Progress in spray-drying of protein pharmaceuticals: Literature analysis of trends in formulation and process attributes

Spray-drying is an inherently continuous and well-established industrial drying process. It can accelerate manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals and vaccine products, resulting in both an economic and health benefit. In this review, we cover a systematic assessment and discuss the spray-drying of diverse protein pharmaceuticals and excipients included therein, solvent systems applicable to these formulations, equipment used and, respective process parameters. Further, key quality aspects of spray-dried protein solids are discussed. Based on the overall trends, we present a concise perspective into the future of protein pharmaceuticals spray-drying.