Technological development of Cecropia glaziovi extract pellets by extrusion-spheronization

Abstract

Cecropia glaziovi Snethl., Urticaceae, is commonly used in South America and is one of the species included in the Brazilian Medicinal Plants Research Program. Pharmacological studies have led to reports of the potential of C. glaziovi as a hypotensive, antiasthmatic and anxiolytic agent. The strict requirements regarding the quality, safety and effectiveness of phytopharmaceutical products represent an enormous challenge in the search for products with a high level of uniformity, reproducibility and stability. The incorporation of dry extracts into multiparticulate dosage forms, such as pellets produced by extrusion/spheronization technology, is a suitable alternative to overcome the lack of technological properties of dry extracts, since they are associated with low flowability and high hygroscopicity. In this study, an optimized dry extract (ODE) of C. glaziovi was incorporated into pellets seeking to decrease the moisture sorption and increase the stability, safety and percentage of the extract in the final product. Pellets containing around 50% of ODE were considered the most technologically viable, offering a narrow particle size distribution, significant improvement in the flowability and compressibility properties, and decrease in the moisture compared with the ODE. In conclusion, pellets containing a high dose of the C. glaviovi extract were successfully prepared, achieving degrees of quality, physical stability and feasibility compatible with the desirable characteristics of a phytopharmaceutical

Response Surface Methodology IV-Optimal design applied to the performance improvement of an RP-HPLC-UV method for the quantification of phenolic acids in Cecropia glaziovii products

“…The extractive solution #1 was prepared by a maceration method (Beringhs et al, 2013). The CPQBA plant material was macerated at room temperature for three days (18 g of plant material per 100 ml of 27 • GL ethanol).…”

“…Over the past few years, it has been verified that C. glaziovii has activity as a hypotensive (Ninahuaman et al, 2007), antiasthmatic (Delarcina Jr. et al, 2007), anxiolytic-like (Rocha et al, 2002) and antidepressant-like (Rocha et al, 2007) agent. Due to these outstanding biological activities, researches have been carried out targeting at the development of products containing standardized extracts of C. glaziovii for pharmaceutical purposes (Arend et al, 2011;Beringhs et al, 2013;Santos, 2012). This growing interest is associated with an increasing need, in the academic and industrial areas, for analytical methods to quantify the active compounds present in pharmaceuticals derived from C. glaziovii.…”

Effects of Moisture and Fillers on the Processability and Solid State Properties of Carbamazepine Pellets

“…The starting volume and the volume after 1250 taps were recorded and used to calculate the unpacked and packed densities n = 3 , respectively. HI and CI values lower than 1.20 and 15%, respectively, are considered target values for satisfactory flowability and compressibility in granulated products [Carr, 1965, Hausner, 1967, Beringhs et al, 2013. …”

“…The aspect ratio (AR) was determined as the ratio between the longest caliper distance and the caliper distance perpendicular to it [Beringhs et al, 2013] by means of a stereo-microscope (Olympus SZ 40). Pellets from the 850 and 1000 m fractions were analyzed randomly n = 500 and photomicrographs were taken with a coupled digital camera (Canon PowerShot A85) for image analyses (Size Meter 1.1, LCP/UFSC, Brazil).…”

Microemulsion based on Pterodon emarginatus oil and its anti-inflammatory potential

“…The technological development of research on pharmaceutical forms containing herbal materials has expanded over recent decades and contributed to innovation in the pharmaceutical sector (Bassani, González, Petrovick, 2005;Calixto, 2005;Rocha et al, 2008;Araújo-Júnior et al, 2013;Beringhs et al, 2013;Couto et al, 2013;Klein et al, 2013;Quintão et al, 2013).…”