the range of about 0.9% to 9.75%
by weight of total composition.
In the practice of the present invention, the tonicity agent that may be used includes
but are not limited to sodium chloride, dextrose, mannitol, sucrose, lactose,
galactose, trehalose, glycine or mixture thereof.
In the practice of the present invention, the composition of the present invention may
be sterilized using membrane filters having pore size of about 0.2 microns. Suitable
membrane filters that may be used include Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF),
Polyethersulfone (PES) and cellulose acetate membrane.
Unless otherwise indicated, the following definitions are set forth to illustrate and
define the meaning and scope of the various terms used to describe the invention
herein,
The term "room temperature" should be understood to mean a temperature ranging
from about 20° C to about 40°C, preferably 25°C to 35°C.
The term Glatiramer acetate will include Copaxone®, Glatiramer acetate prepared by
the process of the present invention or prepared by any other process.
The term "copolymer- " and "Glatiramer acetate" as used herein are synonymous.
The term "substantially free" as used herein means Glatiramer acetate containing
less than about 0.2% of high molecular weight species having molecular weight
equal to or greater than about 40 KD, preferably less than about 0.2% of 35 KD
species, more preferably less than about 0.2% of 35 KD species and no detectable
amounts of 40 KD species.
Initiators can be selected from bases, nucleophiles or combination thereof. In
particular, initiator can include one or more amines, alcohols, water or combination
thereof.
Amines employed may be primary, secondary or tertiary amine. Suitable amines
include, but are not limited to, dimethylamine, diethylamine, di-n-propylamine, diisopropylamine,
di-secbutylamine, N-ethylmethylamine, di-n-butylamine, diisobutylamine,
di-tert-butylamine, diamylamine, di-n-octylamine, di-(2-
ethylhexyl)amine, di-isononylamine, diallylamine, N-methylaniline, diphenylamine,
or combination thereof, preferable being diethylamine. Other initiators which can be
used for polymerization include K-tOBu, NaH, KH, triethylamine,
tetramethylpiperidine, dicyclohexylamine, dicyclohexylundecane, lithium
diisopropyl amine, t-BuLi or combination thereof. The initiator is used in an amount
of about 0.2% to 4%, preferably 0.5 to 1.5%.
The suitable solvent used is selected from the group consisting of water, alcohol,
polar aprotic solvent, chlorinated hydrocarbon or hydrocarbon. The preferred solvent
used for deprotection is water. Alcohol can be selected from straight or branched
chain alcohol. The polar aprotic solvent is selected from methyl acetate, ethyl
acetate, dimethylfuran, dimethylformamide, 1,4-dioxane, tetrahydrofuran or mixture
thereof. Chlorinated hydrocarbon can be selected from methylene dichloride,
chloroform or ethylene dichloride. Hydrocarbon can be selected from hexane,
pentane, cyclohexane and the like.
Other acids which may be used instead of HBr-acetic acid mixture can be selected
from HC1, H2SO4, HNO3, phosphorous acid, phosphoric acid, fluorosulfonic acid,
chlorosulfonic acid, acetic acid, formic acid, propionic acid, benzene sulfonic acid,
methane sulfonic acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, p-(n-dodecyl)benzene sulfonic acid or
combination thereof
While the present invention has been described in terms of its specific embodiments,
certain modifications and equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the art and
are included within the scope of the present invention. The examples are provided to
illustrate particular aspects of the disclosure and do not limit the scope of the present
invention.
Examples:
Example 1(A):
Molecular Weight determination of Glatiramer acetate batches
a) Fractionation of Copaxone by SEC - HPLC :
• SEC- HPLC was performed with Superose 12 (10/300 GL) column using
0.2M Ammonium acetate pH 5.0 as mobile phase, at a flow rate of 0.5
ml/min.
• of Copaxone (B.No. P53289, 20mg/mL) was injected on to the
column as per the optimized method, making the final injected concentration
as 2mg.
• Copaxone peak started eluting at around 17 min and ended at around 40 min.
• 22 individual fractions were collected within an interval gap of 1 minute
(Fig. 1) starting from the 17th minute and ending at the 39th minute by using
Waters HPLC and Autofraction collector.
• All the 22 fractions collected separately were lyophilized completely.
b) Analysis of fractionated Co-polymer (Copaxone) by SEC-MALLS:
Chromatographic conditions:
• Two fractions each on either side of the peak apex and the fraction at the
peak apex (Total : 5 fractions, Fig. 2) were taken for SEC - MALLS. These
were resuspended in 0.2M Ammonium acetate pH 5.0 making the final
concentration of each fraction to 6 mg/ml.
• Analysis was performed to determine the Mp, Mw, Mn and Polydispersity of
each fraction.
Results:
Fraction Mp Mw Mn Polydispersity
(kDa) (kDa) (kDa)
Fraction # 5 23.77 23.88 23.76 1.01
Fraction # 7 17.07 1.7.16 17.07 1.01
Fraction # 11 8.33 8.82 8.62 1.02
Fraction # 13 5.59 5.98 5.83 1.03
Fraction # 17 3.28 3.48 3.43 1.01
• Identical values of Mp, Mw and Mn suggest that the fractionated samples
were almost monodisperse. The polydispersity of fractionated samples were
less than 1.05.
Use of characterised fractionated Co-polymer as molecular weight
markers for the determination of Mp, Mw and Mn of Glatiramer by
Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC):
• Fractions 5, 7, 11, 13 and 17 eluted at retention time of 21.317, 23.100,
26.833, 28.750 and 32.417 minutes respectively.
• Calibration curve was made by using Waters Empower software. Relative
technique and 1st Order fit was used for plotting the curve (Fig. 3).
• R2 for Calibration curve of Copaxone fractions was 0.996.
• Using this standard curve, two batches each of Copaxone and Glatiramer
acetate obtained by the process of the present invention were analyzed (Fig.
4) and the results were as follows:
Results with Calibration curve of Copaxone Fractions:
Batch No. Mp (kDa) Mw (kDa) Mn (kDa)
Example 7 7.98 8.76 5.91
Example 8 7.73 8.87 6.1
Cop.# 531 19 6.98 8.46 5.98
Cop.# 53289 7.87 9.55 6.55
Example 1(B):
Molecular Weight determination of Glatiramer acetate batches
a) Fractionation of Glatiramer acetate obtained by the process of the present
invention :
• Glatiramer acetate about 40mg was subjected to GPC on a Superose 12
(10/300 GL), System: Acta purifier using 0.2M Ammonium acetate pH 5.0 as
mobile phase, at a flow rate of 0.5 ml/min.
• Glatiramer peak started eluting after about 20 in and ended after about 40
min.
• 30 individual fractions were collected within an interval gap of 0.5 minute
(Fig. 5) starting from the 2 1st minute and ending at about 4 1st min.
• Around 15 fractions were analyzed for polydispersity and molecular weight.
• Fractions were selected in such a way that one of these fractions represents
the peak apex molecular weight and other fractions were distributed on either
side of the peak apex molecular weight.
• Fractions having polydispersity of less than 1.2 were selected and
lyophilized.
• Fractions having polydispersity of more than 1.2 were subjected to further
purification so as to obtain fractions having polydispersity less than 1.2.
• Fractions having molecular weight 3kD, 5kD, 7kD, lOkD and 12kD were
selected to be used as molecular weight markers.
• Molecular weight of these selected fractions were determined using SECMALLS
[Conditions same as mentioned in Example 1(A)]. Mp and
polydispersity of these selected fractions are shown in Table below,
Characterized Fractions used as molecular weight markers
• All these selected fractions were lyophilized and characterized.
b) Use of characterised fractions as molecular weight markers for the
determination of Mp, Mw and Mn of Glatiramer by Size Exclusion
Chromatography (SEC)/ Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC):
• Fractions 16, 18, 22, 24 and 26 eluted at retention time of 24.60, 25.88,
27.41, 28.95 and 31.31 minutes respectively.
• Calibration curve was made by using Waters Empower software. Relative
technique and 1st Order fit was used for plotting the curve (Fig. 6).
• R2 for Calibration curve of the characterized fractions was 0.99.
• Using this standard curve, two batches each of Copaxone and Glatiramer
acetate obtained by the process of the present invention were analyzed (Fig.
7) and the results were as follows:
Results with Calibration curve of Copaxone Fractions:
Batch No. Mp (kD)
Glatiramer acetate obtained by process of present invention 7275
Glatiramer acetate obtained by process of present invention 7234
P53313 7183
P53289 7571
Example 2
200 g (0.84 moles) of -benzyl L-glutamate and lOg of activated charcoal were
suspended in 2.4 L of tetrahydrofuran (THF). 124.6 g (0.42 moles) of triphosgene
was added to the obtained mixture and stirred for 0.5 hr at 50-55° C. After the
completion of reaction, the reaction mixture was cooled to room temperature, filtered
through hyflo bed and nitrogen gas was purged through the obtained filtrate for 2 hr
below 35° C. The filtrate was concentrated under vacuum to get an oil. The obtained
oil was stripped thrice with 1 L of hexane to get the solid. The obtained solid was
stirred with 2L hexane, filtered, washed with 2 L hexane and dried under vacuum at
below 45° C. The dried material was passed through 30 mesh and again re-dried. The
re-dried solid was stored at -20° C in a air-tight container.
Yield: 200 g (100% w/w w.r.t. amino acid), m.p: 92°-94°C
Example 3
110 g (0.552 moles) of L-tyrosine and activated charcoal (5.5 g) were suspended in
1.32 L of tetrahydrofuran (THF). 89.76 g (0.302 moles) of triphosgene was added to
it. The reaction mixture was stirred for 2 hr at 50-55° C. After the completion of
reaction, the reaction mixture was cooled to room temperature, filtered through hyflo
bed. Nitrogen gas was purged through the obtained filtrate for 2 hr below 35° C. The
reaction mixture was then concentrated under vacuum to get a solid mass. The
obtained solid mass was stripped thrice with 0.55 L hexane and further stirred with
1.1 L hexane, filtered, washed with 1.1 L hexane and dried under vacuum below 45°
C. The dried material was passed through 30 mesh and again re-dried. The re-dried
solid was stored at -20° C in a air-tight container.
Yield: 80 g (73% w/w w.r.t. amino acid). The compound decomposed at 250°C to
270°C
Example 4
400 g (1.65 moles) of N -trifluoroacetyl L-lysine and activated charcoal (20 g) were
suspended in 4.8 L of tetrahydrofuran (THF). 243.3 g (0.82 moles) of triphosgene
was added to it. The reaction mixture was stirred for 0.5 hr at 50-55° C. After the
completion of reaction, the reaction mixture was cooled to room temperature, filtered
through hyflo bed. Nitrogen gas was purged through the obtained filtrate for 2 hr
below 35° C. The reaction mixture was then concentrated under vacuum to get an oil.
The obtained oil was stripped with 2 L hexane thrice to get a solid. The obtained
solid was stirred with 4L hexane, filtered, washed with 4 L hexane and dried under
vacuum below 45° C. The dried material was passed through 30 mesh and again redried.
The re-dried solid was stored at -20° C in a air-tight container.
Yield: 415 g (104% w/w w.r.t. amino acid), m.p: 83°C-86°C
Example 5
200 g (2.24 moles) of L-alanine was suspended in 4 L of tetrahydrofuran (THF)
and the mixture was heated to 50° - 55°C for 1.5 hr. 10 g of activated charcoal and
333 g (1.12 moles) of triphosgene dissolved in 1 L of THF were added to heated
suspension over a period of about 10 min at 50-55° C. The reaction mixture was
stirred for 1.5 hr at the same temperature and second lot of 333 g (1.12 moles) of
triphosgene dissolved in 1 L of THF was added to it over a period of about 10 min
followed by stirring the mixture for 1.5 hr at 50-55° C. After the completion of
reaction, the mixture was filtered and nitrogen gas was purged through the obtained
filtrate for 2 hr below 35°C. The filtrate was concentrated under vacuum below 35° C
to get an oil. 1.6 L of ethyl acetate was added to the obtained oil, stirred for 10 min
and filtered through hyflo bed. 3 L of hexane was added to the obtained filtrate to
get solid which was filtered, washed with 4 L hexane and dried under vacuum at
below 45° C. The dried material was passed through 30 mesh and again re-dried. The
re-dried solid was stored at -20° C in an air-tight container.
Yield: 180 g (90% w/w w.r.t. amino acid), m.p: 91°-92°C
Example 6
A mixture of L-amino acid NCAs [ 50 g of N-carboxyanhydride of L-alanine, 35g of
N-carboxyanhydride of -benzyl L-glutamate, 83 gm of N-carboxyanhydride of -
trifluoroacetyl L-lysine, 18gm of N-carboxyanhydride of L-tyrosine] was dissolved
in 3.5L of anhydrous dioxane and stirred for 30 min. The solution was filtered if any
insoluble suspended particle was seen. A solution of 1% diethylamine in anhydrous
dioxane (266 ml) was added to the reaction mass in one lot. The resulting mixture
was stirred at room temperature for 24 hours at 200-215 rpm. 0 L deionized water
was added to the reaction mixture to get white solid. The obtained solid was filtered
under vacuum, washed with 10L deionized water and air dried til LOD NMT 10%
was achieved. The obtained solid was passed through 30 mesh sieve.
Yield: 120g (64.5% w/w)
Example 7
In a reactor was taken 960 ml of -15% HBr in acetic acid at room temperature and
stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until about 25°C was reached. 115 gm of protected
copolymer (from Example 6) was added into the reactor and stirred at about 25°C at
200-215 rpm for 23 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in cold water to get a
white solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was achieved and was
stirred at room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was filtered, washed with
water and air dried. Yield: 75 g (65.2% w/w)
Example 8
75 gm of Trifluoroacetyi copolymer (from example 7) was suspended in 3.75 L of
water. 435 ml of Piperidine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for 24
hr at room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed through 0.2 filter, passed
through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette
of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid and
again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained solution was
REC
then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 50.5 g (67.3% w/w), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 7980 D.
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 9
75 gm Trifluoroacetyl copolymer (from example 7) was suspended in 3.75 L of
water. 300 ml of diethylamine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for
24 hr at room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed through 0.2 filter,
passed through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO)
cassette of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic
acid and again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained
solution was then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 52.86 g (70.4% w/w), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 7730 D.
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 10
In a reactor was taken 960 ml of -15% HBr in acetic acid at room temperature and
stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until 25°C was reached. 115 gm of Protected
copolymer (Example 6) was added into the reactor and stirred at about 25°C at 200-
215 rpm for 23 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in cold water to get a white
solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was achieved and was stirred at
room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was centrifuged, washed with water
and recentrifuged to get a wet solid. The wet solid was suspended in 4.6 L of water.
517 ml of Piperidine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for 24 hr at
room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed through 0.2 filter, passed
through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette
of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid, and
again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained solution was
then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 54.5 g (47.39% w/w), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 6960 D.
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 11
In a reactor was taken 960 ml of 5% HBr in acetic acid at room temperature and
stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until 25°C was reached. 115 gm of Protected
copolymer (Example 6) was added into the reactor and stirred at about 25°C at 200-
2 15 rpm for 23 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in cold water to get a white
solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was achieved and was stirred at
room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was centrifuged, washed with water
and recentrifuged to get a wet solid. The wet solid was suspended in 4.6 L of water.
287 ml of Diethylamine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for 24 hr
at room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed through 0.2 filter, passed
through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette
of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid, and
again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained solution was
then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 55.86 g (48.57% w/w), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 7291 D.
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 12
480 ml of approx. 15% HBr in acetic acid was taken in a reactor at room temperature
and stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until about 25°C was reached. 2.4 gm of
resorcinol was added to it and stirred for 2 hr at 25°C at 200-215 rpm. 60 gm of
Protected copolymer (Example 6) was added into the reactor and stirred at about
25°C at 200-215 rpm for 23 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in cold water to
get a white solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was achieved and
was stirred at room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was filtered, washed with
water and air dried. Yield: 36 g (60% w/w).
The same example was repeated using other bromine scavenger such as Tyrosine,
sodium bisulfite, sodium thiosulphate, naphthalene, 1-naphthol or 2-naphthol.
Example 13
36 gm of Tnfluoroacetyl copolymer (from Example 12) was suspended in 1.8 L of
water. 209 ml of Piperidine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for 24
hr at room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed through 0.2 filter, passed
through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette
of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid and
again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained solution was
then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 24.48 g (68% w/w)
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 14
36 gm of Tnfluoroacetyl copolymer (from Example 12) was suspended in 1.8 L of
water. 144 ml of Diethylamine was added to the suspension in one lot and stirred for
24 hr at room temperature. The reaction mixture was filtered through 0.2 , passed
through tangential flow filtration having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette
of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid and
again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained solution was
then lyophilized to dryness to obtain a white fluffy solid.
Yield: 26.8 g (74.4% w/w)
Alternatively, the obtained solution can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 15
In a reactor was taken 460 ml of -15% HBr in acetic acid and 460 ml of acetic acid
at room temperature and stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until 25°C was reached.
4.6 gm of phenol was added to it and stirred for 2 hr at about 25°C at 200-215 rpm.
115 gm of Protected copolymer (Example 6) was added into the reactor and stirred at
about 25°C at 200-215 rpm for 2 1 - 23 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in
cold water to get a white solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was
achieved and was stirred at room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was
centrifuged, washed with water and recentrifuged for about 3 hr to obtain wet solid.
The wet solid was suspended in 4.6 L of water. 287 ml of diethylamine was added
to the suspension in one lot and stirred for 24 hr at room temperature. The reaction
mixture was passed through 0.2 filter, passed through tangential flow filtration
having molecular weight cut off (MWCO) cassette of 1 KD, diafiltered with
deionized water, then with 0.3% aqueous acetic acid, and again with deionized water
until pH 5.5-7 was achieved. The obtained concentrated solution was sterile filtered
and stored at 2°C to 8°C in a sterile PET G bottle, which was covered with black
polythene bag.
Yield: 1670L (36.1 mg/ml), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 6974 D.
The obtained concentrated solution having a concentration (assay) of Glatiramer
acetate of about 30 - 40mg/ml can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 16
In a reactor was taken 460 ml of -33% HBr in acetic acid and 460 ml of acetic acid
at room temperature and stirred at 200-215 rpm for 30 min until about 25°C was
reached. 4.6 gm of phenol was added to it and stirred for 2 hr at 25°C at 200-215
rpm. 115 gm of Protected copolymer (Example 6) was added into the reactor and
stirred at 25°C at 200-215 rpm for 2 1 hr. The reaction mixture was quenched in cold
water to get a white solid. Ammonia solution was added to it till pH 6-7 was
achieved and was stirred at room temperature for about 20 hrs. The solid was
centrifuged, washed with water and recentrifuged for about 3 hr. The wet solid was
suspended in 4.6 L of water. 287 ml of diethylamine was added to the suspension in
one lot and stirred for 24 hr at room temperature. The reaction mixture was passed
through 0.2 filter, passed through tangential flow filtration having molecular
weight cut off (MWCO) cassette of 1 KD, diafiltered with deionized water, then with
0.3% aqueous acetic acid, and again with deionized water until pH 5.5-7 was
achieved. The obtained concentrated solution was sterile filtered and stored at 2°C to
8°C in a sterile PET G bottle, which was covered with black polythene bag.
Yield: 1690L (35 mg/ml), Peak apex molecular weight (Mp) = 7324 D.
The obtained concentrated solution having a concentration (assay) of Glatiramer
acetate about 30-40mg/ml can be taken as such for formulation.
Example 17
Analysis of Amino Acid by UPLC:
Chromatographic Conditions:
Column: AccQ.Tag Ultra Column 2.1x100 mm, 1.7 
Mobile Phase A: Eluent Al (5% AccQ.Tag mobile phase diluted with water)
Mobile Phase B: Eluent B (as such)
Wavelength: 260 ran
Sampling Rate: 10 points/sec
Column Temp: 55°C
Sample Temp: 20°C
Flow Rate: 0.7 ml/min
Programming: Gradient program
Derivatization: Derivatization by AccQ. Tag derivatization agent
The test results for molar fractions of amino acids are summarized in Table 12:
RECTIFIED SHEET RULE 9 1 ISA EP
L-Tyrosine 0.095 0.085-0.104 0.099 0.090 0.100
L-Glutamic Acid 0.141 0.127-0.155 0.132 0.140 0.140
L-Lysine 0.338 0.304-0.372 0.347 0.350 0.330
L-Alanine 0.427 0.384-0.470 0.422 0.420 0.430
Example 18
Peptide mapping using Trypsin Enzyme
0.25 mg of Glatiramer acetate was digested using 5 g of Trypsin (treated with tosyl-
L-phenyl alanine chloromethyl ketone) in 0.05M Tris buffer pH 7.5 at a temperature
of about 37°C. This treatment was continued for about 4 hours to obtain peptide
fragments of short chain lengths. These fragments were separated and analyzed
using HPLC-UV on CI 8, 250 x 4.6 mm HPLC column to obtain a chromatogram.
Chromatogram thus obtained was compared with the chromatogram obtained by
subjecting Copaxone to the same treatment as mentioned above.
Example 19
Peptide mapping using Trypsin and Carboxypeptidase B enzyme
3.5 mg of Glatiramer acetate was digested using 7g of Trypsin (treated with tosyl-
L-phenyl alanine chloromethyl ketone) in 0.05M Tris buffer pH 7.5 at a temperature
of about 37°C. This treatment was continued for about 4 hours to obtain peptide
fragments of short chain length. This mixture of peptide fragments obtained after
trypsin treatment was subjected to 20g of carboxypeptidase B treatment at 37°C for
about 18 hours which results in further fragmentation of the peptide chain. These
fragments were separated and analyzed using HPLC-UV on C 8, 250 x 4.6 mm
HPLC column to obtain a chromatogram. Chromatogram thus obtained was
compared with the chromatogram obtained by subjecting Copaxone to the same
treatment as mentioned above.
Example: 20
(A) Composition:
(B) Preparation:
Mannitol was dissolved in part quantity of water for injection by stirring. The
concentrated solution of Glatiramer acetate API was added to this mannitol solution
and mixed. The final volume was made up with the remaining quantity of water for
injection. The pH of the solution was checked (pH limit: 5.5 to 7.0). The final
solution was filtered using 0.2 sterilizing grade polyethersulfone filter. The filtered
solution was filled into vials and the vials were sealed.
Example 21:
Statistical technique for evaluating the consistency and reproducibility of the
process for preparation of molecular weight markers.
Five sets of molecular weight markers were generated using different batches of
Glatiramer acetate. Each set contained seven molecular weight markers having
different molecular weights in the range of 2000 to, 13000 daltons, as shown in Table
below,
Set Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
12628 12208 12215 12373 12580
9892 9241 9915 10128 8939
7019 7991 6706 7870 6556
6185 6335 6073 6267 5890
5163 5704 5532 5631 4969
4888 4612 4755 4000 4069
2709 2989 3775 3292 3671
Statistical process of randomization was applied to these five sets of molecular
weight markers to generate a larger set of molecular weight markers, each set
containing seven molecular weight markers as in Table below,
These larger sets of markers were then used to determine the peak apex molecular
weight of Glatiramer acetate batch and the results were as shown in table below,
This randomization study revealed that any permutation-combination of molecular
weight markers taken from different sets will provide predictable results based on
95% confidence interval. This indicates that the process of the present invention for
preparation of molecular weight markers was consistent, reproducible and was not
affected by batch to batch variation of the starting material. Molecular weight
markers generated using the process of present invention from different batches of
Glatiramer acetate provided predictable results based on 95% confidence interval.
We claim,
1. A process for preparation of polypeptide fractions with random amino acid
sequence similar to that of Glatiramer acetate, which serve as molecular
weight markers for Glatiramer acetate, comprising the steps of,
a) subjecting a polypeptide mixture, which is similar to Glatiramer acetate
in terms of amino acid composition and molar ratio of amino acids, to
Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC)/Size Exclusion Chromatography
(SEC) to obtain polypeptide fractions having molecular weights in the
range of2kD to 30kD;
b) selecting polypeptide fractions to be used as molecular weight markers
from said polypeptide fractions obtained in step a) in such a way that one
of the fractions represent the peak apex molecular weight and other
fractions are distributed on either side of the peak apex molecular
weight;and
c) determining tailing factor of these selected polypeptide fractions.
2. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said tailing factor of selected
polypeptide fractions is in the range of 0.8 to 1.
3. The process as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein polydispersity of said
selected polypeptide fractions is less than or equal to 1.20.
4. The process as claimed in claim 3, wherein said polypeptide mixture is
Glatiramer acetate.
5. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said GPC/SEC is carried out on
Superose-12 or Superdex-75 column using mobile phase selected from
ammonium acetate or ammonium formate in a concentration range of 0.1 to
0.3M.
6. The process as claimed in claim 5, wherein column is Superose-12 (10 x 300
GL); column loading is not more than 50 mg; and flow rate is adjusted in the
range of 0.4 to 0.6 ml/min.
7. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said polypeptide fractions
obtained in step a) are lyophilized.
8. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein Mp of said selected fractions is
determined using SEC-MALLS.
9. The process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said selected polypeptide
fractions are used as molecular weight markers for determining the
molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch by a process comprising the
steps of,
a) calibrating the SEC/GPC column using said selected polypeptide
fractions;
b) establishing a relationship between retention time and log molecular
weight of these selected fractions by means of a calibration curve;
c) subjecting Glatiramer acetate batch whose molecular weight is to be
determined to SEC/GPC to obtain the retention time;
d) using the relationship between the retention time and log molecular
weight to determine the molecular weight of Glatiramer acetate batch.
10. The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein peak apex molecular weight of
Glatiramer acetate batch is determined.
1 . The process as claimed in claim 9, wherein said SEC/GPC column is selected
from Superose-12 or Superdex-75; and mobile phase is selected from 0.1 to
0.3 M ammonium acetate or ammonium formate.
12. A method of testing the consistency and reproducibility of the process for
preparation of molecular weight markers, the method comprising the steps of,
a) obtaining multiple set of molecular weight markers, using the process of
present invention, from different batches of Glatiramer acetate/Copaxone,
each set containing molecular weight markers having molecular weight in
the range of 2000 to 13000 daltons;
b) assigning molecular weight markers from each set obtained in step a)
using statistical process of randomization to further generate a larger set
of molecular weight markers; and
c) using these larger sets obtained in step b) as molecular weight markers to
determine the molecular weight of a Copaxone/Glatiramer acetate batch
by GPC.
13. The process as claimed in claim 12, wherein said molecular weight markers
provide predictable results based on 95% confidence interval proving
consistency and reproducibility of the process for preparation of molecular
weight markers.
14. The process as claimed in claim 4, wherein said Glatiramer acetate is
prepared by a process comprising the steps of,
a) treating protected copolymer with about 7% to 20% HBr in acetic acid at
about 25°C for about 2 1 - 23 hours to obtain trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
b) treating said trifluoroacetyl copolymer with diethylamine to obtain
completely deprotected copolymer;
c) converting completely deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate.
15. A process for preparation of Glatiramer acetate comprising the steps of:
a) treating protected copolymer with about 7% to 20% HBr in acetic acid at
about 25°C for about 2 1 - 23 hours to obtain trifluoroacetyl copolymer;
b) treating said trifluoroacetyl copolymer with a base to obtain completely
deprotected copolymer;
c) converting completely deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate.
16. The process as claimed in claim 15, wherein said treatment in step a) is
carried out at 25°C ±0.2°C; said HBr in acetic acid is optionally pre-treated
with a scavenger selected from phenol, resorcinol, tyrosine, sodium bisulfite,
sodium thiosulphate, naphthalene, 1-naphthol or 2-naphthol; and said base is
selected from diethylamine, dimethylamine or diisopropylamine.
17. The process as claimed in claim 15, wherein said conversion of completely
deprotected copolymer to Glatiramer acetate comprises the steps of,
a) concentrating an aqueous solution of completely deprotected copolymer
to minimum volume using Tangential Flow Filtration (TFF) by passing
through a cassette of polyether sulphone membrane having molecular
weight cut off (MWCO) of 1 KD;
b) washing the concentrated solution of step a) with water till pH 8 to 9 is
achieved followed by washing with 0.3% acetic acid solution for salt
exchange to get Glatiramer acetate; and
c) washing Glatiramer acetate obtained in step b) with water till pH 5.5 to 7
is achieved to get pure Glatiramer acetate.
18. The process as claimed in claim 17, wherein the molecular weight of said
Glatiramer acetate is determined by the process claimed in claim 9.
19. The process as claimed in claim 17, wherein Glatiramer acetate has
brominated tyrosine content not more than about 0.15%, when tested by
reverse phase HPLC and diethylamide content not more than about 5000
ppm, when tested by ion chromatography method.
20. The process as claimed in claim 17, wherein said Glatiramer acetate has an
average molecular weight in the range of 5000-9000 Daltons.
21. The process as claimed in claim 15, wherein said Glatiramer acetate is used
in the preparation of pharmaceutical composition either as lyophilized solid
or as an aqueous solution containing Glatiramer acetate in the concentration
range of about 25 - 45 mg/ml.
22. The process as claimed in claim 15, wherein Glatiramer acetate is further
characterized by peptide mapping using trypsin and carboxypeptidase B.
23. A process for characterization of Glatiramer acetate by peptide mapping
using trypsin and carboxypeptidase B comprising the steps of,
a) enzymatic treatment of Glatiramer acetate using trypsin to obtain peptide
fragments of short chain lengths;
b) treating the peptide fragments obtained in step a) with carboxypeptidase
B resulting in further fragmentation of peptide chain;
c) separating and analyzing peptide fragments obtained in step b) using
HPLC technique to obtain the chromatogram; and
d) comparing the chromatogram thus obtained with the chromatogram of
reference standard to determine the structural similarity.
24. The process as claimed in claim 23, wherein said reference standard is
Copaxone (marketed formulation).