Gitika Dhingra

The aim of the current study was to isolate mucilage from five different plants, which was done by maceration, followed by incorporating the extracted mucilage into a tablet formulation and to study its disintegrant property. Comparative results were obtained and varying degree of disintegrant action was observed among the five subject plant sources. It was found that Lepidum sativum seeds showed the highest yield of 12.5%w/w as compared to the remaining four plant products. Additionally, the disintegration time of tablets formulated from mucilage obtained from Lepidum sativum was found to be the least and the tablets disintegrated in 25 seconds. Mucilages are very hydrophilic and are capable of trapping water in their cage-like structures to form a gel. Consequently, when mucilage is mixed with water it swells to many times its original volume as it absorbs water1. Mucilages find applications in numerous pharmaceutical preparations and perform their role as disintegrants, sustained-release agents, binders, mucoadhesives, to name a few2.

SPF (Sun Protection Factor) measures amount of protection a product provides to the skin from the harmful UV rays of the sun. The present research work deals with determining effectiveness of sunscreen formulations containing naturally occurring herbal actives. Sunscreens with synthetic active ingredients adversely effect the skin in long term while the herbal ingredients have been found to be more effective with fewer side effects. The selected herbs include roots of Rubia cardifolia, heartwood of Prunus cerasoides and roots of Vetiveria zizanioides. Formulations were prepared with each of these selected herbal ingredients in varying concentrations and an integrated preparation using concentrations found most effective. SPF was calculated for all formulations using the spectrophotometric method and then applying the Mansur equation. The results of the study depicted that the integrated formulation containing 25% concentration each of Prunus cerasoides, Rubia cardifolia and Veteveria zizanioides provided maximum sun protection.

Development of new drug delivery system has become the requirement of today’s pharmaceutical industry. As the number of off-patent drugs and cost of new drug development increases, pharmaceutical companies are managing the life cycles of their products (from product launch to their withdrawal from the market) by adopting new and innovative delivery systems. This gives the pharmaceutical industry another chance to make the most of their current products. Oral route is the most preferred route for administration of drugs as the administration is easy and economic. But the problem is the loss of their functions due to the short residence in the body. About 80% of the administered drugs are excreted without being absorbed. This article comprehensively explains need of hydrogels and its modifications to prolong the residence time of drugs in the body, with brief introduction of associated other drug delivery systems.