[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 236 (Monday, December 13, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70850-70852]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-26889]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2020-D-1301]


Q3C(R8) Impurities: Guidance for Residual Solvents; International 
Council for Harmonisation; Guidance for Industry; Availability

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is announcing 
the availability of a final guidance for industry entitled ``Q3C(R8) 
Impurities: Guidance for Residual Solvents.'' The guidance was prepared 
under the auspices of the International Council for Harmonisation 
(ICH), formerly the International Conference on Harmonisation. This 
guidance provides recommendations for permitted daily exposures (PDEs) 
for three additional residual solvents: 2-Methyltetrahydrofuran, 
cyclopentyl methyl ether, and tert-butyl alcohol. The PDEs were 
developed according to the methods for establishing exposure limits 
included in the guidance for industry ``Q3C: Impurities Residual 
Solvents'' (Q3C guidance). The Q3C PDE levels are added and revised as 
new toxicological data for solvents become available. This guidance 
finalizes the draft guidance entitled ``Q3C(R8) Recommendations for the 
Permitted Daily Exposures for Three Solvents--2-Methyltetrahydrofuran, 
Cyclopentyl Methyl Ether, and Tert-Butyl Alcohol--According to the 
Maintenance Procedures for the Guidance Q3C Impurities: Residual 
Solvents'' issued on May 27, 2020.

DATES: The announcement of the guidance is published in the Federal 
Register on December 13, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit either electronic or written comments on 
Agency guidances at any time as follows:

Electronic Submissions

    Submit electronic comments in the following way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted 
electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov 
will be posted to the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be 
made public, you are solely responsible for ensuring that your comment 
does not include any confidential information that you or a third party 
may not wish to be posted, such as medical information, your or anyone 
else's Social Security number, or confidential business information, 
such as a manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your 
name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in 
the body of your comments, that information will be posted on https://www.regulations.gov.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner 
detailed (see ``Written/Paper Submissions'' and ``Instructions'').

Written/Paper Submissions

    Submit written/paper submissions as follows:
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier (for written/paper 
submissions): Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug 
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
     For written/paper comments submitted to the Dockets 
Management Staff, FDA will post your comment, as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, 
as confidential, if submitted as detailed in ``Instructions.''
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. 
FDA-2020-D-1301 for ``Q3C(R8) Impurities: Guidance for Residual 
Solvents.'' Received comments will be placed in the docket and, except 
for those submitted as ``Confidential Submissions,'' publicly viewable 
at

[[Page 70851]]

https://www.regulations.gov or at the Dockets Management Staff between 
9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 240-402-7500.
     Confidential Submissions--To submit a comment with 
confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly 
available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You 
should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information 
you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states 
``THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.'' The Agency will 
review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in 
its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the 
claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be 
available for public viewing and posted on https://www.regulations.gov. 
Submit both copies to the Dockets Management Staff. If you do not wish 
your name and contact information to be made publicly available, you 
can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body of 
your comments and you must identify this information as 
``confidential.'' Any information marked as ``confidential'' will not 
be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other 
applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of 
comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or 
access the information at: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2015-09-18/pdf/2015-23389.pdf.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in 
the heading of this document, into the ``Search'' box and follow the 
prompts and/or go to the Dockets Management Staff, 5630 Fishers Lane, 
Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852, 240-402-7500.
    You may submit comments on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 
10.115(g)(5)).
    Submit written requests for single copies of this guidance to the 
Division of Drug Information, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, 
Food and Drug Administration, 10001 New Hampshire Ave., Hillandale 
Building, 4th Floor, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002; or the Office of 
Communication, Outreach and Development, Center for Biologics 
Evaluation and Research (CBER), Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New 
Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 3128, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002. Send 
one self-addressed adhesive label to assist that office in processing 
your requests. The guidance may also be obtained by mail by calling 
CBER at 1-800-835-4709 or 240-402-8010. See the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section for electronic access to the guidance document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    Regarding the guidance: Timothy McGovern, Center for Drug 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bldg. 22, Rm. 
6426, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, 240-402-0477; or Stephen Ripley, 
Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug 
Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 7301, Silver 
Spring, MD 20993-0002, 240-402-7911.
    Regarding the ICH: Jill Adleberg, Center for Drug Evaluation and 
Research, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 
51, Rm. 6364, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, 301-796-5259, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    FDA is announcing the availability of a guidance for industry 
entitled ``Q3C(R8) Impurities: Guideline for Residual Solvents.'' The 
guidance was prepared under the auspices of ICH. ICH has the mission of 
achieving greater regulatory harmonization worldwide to ensure that 
safe, effective, high-quality medicines are developed, registered, and 
maintained in the most resource-efficient manner. By harmonizing the 
regulatory requirements in regions around the world, ICH guidelines 
have substantially reduced duplicative clinical studies, prevented 
unnecessary animal studies, standardized the reporting of important 
safety information, standardized marketing application submissions, and 
made many other improvements in the quality of global drug development 
and manufacturing and the products available to patients.
    The six Founding Members of the ICH are FDA; the Pharmaceutical 
Research and Manufacturers of America; the European Commission; the 
European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Associations; the 
Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare; and the Japanese 
Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association. The Standing Members of the 
ICH Association include Health Canada and Swissmedic. Additionally, the 
Membership of ICH has expanded to include other regulatory authorities 
and industry associations from around the world (refer to https://www.ich.org/).
    ICH works by involving technical experts from both regulators and 
industry parties in detailed technical harmonization work and the 
application of a science-based approach to harmonization through a 
consensus-driven process that results in the development of ICH 
guidelines. The regulators around the world are committed to 
consistently adopting these consensus-based guidelines, realizing the 
benefits for patients and for industry.
    As a Founding Regulatory Member of ICH, FDA plays a major role in 
the development of each of the ICH guidelines, which FDA then adopts 
and issues as guidance for industry. FDA's guidance documents do not 
establish legally enforceable responsibilities. Instead, they describe 
the Agency's current thinking on a topic and should be viewed only as 
recommendations, unless specific regulatory or statutory requirements 
are cited.
    In the Federal Register of May 27, 2020 (85 FR 31785), FDA 
published a notice announcing the availability of a draft guidance 
entitled ``Q3C(R8) Recommendations for the Permitted Daily Exposures 
for Three Solvents--2-Methyltetrahydrofuran, Cyclopentyl Methyl Ether, 
and Tert-Butyl Alcohol--According to the Maintenance Procedures for the 
Guidance Q3C Impurities: Residual Solvents.'' The notice gave 
interested persons an opportunity to submit comments. In the Federal 
Register of June 5, 2020 (85 FR 34638), FDA issued a correction 
providing that the date by which to submit comments was July 27, 2020.
    After consideration of the comments received and revisions to the 
guideline, a final draft of the guideline was submitted to the ICH 
Assembly and endorsed by the regulatory agencies in April 2021.
    First published in December 1997, the Q3C guidance provides 
recommendations on the use of less toxic solvents in the manufacture of 
drug substances and dosage forms and sets pharmaceutical limits for 
residual solvents (organic volatile chemicals) in drug products. Q3C 
PDE levels are added and revised as new toxicological data for solvents 
become available. As part of the maintenance process, the Q3C(R8) 
guidance provides final PDEs for three additional residual solvents: 2-
methyltetrahydrofuran, cyclopentyl methyl ether, and tert-butyl 
alcohol. Additional information regarding supporting studies was 
incorporated into the guidance based on comments received, but the 
recommended PDEs for the three new residual solvents are identical to 
those published in the draft guidance issued on May 27, 2020. This

[[Page 70852]]

guidance finalizes the guidance issued on May 27, 2020.
    This guidance is being issued consistent with FDA's good guidance 
practices regulation (21 CFR 10.115). The guidance represents the 
current thinking of FDA on ``Q3C(R8) Impurities: Guidance for Residual 
Solvents.'' It does not establish any rights for any person and is not 
binding on FDA or the public. You can use an alternative approach if it 
satisfies the requirements of the applicable statutes and regulations.

II. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    While this guidance contains no collection of information, it does 
refer to previously approved FDA collections of information. Therefore, 
clearance by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521) is not 
required for this guidance. The previously approved collections of 
information are subject to review by OMB under the PRA. The collections 
of information in 21 CFR part 58 have been approved under OMB control 
number 0910-0119.

III. Electronic Access

    Persons with access to the internet may obtain the guidance at 
https://www.regulations.gov, https://www.fda.gov/drugs/guidance-compliance-regulatory-information/guidances-drugs, https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents, or https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/guidance-compliance-regulatory-information-biologics/biologics-guidances.

    Dated: December 6, 2021.
Lauren K. Roth,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2021-26889 Filed 12-10-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164-01-P


