The additional of a functional excipient, SiO₂, and APIs showed significant impacts on the shape fidelity of SSE 3D printed tablets. The interactions between different APIs and the polymeric excipients used in the ink showed significantly impacts on the drug release profiles of the 3D printed tablets.

Poor solubility and bioavailability of drugs often affected by its microscopic structural properties. Nitrofurantoin (NF), a BCS class II item, has a low water solubility with low plasma concentrations. To improve its therapeutic efficacy, formulation strategy of solid dispersion and co-crystallization are compared herein. The co-crystal is prepared with citric acid in 1:1 stoichiometric ratio while solid dispersion consists of 30% w/w nitrofurantoin and 70% w/w HPMC as the carrier system. As a control, the physical mixture of NF and HPMC was prepared. All the preparations were characterized with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), microscopy analysis, solubility and dissolution studies. The formation of co-crystal, solvent evaporated and spray dried solid dispersion are confirmed by the ATR-FTIR where peaks shifting of several functional groups indicate the formation of the hydrogen bond. Dissolution studies showed a greater initial dissolution rate in co-crystal than solid dispersion despite the possible presence of amorphous content in the solid dispersion system. Overall, co-crystal is concluded to be a better approach than solid dispersion for an effective dissolution.

3D printing techniques allow for the precise placement of living cells, biological substances, and biochemical components, establishing themselves as a promising approach in bioengineering. Recently, 3D printing has been applied to develop human-relevant in vitro cancer models with highly controlled complexity and as a potential method for drug screening and disease modeling. Compared to 2D culture, 3D-printed in vitro cancer models more closely replicate the in vivo microenvironment. Additionally, they offer a reduction in the complexity and ethical issues associated with using in vivo animal models. This focused review discusses the relevance of 3D printing technologies and the applied cells and materials used in cutting-edge in vitro cancer models and microfluidic device systems. Future prospective solutions were discussed to establish 3D-printed in vitro models as reliable tools for drug screening and understanding cancer disease mechanisms.