Ceapro Inc. Announces Publication of Positive Results for a PGX Processed Drug Delivery System for Accelerated Burn Wound Healing

– Results from successful drug-impregnation of PGX liquid processed alginate hydrogel scaffolds further bolsters Ceapro’s efforts to develop innovative delivery systems composed of new chemical complexes –

– Study indicates that PGX-alginate can provide a unique set of properties useful for accelerating the wound healing process –

EDMONTON, Alberta, June 15, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ceapro Inc. (TSX-V: CZO; OTCQX: CRPOF) (“Ceapro” or the “Company”), a growth-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of active ingredients for healthcare and cosmetic industries, today announced that results from a collaborative project with McMaster University researchers have been accepted for publication in the international, peer-reviewed journal, Acta Biomaterialia in an article titled “Drug-Impregnated, Pressurized Gas Expanded Liquid-Processed Alginate Hydrogel Scaffolds for Accelerated Burn Wound Healing.”

Gilles Gagnon, M.Sc., MBA, President and CEO, commented “We are pleased to have been accepted for publication in the internationally renowned journal, Acta Biomaterialia, and for the work that the McMaster University researchers along with the research team at Ceapro has conducted. Our proprietary PGX technology continues to demonstrate its broad utility and potential in developing novel formulations that potentially allow delivery of bioactives through different modes of administration. This research not only further bolsters our confidence, but unlocks many opportunities for product development solving areas of unmet need and drives us to continue innovating topical/transdermal delivery systems using our new chemical complexes developed leveraging our pioneering PGX technology.”

The research project utilized Ceapro’s proprietary Pressurized Gas eXpanded liquid (PGX) technology to produce very high surface area (~200 m2/g) alginate scaffolds and describe a method for loading the scaffolds with ibuprofen (via adsorptive precipitation) and crosslinking them (via calcium chelation) to create a hydrogel suitable for wound treatment and hydrophobic drug delivery.

The high surface area of the PGX-processed alginate scaffold facilitates >8 wt% loading of ibuprofen into the scaffold and controlled in vitro ibuprofen release over 12-24 hours. In vivo burn wound healing assays demonstrate statistically significant accelerated healing with ibuprofen-loaded PGX-alginate/calcium scaffolds relative to both hydrogel-only and untreated controls, demonstrating the combined benefits of ibuprofen delivery to suppress inflammation as well as the capacity of the PGX-alginate/calcium hydrogel to maintain wound hydration and facilitate continuous calcium release to the wound. The published results demonstrated that the use of PGX technology to produce highly porous scaffolds with increased surface areas, followed by adsorptive precipitation of a hydrophobic drug onto the scaffolds, offers a highly scalable new method of creating medicated wound dressings with high drug loadings.