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Gum from the bark of <i>Anogeissius leiocarpus</i>as a potential pharmaceutical raw material – granule properties


Philip F Builders
Olubayo O Kunle
Yetunde C Isimi

Abstract

With the continuous effort to discover and produce cheap but high quality excipients for drug production Anogeissius leiocarpus gum (ALG), a brownish exudate obtained from the bark of Anogeissius leiocarpus a commonly occurring tree in Nigeria has been investigated for its potential as a binder in tablet formulation, by studying the properties of metronidazole granules prepared with it as binder. The properties of the resulting granules were compared with those of corn starch and poly vinyl pyrolidone (PVP) at various concentration levels. The granule elegance, mean particle size and particle size distribution, bulk, tapped and true densities, friability, angle of repose and compressibility (Carr's index) were determined and used to assess the gum relative to PVP and corn starch in granule formulation. Results of the various studies showed that lower concentrations of ALG produced granules that were quite comparable to those prepared with corn starch and PVP. However, higher concentrations of ALG produced granules that were comparatively different from those of corn starch and PVP. The optimal binding concentration of ALG lies within the concentration range of 1 – 3 % w⁄v. Anogeissius leiocarpus was found to have good binding potential for the formulation of Metronidazole granules.


Key words: Anogeissius leiocarpus gum (ALG); Corn starch; PVP; Metronidazole; Granule properties
Journal of Pharmacy and Bioresources Vol. 2 (1) 2005: 13-19

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eISSN: 0189-8442