Evaluating Okra Gum in a Floating Tablet Formulation as a Novel Drug Delivery System

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Okra gum has desirable properties that make it a suitable polymer candidate that can substitute more expensive synthetic polymers in gastroretentive drug formulation. In this study, the buoyancy properties of promethazine tablets containing okra gum and gas-generating agents sodium carbonate and bicarbonate were evaluated to determine if a new floating drug delivery system for promethazine hydrochloride is feasible. Okra gum was extracted from freshly and locally harvested okra fruits, purified, dried, collected, and used in tablet formulation at varying gum concentrations and excipient composition.

The physico-mechanical properties as well as the swelling indices of the tablets were assessed using standard methods. The in-vitro buoyancy and fluid uptake kinetics of the gum in promethazine hydrochloride tablets were also evaluated in 0.1N hydrochloric acid. The results showed that the tablets were generally elegant, non-friable, possessed acceptable hardness, and were able to float, while the swelling index showed that the gum was able to imbibe fluid and swell appreciably. The swelling kinetics of the formulations based on the Vergnaud model showed a non-concentration dependent diffusion-controlled mechanism with no burst effect.

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Peer-Reviewed

Submitted: Jan. 18, 2021
Accepted: Feb. 16, 2021

About the authors

Sunday Ndiana-Abasi is an intern pharmacist at the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Raw Materials Development in the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) in Nigeria; Marlene Ekpo is a youth corp pharmacist and research assistant at the Centre for Nanomedicine and Biophysical Drug Delivery, NIPRD, and a postgraduate student at the School of International Education, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China; and Martins O. Emeje*, martinsemeje@yahoo.com, is a professor at the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Raw Materials Development and director of the Centre for Nanomedicine and Biophysical Drug Delivery, NIPRD.

*To whom all correspondence should be addressed.

Article Details

Pharmaceutical Technology
Vol. 45, No. 9
September 2021
Pages: 44–49

Citation

When referring to this article, please cite it as S. Ndiana-Abasi, et al., “Evaluating Okra Gum in a Floating Tablet Formulation as a Novel Drug Delivery System,” Pharmaceutical Technology 45 (9) 44–49 (2021).