Evaluation of Acid-Modified Ethiopian Potato (Plectranthus edulis) Starch as Directly Compressible Tablet Excipient

Abstract

Ethiopian potato is one of the tuber-bearing members of the family Lamiaceae. It is an indigenous crop in Ethiopia and important source of starch. Unprocessed native starches are structurally weak and functionally restricted for application in pharmaceutical technologies. Consequently, starch is usually modified either chemically or physically to make it convenient for industrial use. The aim of the study was to prepare and characterize acid-modified Ethiopian potato starch (AMEPS) and evaluate its functionality as a direct compressible excipient in tablet formulations. The extracted starch from Ethiopian potato tuber was modified using 6% HCl concentration for 8 days, then dried using oven and spray drying techniques, and subsequently evaluated and compared with the native Ethiopian potato starch (NEPS) and S1500® as a direct compressible excipient. Acid modification of the NEPS decreased the moisture content and swelling power while increased the percent solubility. The X-ray diffraction revealed that both the NEPS and AMEPS have B-type crystal patterns. The AMEPS showed improved flowability compared to the NEPS. This improvement was further enhanced by the spray drying process. The compactability study revealed that the tensile strength of spray-dried AMEPS (16.76 kg/cm2) was significantly higher than that of the spray-dried NEPS (7.07 kg/cm2) and S1500® (11.66 kg/cm2). The AMEPS was less sensitive to lubricants compared to the NEPS and Starch 1500®. Similarly, the dilution potential of the AMEPS was superior to the NEPS and S1500®. The AMEPS accommodated up to 50% of paracetamol while the NEPS and S1500® were able to hold only up to 30%. Pharmacopoeial specifications for disintegration and dissolution were met by the paracetamol tablets prepared by AMEPS. Thus, considering all the results obtained, spray-dried AMEPS could be a potential alternative directly compressible tablet excipient.

Characterization of Acid Hydrolyzed Taro Boloso-I (Colocasia esculenta Cultivar) Starch as a Diluent in Direct Compression of Tablets

“…One of the reasons for this weight loss is the hydrolysis of the amorphous regions into shorter watersoluble molecules, which are likely to be removed during the washing process [34]. Compared to Dioscorea and Ethiopian potato starch [19,21], a higher recovery yield was achieved in the present study. However, the recovery yield was lower compared to Godare starch [20].…”

“…It involves the controlled addition of acid to an aqueous suspension of native starch [14]. Several studies have explored the potential of acidmodifed starch as a compressible tablet excipient [15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. Tese studies have shown that the modifcation improved the fowability, compatibility, and dilution potential of native starches, making them suitable for direct compression (DC).…”

Study on the Preparation and Digestibility of Malic Acid Sweet Potato Starch Ester under Microwave Assistance

“…[4] Starch esters exhibit unique properties, namely lower gelatinization temperature, lower retrogradation, and lower tendency to form gels as well as enhanced hydrophobic properties when compared to the native counterpart. [5] Therefore, starch esters are widely used in food, paper, and medicine, such as thickeners, additives, stabilizers, emulsifiers, flavoring ingredients, hot melt adhesives, coatings, etc. [6] The traditional synthesis methods of esterification mainly include high temperature method, solvent method, etc.…”

Effect of Ecotype and Starch Isolation Methods on the Physicochemical, Functional, and Structural Properties of Ethiopian Potato (Plectranthus edulis) Starch

“…However, these conventional sources are being over-exploited, necessitating the exploration of new botanical sources of starches. Although it is currently receiving little attention, Ethiopian potato (Plectranthus edulis) (EP) is one of the extensively grown traditional root crops in Ethiopia, with a high starch content that has a promising potential in contributing to the effort for meeting the quickly growing starch demand [2,5,6]. EP is an annual crop indigenous to Ethiopia which belongs to the Lamiaceae family and the genus plectranthus.…”

“…It has various local names such as Dincha Oromo, Wolaita donuwa, Gurage dinch, Hadiya dinch, or Agew dinch. It is grown for its edible tubers [5,7,8] in large hectares in mid and high altitudes of Ethiopia, particularly in the southern, northern, and western parts. The tubers are boiled before consumption [9,10].…”