Colorcon and Applied DNA to Join Forces in Taggants for Pharmaceutical Traceability

Effective March 31, 2018, Colorcon Inc. and Applied DNA signed a supply agreement granting Colorcon exclusive right to use Applied DNA’s SigNature molecular tags in film coatings for solid oral dosage forms, and non-exclusive rights to use it in inks and colorants for SOD pharmaceuticals.

Applied DNA will supply materials to its partner in exchange for long-term royalties based on sales. “Molecular tags will provide traceability for audits and law enforcement and, perhaps most importantly, forensic confirmation of the authenticity of the drug product to the patient and all those in the supply chain, including the pharmacist, the drug distributors and manufacturers,” said James Hayward, President and CEO of Applied DNA, said in a press release issued on April 5, 2018.

Colorcon, meanwhile, is discussing use of the technology with potential customers, according to Kelly Boyer, general manager of Colorcon’s film coatings business unit. “Applied DNA’s SigNature molecular tags and authentication technologies provide value-addition at a time when regulators are demanding that the industry implement serialization in order to track packaging. The collaboration goes a significant step further by enabling traceability at the level of single unit, solid oral doses, and it is complementary to the provisions of the Drug Supply Chain Security Act,” she added. 

Applied DNA’s Molecular Tags have been included in more than 200 million pounds of cotton, 15 million pounds of synthetic fibers, and 800,000 microcircuits for the Department of Defense. The Company’s data portals have stored over 300,000 sample testing reports, and are now exchanging data with multiple third-party platforms, the company noted in the press release.

Colorcon has been evaluating the use of taggants for some time, focusing on the taggant supplier TruTag Technologies on utilizing taggants for oral solid dosage forms. Applied DNA’s platform would broaden the range of capabilities that the company can offer customers. Both Colorcon and Applied DNA were finalists for 2017 CPhI Pharma Awards for excellence.

Source: Businesswire