Patent 9149439 was granted and assigned to Sandoz on October, 2015 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A multi-particulate, modified-release pharmaceutical composition for the oral administration of an active ingredient to the colon, wherein said particles comprise:(a) a core comprising an active ingredient or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or ester thereof, and optionally one or more excipients;(b) a first coating applied to the surface of the core, wherein said first coating is insoluble in gastric juice and in intestinal juice below pH 7, but soluble in colonic intestinal juice; and(c) a second coating applied to the surface of the first coating.