Compressional behavior of a mixture of granules containing high load of Phyllanthus niruri spray-dried extract and granules of adjuvants: comparison between eccentric and rotary tablet machines

A Comparative Study of Different Proportions of Superdisintegrants: Formulation and Evaluation of Orally Disintegrating Tablets of Salbutamol Sulphate

Objectives

Superdisintegrants play important role in disintegration of orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs). Action of three different superdisintegrants, viz. croscarmellose sodium, sodium starch glycolate and Indion 414, were studied individually or in their binary combinations for their fast disintegrant action in ODTs of salbutamol sulphate prepared by direct compression.

Materials and Methods

ODTs were prepared in three different superdisintegrant combinations A, B and C. In each combination, five formulations were prepared with superdisintegrants in ratios 10:90, 25:75, 50:50, 75:25, and 90:10. Three ODT formulations were prepared with single superdisintegrant and two ODT batches were prepared from marketed ODT excipient blends, viz. Prosolv-ODT and F-Melt. Prepared ODT formulations were evaluated and compared for weight variation, hardness, friability, wetting time, disintegration and drug release.

Results

All ODTs disintegrated quickly in 32 s or less. ODT formulation F3, containing croscarmellose sodium and sodium starch glycolate, disintegrated very quickly in 19.28±3.11 s. Results of F3 were compared with the batches (F19 and F20) containing marketed coprocessed excipients and found in good agreement for various evaluation parameters. Formulation F20 was hygroscopic, while F3 did not suffer this disadvantage.

Conclusion

Thus, we may conclude that superdisintegrants in combinations may offer additive and/or synergistic disintegration possible due to their different mechanism.

Retention of polyphenolic species in spray-dried blackberry extract using mannitol as a thermoprotectant

The purpose of these studies was to determine if a Büchi Mini Spray Dryer B-290 (Büchi Corporation, New Castle, DE, USA) could be used to prepare blackberry extract powders containing mannitol as a thermoprotectant without extensively degrading anthocyanins and polyphenols in the resulting powders. Three blackberry puree extract samples were each prepared by sonication of puree in 30/70% ethanol/water containing 0.003% HCl. Blackberry puree extract sample 1 (S1) contained no mannitol, while blackberry puree extract sample 2 (S2) contained 3.0:1 (w/w) mannitol:berry extract, and blackberry puree extract sample 3 (S3) contained 6.3:1 (w/w) mannitol:berry extract. The levels of anthocyanins and polyphenols in reconstituted spray-dried powders produced from S1-S3 were compared to solutions of S1-S3 that were held at 4°C as controls. All extract samples could be spray-dried using the Büchi Mini Spray Dryer B-290. S1, with no mannitol, showed a 30.8% decrease in anthocyanins and a 24.1% decrease in polyphenols following spray-drying. However, S2 had a reduction in anthocyanins of only 13.8%, while polyphenols were reduced by only 6.1%. S3, with a ratio of mannitol to berry extract of 6.3:1, exhibited a 12.5% decrease in anthocyanins while the decrease in polyphenols after spray-drying was not statistically significant (P=.16). Collectively, these data indicate that a Büchi Mini Spray Dryer B-290 is a suitable platform for producing stable berry extract powders, and that mannitol is a suitable thermoprotectant that facilitates retention of thermosensitive polyphenolic species in berry extracts during spray-drying.

Elastic-plastic contact law for simulation of tablet crushing using the biharmonic equation

This work presents a technique for shape modelling of cylindrical and spherical tablets subject to compression. This technique is based on the use of partial differential equations (PDEs), the biharmonic equation in particular. The deformation of the compressed elastic-plastic tablet of both shapes was obtained using the existing contact models found in literature. The mathematical properties of the biharmonic equation have been exploited to achieve simple mathematical expressions characterising the shape of the distorted tablet. Thus, the height, radius and contact area of both configurations due to uniaxial compression are represented by analytic expressions relating the coefficients associated with the solution of the biharmonic equation. The results obtained from the PDE-based simulation are compared with the theoretical ones. It is found that the analytic solution of the elliptic PDE can be utilised to represent the physical changes of the deformed object.