DESCRIZIONE

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to a method and a device for simulating the evolution of gastric pH, which allows to carry out in vitro dissolution and release tests on pharmaceutical formulations. More specifically, the invention concerns a device for reproducing predetermined temporal trends of pH in a controlled environment, the device being able to simulate the changes that this variable undergoes along the gastrointestinal tract, or to create other arbitrary pH “histories”. The device is particularly suitable for simulating the different pH profiles during digestion, to make the dissolution and release analysis of pharmaceutical formulations for oral administration more accurate.

Background of the invention

The control of pH in chemical processes suffers from the well-known problem of non-linearity, but in the processes of simulating the behavior of physiological environments it becomes all the more important the more in-depth the level of analysis to be conducted is. In particular, when it comes to dissolution systems that aim at reproducing the conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, the control of pH becomes fundamental, because this variable greatly influences the fate of many compounds used in the pharmaceutical field.

It is well known that organs such as the stomach and the intestine, while being part of a single path, operate at completely different pH and that, moreover, the conditions of the individual organ may vary from time to time. An example of this is given by the different values that the pH assumes over time inside the stomach, in fasting conditions or during digestion.

Studies conducted using intelligent sensing devices, such as Medtronic’s Smartpills™, a gut motility assessment system based on an ingestible capsule that measures pH, temperature, pressure and transit time through the entire gastrointestinal tract, show how the gastric pH value changes over time if the individual ingests food. Specifically, it has been found that when a meal is eaten, the stomach pH changes from an initial value of about 5 to a pH of about 1 .5, through a sigmoidal trend (Dressman, J.B. et al., Upper Gastrointestinal (Gl) pH in Young, Healthy Men and Women, Pharm. Res. 1990, 7 (7): 756-761 ).

Despite the knowledge of this, the dissolution and release tests of the pharmaceutical dosage units, to date, are conducted following the rules suggested by the pharmacopoeias. These provide, depending on the characteristics of the formulation to be analyzed, which devices and working conditions will have to be used for the tests, but provide, in the simulation of the gastric permanence of the dosage unit, a fixed pH value for all the different formulations.

An example is given by the extended release formulations: in this case the suggestions are to carry out the tests inside standardized equipment (e.g. USP-II), and the suggested working conditions are to carry out two isothermal steps (T = 37 ± 0.5 °C), the first using 750 mL of a 0.1 N solution of hydrochloric acid in distilled water (pH ~ 1 .5) as dissolution medium for two hours (average residence time of the bolus in the stomach), and the second, which begins at the end of the two hours (time that marks the passage of the chyme from the stomach to the intestine), at pH ~ 6.8. This last pH level is reached by adding solutions of sodium hydroxide or tribasic sodium phosphate dodecahydrate in distilled water, and is maintained for a time of at least 45 minutes (The United States Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), Harmonization methods, 2011 , hiips://www usp org/sites/default/files/usp/document/har-monization/gen- method/stage_6_monograph_25_feb_201 1 .pdf).

In the past years, various unconventional dissolution apparatuses, or dynamic gastrointestinal simulation systems, have been created, aimed at taking into account the differences between reality and the tests suggested by the pharmacopoeias. Apparatuses which, in summary, could give more scientific evidence on the performance of the pharmaceutical formulations under examination before proceeding with the in vivo experiments. These devices are often aimed at the realistic simulation of food digestion, starting from the transformations due to the amylase of saliva up to those due to the bile juices secreted in the intestine, and therefore they are already originally designated for research in the food field. Not infrequently, in fact, in addition to the use of foods of different nature and composition, the dissolution media used are complex fluids that are difficult to have available (SGF - Simulated Gastric Fluids), the dosage and use of which require the intervention of specialized operators. Many of these systems, for simplicity, approximate the stomach pH to a fixed value averaged over all the values that this variable assumes in the gastric residence time: this is the case of those devices based on the INFOGEST protocol, which provide for a constant value (equal to pH = 3) during the gastric phase (Mackie, A. and Rigby, N., InfoGest consensus method, in The Impact of Food Bioactives on Health, Springer, Cham (CH), 2015, p. 13-22; Brodkorb, A. et al., INFOGEST static in vitro simulation of gastrointestinal food digestion, Nature Protocols 2019, 14 (4): 991 -1014).

In an extension of the INFOGEST protocol, a recently presented method (Mulet-Cabero, A.-l. et al., A standardized semi-dynamic in vitro digestion method suitable for food - an international consensus, Food Funct. 2020, 1 1 (2):1702-1720) is able to simulate a pH evolution comparable to that recorded in vivo after food ingestion. The pH, assumed to be unitary in the baseline condition, is increased following the introduction of food (and fluid simulating saliva), and is then again slowly brought back close to the baseline condition (pH = 2) by adding HCI 1 M in a quantity known and established by previous tests. This method shows various difficulties of application, including the absence of control and the need to determine the amount of acid to add by means of preliminary experiments.

The method described above is quite similar to that already proposed by a 1988 article (Vatier, J. et al., A model of an ‘artificial stomach’ for assessing the characteristics of an antacid, Aliment. Pharmacol. Therap., 1988, 2 (5):461 - 470): after an increase in pH from the baseline condition (in this case by adding aluminum phosphate), gastric juices or a 0.1 N solution of HCI were added at a constant rate, obtaining pH values with a decreasing sigmoidal trend, similar to those recorded in vivo.

Similar behavior have apparatuses such as HGS, Human Gastric Simulator (Kong, F. and Singh, R.P., A human gastric simulator (HGS) to study food digestion in human stomach, J. Food Sci. 2010, 75(9): E627-E635), which represents one of the first models to have reproduced the fluid dynamics of the stomach avoiding to oversimplify it, unlike the previously designed devices. The main components of this system are: a chamber with a latex coating to emulate the stomach; a mechanical system consisting of 12 rollers fixed on belts operated by a motor unit, which pushes the ‘gastric walls’; systems for gastric secretion, for emptying and lastly for temperature control. The gastric secretion is simulated with a peristaltic pump which delivers the simulated gastric juice into the stomach through a tube, which in turn divides into 5 other tubes placed at different heights in the latex chamber, to ensure a homogeneous distribution of the secretions. The flow rate through the main tube is adjusted by means of a valve, and the realization of the pH profile is effected by feeding a constant flow rate of gastric juices. These latter are composed of pepsin, gastric mucin and NaCI in 1 L of distilled water, to give a pH of 1.3, which is adjusted with 6 N solutions of HCL Also in this case, the quantity of acids and gastric juices to be introduced to obtain the desired pH profile must be decided upstream, following preliminary experiments.

The Chinese patent CN 108364553B (University of Jiangnan), having title "Human body stomach-small intestine digestion simulation method and deviation", published in 2018, describes an experimental device similar to the last three described above, capable of simulating, in two subsequent sections, both the gastric environment and the environment of the small intestine, connected in sequence, during digestion. Also in this case, the device makes use of the calibrated and timed introduction, in the two environments that simulate the stomach and small intestine respectively, of simulated gastric juices on the one hand and of simulated pancreatic and biliary juices on the other, which are dosed in predetermined quantities to obtain the predetermined pH profiles.

Slightly more complex devices, capable of controlling an acid solution dosing pump, require the use of a feedback type control. In these cases, once a certain reference pH value (set-point), constant or a function of time, is known, it is possible, through the use of a pH probe, a data acquisition device and a calculator, to quantify the distance of the pH value read from the expected one, and control the dosing pump appropriately.

The DGM Dynamic Gastric Model belongs to this class of models, designed to investigate the effects of biochemical and physical processing of foods and drugs for oral administration (Thuenemann, E.C. et al., Dynamic gastric model (DGM), in The Impact of Food Bioactives on Health, Springer, Cham (CH), 2015, p. 47-59). The aim of the research group was to define together the physical and biochemical characteristics of the human stomach with data regarding gastric residence times and emptying profiles, and to design a mechanical stimulation, controlled by a PC, which works in real time on realistically chewed meals, or on oral medicaments or nutraceuticals.

The DGM has several functions: it is capable of analyzing soft drinks, chewed meals of normal size, drugs for oral administration; it operates at 37 ° C with heat transfer rates similar to the in vivo ones; it creates moderate mixes (0.05 Hz) in the main body of the ‘stomach’; it has flow rates of acids, salts, and enzymes similar to the physiological ones added around the gastric bolus; it controls and measures the addition of acid and enzymes through the automatic regulation of a pump, depending on the food present and the conditions of the lumen, controlling through feedback loop methods. The addition of acids and enzymes takes place through perforated circles located on the walls of the model. The pH inside the main body is monitored by a series of flexible ‘nasogastric’ electrodes which provide feedback for the control of the pumps.

Also in the field of simulating the behavior of the gastrointestinal apparatus, the TIM (Gastro-Intestinal Model) of TNG Triskelion (Minekus, M., The TNO gastro-intestinal model (TIM), in The Impact of Food Bioactives on Health, Cham (CH), 2015, p. 37-46) is a multi-compartmental model designed since the 1990s, conceived and built to realistically simulate the anatomical and physiological characteristics of the gastrointestinal tract. The system consists of different parts, each representing a section of the gastrointestinal tract, and is made through the use of bags of elastic material immersed in thermostatic baths contained in rigid jackets, which have the purpose of simulating gastric motility and simultaneously of ensure that the temperature is constant and equal to 37 °C. In this device, pH is measured by sensors placed in various points of the apparatus, and controlled through a feedback loop that ensures the regulation of the flow rate to be delivered to a pump that takes a hydrochloric acid solution. The control can be achieved by following a predetermined curve and with the aid of a computer.

Similarly, another group of researchers (Menard, O., et al., Validation of a new in vitro dynamic system to simulate infant digestion, Food Chem. 2014, 145:1039-1045), in the multi-compartment model proposed, simulating the gastrointestinal tract of newborns, uses a feedback control allowing the regulation of the flow rate of a pump taking simulated gastric juices and delivering them in such a way as to follow a decreasing trend in pH. Also in this case, the device includes a pH probe and a pump, and the control takes place with the aid of a computer.

In the artificial stomach model proposed by Cascone et al., which is designed, unlike the models described so far, to be a non-conventional device for the dissolution of drugs rather than a device not for simulating digestion (Cascone, S., et al., In vitro simulation of human digestion: chemical and mechanical behavior, Dissolution Technol. 2016, 23(4):16-23), a pH feedback control system capable of following a set-point variable over time, and able to simulate pH “histories” comparable to real physiological conditions is implemented. In this case, the system consists of a latex bag placed vertically and wrapped in bands, which constrictions purport to simulate gastric peristalsis. The device includes a pH probe connected to an acquisition board which, through the aid of a computer, adjusts the flow rate delivered respectively by one of two pumps, one with an acidic solution and the other with a basic solution. In this way it is theoretically possible to accurately simulate the decrease in pH which occurs during digestion, also counteracting any alkalization reactions due to the pharmaceutical form in use. This therefore allows a greater degree of flexibility to be achieved with respect to the models previously described. In the latter device, therefore, a decrease in pH is achieved in an artificial stomach model, a behavior produced by adding two solutions, one with an acid reaction and one with an alkaline reaction, on the basis of the pH value measured by a probe.

All the methods which are part of the state of the art focus attention on the in vitro simulation of the stomach in terms of mechanical, chemical and thermal conditions. Although this approach is scientifically remarkable, the industrial implications are less interesting, since such devices are not very versatile, difficult to reproduce and economically not feasible for standardized dissolution and drug release tests.

In the light of the aforementioned prior art, the present invention has the purpose, leaving aside the simulation of the mechanical stresses of peristalsis, to develop a method and a simple and economical device, operating autonomously as a stand-alone device, capable of automatically reproducing the in vitro simulation of physiological pH conditions occurring in the gastrointestinal tract, and which may be useful in particular for dissolution and release tests of pharmaceutical formulations for oral administration, to be also applied on standardized systems (for example USP II).

Summary of the invention

In order to improve the conventional drug release and dissolution tests, a method and a device have been developed, according to the present invention, which are capable of simulating and faithfully reproducing the pH changes occurring over time in the gastric environment, represented by a buffer solution, used to test pharmaceutical dosage units for oral administration.

The proposed method exploits two simple solutions (acid and base), compatible with the pharmacopoeial standards, and a stand-alone device capable of performing a feedback control on the pH of the solution. Specifically, in the proposed method the dissolution medium is represented by the common saline solutions suggested by the various pharmacopoeias, such as for example PBS - Phosphate Buffer Saline. Thanks to the dosage of two solutions, one acidic and one basic, and by means of a feedback control based on the pH value measured by a probe, it is possible to simulate in vitro pH “histories” similar to those occurring in vivo, both with decreasing pH and with increasing pH, thus being able to obtain release data of active ingredients more similar to the real ones.

The device takes from two different tanks, by means of pumps, for example peristaltic pumps, a basic or an acid solution having have the purpose of correcting the pH to follow a reference value (set point) which varies over time. Non-limiting examples of such solutions can be distilled water and sodium hydroxide, and distilled water and hydrochloric acid. The proposed device, in addition to the verification and feedback control of the pH of the aforementioned solution, allows accurate monitoring, instant by instant, of the volumes involved, thanks to an innovative system for determining the flow rate of the metering pumps (for example peristaltic), which allows to avoid the addition of flow meters in the device.

In the light of the current limitations of in vitro tests, the present invention, therefore, confers greater reliability to said tests, guaranteeing the simulation of pH “histories” comparable to those that are carried out in vivo.

Brief description of the drawings

The specific features of the present invention, as well as its advantages, will be more apparent with reference to the attached figures, in which:

Figure 1 shows a process flowsheet (PFD: Process Flow Diagram) of the device according to the invention (in the dashed box) in the preferred operating configuration;

Figure 2 shows an engineering flowsheet (P&ID: Piping and Instrumentation Diagram) of the device of Figure 1 (in the dashed box) in the preferred operating configuration;

Figures 3a and 3b respectively show an exploded perspective view of one of the two peristaltic pumps present in a preferred embodiment of the device of the invention, and a perspective view of the same pump evidencing the installation of a Hall effect sensor on the pump head itself; Figure 4 shows an example of pH control for the simulation of postprandial conditions; on the left the set-point pH and that measured in the release medium, on the right the total volume of solution, acid or basic, added;

Figure 5 shows an example of pH control for a generic pH function which provides for a descending acid ramp followed by a positive step; on the left the set-point pH and that measured in the release medium, on the right the total volume of solution, acid or basic, added; and

Figure 6 shows an example of pH control for a generic pH function which involves a double step, one negative and the other positive; on the left the setpoint pH and that measured in the release medium, on the right the total volume of solution, acid or basic, added.

Detailed description of the invention

The present invention specifically provides a method for the measurement and feedback control of the pH of a saline buffer solution, in which device set points are followed, describing the evolution of physiological pH which takes place during the phases of digestion in the stomach. The method developed includes the following operations:

• calibration for the pH reading, through the use of solutions at known pH, for example 4 and 7, for the detection of hydrogen ion concentration in the solution that constitutes the release medium, and subsequent correlation with the electric potential values provided by a pH probe, to obtain a calibration line;

• preparation of pH correction solutions using acidic and basic aqueous solutions, which may consist of aqueous solutions of inorganic acids and bases, such as hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide, or of organic acids and bases, or biological fluids or simulated biological fluids;

• periodic reading of the pH of the release solution by means of a specific probe;

• periodic comparison of the measured pH value with the pH set-point value, variable over the set period of time;

• periodic feedback control action, resulting in an addition, to said release medium, of acid or basic correction solution, to minimize the difference between the desired set-point value and value;

• periodic quantification of the volume of correction solution added.

This last operation is essential for calculating the percentage of drug released moment by moment, as the introduction of pH corrective solutions, acid or basic, alters the volume of the release medium. The calculation of the percentage of drug released passes through the quantification of the active ingredient through, for example, UV-VIS spectrophotometry or similar analytical techniques, which have as a response the concentration of the active ingredient in solution, and the precise knowledge of the volume of the release means is therefore necessary to quantify the mass of drug released, knowing its concentration, and then to calculate the percentage of drug released.

The quantification of the added volume can be performed by monitoring and/or setting the operating parameters of the pump used for the addition of the correcting solution during the control action, or by using volumetric flow meters.

In the event that the pump operating parameters are monitored and/or set, a first calibration phase of the pumps may be necessary, in which the volumetric flow rate can be correlated to the parameters of the pump themselves, which can be measured and/or modulated, such as the number of revolutions of the motor, the supply voltage, the number of revolutions of the head in peristaltic pumps, etc.. In this way, by measuring or imposing these parameters in a given control action of the system, it is possible to know the quantity of solution delivered without having to resort to direct flow meters.

Once the relationship between the characteristic parameters of the pump used and its volumetric flow rate is known, it is possible to measure the quantity of acidic or basic solution dispensed instant by instant.

According to a further aspect thereof, the present invention concerns a device for the measurement and the feedback control of the pH of a buffer solution representing the release medium in a device for the dissolution and release testing of pharmaceutical formulations for oral administration, in which device set points are followed that describe the evolution of physiological pH occurring during the phases of digestion in the stomach. This device can be equipped with two tanks, preferably of a volume not exceeding 1 L, one for the storage of the acidic solution and one for the basic one; two pumps, preferably peristaltic pumps, each connected with the suction port to one of the two tanks and with the delivery port to the tank in which the release test is carried out, such as for example a beaker or a “vessel” in standard devices of the USP II type; a pH sensor; sensors for monitoring the volume of acid and basic correction solution added.

The device can be equipped with direct flow meters or with indirect meters, which are based on the measurement of the operating parameters of the pump. The electronics of the device can be managed by a microcontroller in charge of both the acquisition of the signals of the various sensors and the implementation of the control logic, using a specific algorithm. In fact, having access to analog and digital ports, the microcontroller is able to acquire the various types of signals, calculate the necessary feedback control action and drive, generating output signals, one or more controllers driving the pumps. Everything can be equipped with a screen, such as LCD or OLED screen, and keys for stand-alone applications.

The device according to the present invention is able, by implementing a feedback control, for example of the proportional (P), proportional integral (PI) or proportional integral derivative (PID) type, to regulate the delivery time of the peristaltic pumps in order to have the minimum deviation from the set-point pH value set for a generic instant. Therefore, in the device, the signal read by the pH probe is usually acquired as an analog signal (voltage) by the microcontroller, is compared with the predetermined pH value (set-point) at a certain time and, by means of a control algorithm, the acid or basic solution pump is activated for a given period of time.

Thanks to the use of sensors for the direct quantification of the volumetric flow rate and/or for monitoring the operating parameters of the pump, it is possible to detect instant by instant the volume of acid or basic correction solution added. In a preferred embodiment of the device of the invention, peristaltic pumps are used, in which the control of the number of revolutions of the pump is carried out on the head and not on the motor, using Hall effect sensors and magnetic disks embedded in the rollers present in the head of the pump. In this way, it is possible to use different types of peristaltic pumps, even the particularly economical ones, in which the number of head revolutions is not directly proportional or in any case not directly correlated to the number of motor revolutions, obtaining reliable measurements of the volumetric flow rate.

This procedure, carried out at predetermined time intervals, for example every 10 seconds, allows to control the pH of the buffer solution constituting the release medium so as to simulate in vitro pH “histories” (i.e., evolutions) which usually occur in vivo.

In many models of peristaltic dosing pumps the motor-rollers coupling is not fixed, and this means that the number of motor revolutions is not equal to the number of revolutions of the rollers. In order to measure the pump flow rate (or the volume delivered in a certain operating time) it is necessary, therefore, to measure and relate, by means of a calibration, the number of revolutions of the rollers in the pump head with the volumetric flow rate. For this purpose, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, a measurement system based on the magnetic field generated by a set of neodymium magnets, and the quantification of said number of revolutions by using Hall effect sensors has been created.

In particular, cylindrical neodymium magnets suitable for being inserted inside the rollers of a peristaltic pump, for example having a diameter of 3 mm and a thickness of 0.5 mm, are stacked, for example forming a set of 5 magnets to increase the intensity of the magnetic field generated. This set is housed inside the one or more rollers present in the pump head. Outside the peristaltic pump, a Hall effect sensor is installed by gluing or using special supports. As the stack of magnets passes during the revolution, the Hall effect sensor will be “activated”, thus returning a pulse signal, usually digital in DC, of a “high” type (for example 5V or 3.3V). By using a microcontroller it is possible to count the pulses returned in the unit of time, and therefore to measure the number of passes of the rollers, below the Hall effect sensor, in the unit of time. It is therefore possible to quantify, having known the amount of rollers “loaded” with the magnets and the number of pulses per unit of time, the revolutions per minute (rpm) performed by the pump rollers.

Since in peristaltic pumps the number of revolutions of the rollers is directly proportional to the delivered volumetric flow rate, it is thus possible to construct a calibration curve by measuring the delivered volumetric flow, when the number of revolutions of the pump is known. In this way it will be possible, during use, to exploit the calibration curve to quantify the volume delivered by the pump, knowing the number of revolutions made by the rollers in the pump head.

EXAMPLES

Some specific embodiments of the method and of the device for controlling the pH in conventional devices for the delivery of drugs, according to the invention, are described hereafter by way of example but not of limitation, together with the results of the experiments carried out.

Process Flow and Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams

A proces s f lowsheet for realizing the device of the present invention is shown in Figure 1 .

To carry out the method of the invention, a basic aqueous solution, for example 1 M NaOH, and an acidic aqueous solution, for example 1 M HCI, are respectively placed in the tanks S1 and S2. These tanks are connected by piping, for example silicone or PVC flexible pipes, to the suction port of the peristaltic pumps, P1 and P2, whose delivery port is connected by another pipe to the tank S3 in which the release tests are carried out: a thermostated beaker provided with stirrer or a standardized apparatus, example USP II. The appropriately calibrated pH probe is inserted in the tank S3, which communicates with a controller which activates the base pump (P1 ) or the acid pump (P2) in proportion to the difference between the set-point pH value and the measured pH value.

An engineering f lowsheet diagram (also known as P&ID: Piping and Instrumentation Diagram) is shown in Figure 2. The device in charge of the calculation, a single board microcontroller, powered by direct current at 12 V, is also used to control the instrumentation of the device through the use of a Motor Drive Controller, such as an L298N, also powered by direct current at 12 V. It is thus possible to control the switching on and off of the peristaltic pumps P1 and P2. The signal of the pH sensor, placed in the tank S3, is transduced in a voltage difference and read on an analog port by the microcontroller. In the microcontroller, the voltage read is converted into a pH value by exploiting the calibration line constructed through a specific procedure and code. This pH value measured at a generic time is compared by the microcontroller itself with the preset time-dependent pH value (set-point pH). If the measured pH is lower than the set-point, the microcontroller, through the “Motor Drive Controller”, activates the pump of the base P1 , vice versa the acid pump P2. The running time of the pumps can be proportional to the difference between the measured value and the set-point value.

The diagram of Figure 2 also shows the presence of a display which, associated with the presence of selectors (keys) already present on the micro controller or specially inserted (not shown in Figure 2), result in a stand-alone, device.

Figures 3a and 3b show a schematic diagram of the modifications made, according to a preferred embodiment of the device of the invention, to realize a system for controlling the revolutions of the rollers in a peristaltic pump based on the use of neodymium discs and a Hall effect sensor. These changes provide for the insertion of neodymium magnets embedded in the pump rollers, as well as the installation, using a specially designed support, built by fused deposition modeling (FDM), for the Hall effect sensor.

In particular, Figure 3a shows an exploded view of the pump head in the rollers of which 5 neodymium magnets are inserted, stacked. Figure 3b shows an exploded view showing the installation of the Hall effect sensor on the pump head using a special support designed and printed in 3D.

During the operation of the pumps, the Hall effect sensors mounted on the heads of the pumps measure the actual revolutions of the pump by means of the magnetic field generated by the magnetic discs, for example neodymium magnets, inserted inside the pump rollers. The Hall effect sensor, with digital output and presence of pull-up resistors (R1 and R2), provides a high level signal (“1 ”) when the roller (containing the magnets) of the peristaltic pump is aligned with the sensor and a low level signal (“0”) when the roller is not aligned with the sensor. When the pump is rotating, the Hall effect sensor records the number of roller passes, which can easily be converted into the pump head rpm number.

Having previously estimated, by constructing a calibration curve, and implemented on the microcontroller, the relationship between rpm and volumetric flow rate of the pump, it is possible to precisely quantify the volume delivered by the pump at the i-th pH correction.

Examples of pH control in standard USP II apparatus

Figures 4, 5 and 6 show examples of pH control by using the method and device object of the present invention, applied to the vessel of a USP II device operated at 370, at 100 rpm with paddle stirrer. On the left, in red, the set-point pH and the pH measured in the release medium are shown, while on the right the total volume of solution, acid or basic, added to make the necessary pH changes is shown.

The tests shown in the aforementioned figures were carried out using an aqueous solution of 1 M HCI as acid solution and an aqueous solution of 1 M NaOH as a basic solution. The release medium whose pH was checked consisted of 0.5 L of a buffer solution obtained by mixing 38 g of tribasic phosphate dodecahydrate and 16.6 mL of 37% w/w HCI in distilled water.

In particular, Figure 4 shows an example of pH control for simulating postprandial conditions recorded in vivo. The initial pH, equal to 4.6, is typical of immediately postprandial conditions and was obtained in vitro using a buffer solution produced by mixing 38 g of tri-basic phosphate dodecahydrate and 16.6 mL of 37% w/w HCI in water distilled. As reported in the literature, the acidity of gastric fluids gradually decreases until reaching a pH of 1.8 2 hours after the end of the meal. After this time, due to the passage of material (food and/or drugs) from the stomach to the intestine, the pH drastically changes, reaching a value of 6.8. The pH set-point, as a function of time, was described by means of a polynomial of the 9th degree for the first 120 minutes, and with a constant value of 6.8 for the subsequent instants.

5 pH.set -point (0

_ (a + a ₂ t + a ₃ t ² + a ₄ t ³ + a ₅ t ⁴ + a ₆ t ⁵ + a ₇ t ⁶ + a _s t ⁷ + a ₉ t ⁸ + a ₁₀ t ⁹ t < 120 min I 6.8, t > 120 min

Table 1. Coefficients of the equation used to simulate the post-prandial pH evolution

10 As it can be seen, the measured pH faithfully describes the set pH, thus demonstrating the validity of the proposed method and device.

Figure 5 and Figure 6 show the results obtained by implementing generic pH set-point functions in order to demonstrate the flexibility of the proposed method and device. As in the previous case, the acid solution consisted 15 of 1 M HCI and the basic solution of 1 M NaOH. The release medium was obtained by dissolving 9 g of PBS in 0.5 L of deionized water, to which a volume of 7.2 mL HCI 37% w/w was added to reach the initial pH conditions.

In particular, Figure 5 shows the result in terms of pH control and total volume of acidic and basic solution dosed for a set-point pH constructed as a 20 stationary phase at pH 5 followed by a descending ramp and a positive step, which can be described using the following function: 5, t < 5 min 2t + 5.065 , 5 < t < 120 min 6.8, t > 120 min

It should be noted the a limited volume is used, as in the previous case, of acidic and basic solutions for times less than 2 hours, thanks to the use of 25 particularly concentrated solutions, and a well-balanced feedback control.

Figure 6 shows the result, in terms of pH control and total volume of acid and basic solution dosed, for a set-point pH consisting of 3 stationary phases, i.e. a first phase at pH 5, followed by a second phase at pH 1 .5 and a third phase at pH 6.8, which can be described using the function: 5, t < 20 min

1.5, 20 < t < 40 min 6.6, t > 40 min

In conclusion, the device proposed according to the invention is capable of operating on its own in an independent manner (stand-alone), analyzing and immediately correcting, by using two easy-to-prepare solutions, a sensor of pH and a feedback loop control system, the pH value of an aqueous environment, even buffered.

The present invention has been described with reference to some of its specific embodiments, but it is to be understood that variations or modifications may be made to it by those skilled in the art without thereby departing from the its scope of protection as defined in the appended claims.