Stability, dose uniformity, and palatability of three counterterrorism drugs-human subject and electronic tongue studies.
OBJECTIVE
These studies evaluated the ability of common household food and drink products to mask the bitter taste of three selected anti-terrorism drugs.


METHODS
Three anti-terrorism drugs (doxycycline, ciprofloxacin hydrochloride, and potassium iodide) were mixed with a variety of common household food and drinks, and healthy adult volunteers evaluated the resulting taste and aftertaste. In parallel, the ASTREE Electronic Tongue was used to evaluate taste combinations. Stability of the mixtures over time was monitored, as was the dosage uniformity across preparations.


RESULTS
Foods and drinks were identified that satisfactorily masked the bitter flavor of each drug. Dose uniformity and stability were also acceptable over the range studied, although some combinations were significantly less stable than others. The electronic tongue was able to differentiate between tastes, but ranked masking agents in a different order than human volunteers.


CONCLUSIONS
Doxycycline, potassium iodide, and ciprofloxacin, which are stockpiled in solid tablet form, can conveniently be prepared into more palatable formulations, using common household foods and drinks. The electronic tongue can be used to perform an initial screening for palatability.
Sadrieh
Nakissa
N
Food and Drug Administration, 5515 Security Lane, Rockville, Maryland, 20852, USA.
Brower
James
J
Yu
Lawrence
L
Doub
William
W
Straughn
Arthur
A
Machado
Stella
S
Pelsor
Frank
F
Martin
Emmanuelle Saint
ES
Moore
Terry
T
Reepmeyer
John
J
Toler
Duckhee
D
Nguyenpho
Agnes
A
Roberts
Rosemary
R
Schuirmann
Donald J
DJ
Nasr
Moheb
M
Buhse
Lucinda
L
D000328:Adult; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D023482:Bioterrorism; D002939:Ciprofloxacin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004318:Doxycycline / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004355:Drug Stability; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011193:Potassium Iodide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013649:Taste / Q000187:drug effects*; D013678:Technology, Pharmaceutical / Q000295:instrumentation; D014059:Tongue / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D011193:Potassium Iodide; D002939:Ciprofloxacin; D004318:Doxycycline