Current Issue : July-September Volume : 2026 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 5 Articles
Mucilage extracted from cladodes of Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill. has attracted growing interest as a natural food additive due to its gelling and nutritional properties. In this study, the chemical characteristics of Opuntia ficus-indica mucilage were comparatively evaluated against commercial pectin, with particular emphasis on volatile compounds, mineral composition, and monosaccharide profiles by 13C-NMR spectroscopic analysis. The volatile components were analysed using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS), revealing distinct aromatic profiles between the two matrices, with the mucilage showing a significant presence of methoxypyrazines, but not detected in the powdered pectin studied. These compounds could negatively affect the sensory perception of mucilage. Mineral analysis demonstrated significantly higher levels of calcium, magnesium, and potassium, supporting its potential contribution to nutritional enrichment. The spectroscopic analysis, used to identify monosaccharide composition of polysaccharide chains, highlighted the presence of arabinose, galactose, glucose, and rhamnose in the mucilage sample compared to the predominantly glucose/galacturonic acid-based structure of pectin. Overall, the results indicate that Opuntia ficus-indica mucilage represents a promising alternative to pectin, offering unique chemical properties that may expand its application as a multifunctional, natural food additive....
Live-attenuated flavivirus vaccines (yellow fever, dengue, and Japanese encephalitis) exhibit poor thermal stability in liquid formulations, requiring lyophilization and storage between 2 and 8 °C to maintain potency. We evaluated carbohydrates, amino acids, and choline-based ionic liquids as preservatives for vaccinelike flavivirus. Among the carbohydrates tested, trehalose and sucrose provided greatest stabilization, while histidine demonstrated the strongest stabilizing effect among amino acids. Trehalose-histidine and sucrose-histidine combinations produced synergistic effects, preserving viral infectivity more effectively than individual components. Choline chloride and choline acetate formulations, despite their established efficacy in protein stabilization, demonstrated limited enhancement of flavivirus thermal stability compared to carbohydrate-amino acid formulations. Trehalose-histidine combinations provided up to 19.4-fold improved titer retention compared to buffer controls, with consistent superiority across all three flavivirus species tested, while choline-based ionic liquid formulations showed moderate stabilizing effects but were consistently outperformed by carbohydrateamino acid approaches....
Dysphagia is common among older adults and frequently necessitates the use of thickening agents to facilitate safe swallowing of medicines, which may in turn alter their bioavailability. This study investigated the impact of two commercially available lubricants—Gloup® Forte and extremely thick water—on the in vitro dissolution behaviour of immediaterelease gliclazide tablets. Dissolution studies were conducted using crushed and whole tablets in different media consisting of reverse osmosis water, phosphate buffer (pH 6.8), and 0.1 N HCl at 37 ◦C. Dissolution profiles were compared using similarity factor (f 2) analysis and modelled using established kinetic equations. Gliclazide dissolution was significantly delayed in the presence of Gloup® Forte across all media for both crushed and whole tablets, with f 2 values below 50, indicating dissimilar profiles. Dissolution kinetics confirmed that mixing the formulated gliclazide with Gloup® Forte delayed the release and reduced the dissolution rate constant for drug from both crushed and whole gliclazide tablets in media studied....
Background: Three-dimensional (3D) printing has been established in pharmaceutical sciences for preparing customized dosage forms with intricate release profiles. However, realizing this potential requires complex design strategies and the careful use of various excipients. This study was designed to evaluate the utility of hypromellose acetate succinate (HPMC-AS) as a singular release-modifying excipient for manufacturing oral solid dosage forms via fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing. Methods: The scope of work encompassed comprehensive material characterization, formulation and production of drug-loaded filaments using hot-melt extrusion (HME), subsequent FDM 3D printing of tablet geometries, and in vitro dissolution studies using mebeverine hydrochloride (MebH) as the model drug. Results: Initial HME processing indicated that the HPMCAS- based filaments were brittle, presenting technical challenges for direct 3D printing. This issue was successfully overcome by incorporating an additional preheating stage into the FDM printing process, which enabled production of the tablets. Dissolution analysis demonstrated that the 3D-printed mebeverine hydrochloride tablets exhibited delayed and sustained-release characteristics. Conclusions: These results confirm the viability of HPMC-AS as a standalone functional excipient in FDM 3D printing to produce tailored, complex drug delivery systems....
Secondary metabolites, particularly natural phenolic compounds, have been a target of many studies and are a hot issue in the medical and scientific communities, due to their diverse biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial effects. This bioactive potential has raised the prospect of their application as pharmaceutical excipients and nanocarriers. Among them, anthocyanins, which are abundant in berries and highly valued by consumers, stand out as promising candidates. Their chemical structure not only enables them to protect drugs from oxidative degradation but also supports their role in drug delivery systems, particularly under acidic conditions. Moreover, their pH-dependent color changes make them suitable as eco-friendly indicators and sensors. The current review aims to summarize recent advances on the excipient and nanocarrier potential of berry phenolics. Although current data on anthocyanins as excipients and nanocarriers remain limited, available evidence highlights their potential and urges additional in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies....
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