Recently Investigated Natural Gums and Mucilages as Pharmaceutical Excipients: An Overview

Abstract

Due to advances in drug delivery technology, currently, excipients are included in novel dosage forms to fulfil specific functions and in some cases they directly or indirectly influence the extent and/or rate of drug release and drug absorption. Recent trends towards use of plant based and natural products demand the replacement of synthetic additives with natural ones. Today, the whole world is increasingly interested in natural drugs and excipients. These natural materials have many advantages over synthetic ones as they are chemically inert, nontoxic, less expensive, biodegradable, and widely available. This review discusses majority of the plant-derived polymeric compounds (gums and mucilage's), their sources, chemical constituents, uses, and some recent investigations as excipients in novel drug delivery systems.

A summarized review about natural polymers role in floating drug delivery system and in-vivo evaluation studies

“…Different concentrations of polymers are used in tablets preparation. Decrease in drug release is observed with increase in polymer content (Choudhary and Pawar, 2014).…”

Tamarind Seed Polysaccharide: An Emerging Excipient for Pharmaceutical Use

“…[9][10][11][12] These plant polysaccharides have also been utilized as binders, granulating agents, disintegrants, emulsifiers, suspending agents, gelling agents, mucoadhesive agents, matrix-formers, release retardants, enteric resistants, etc., in various dosage forms. 12-56-64 Among these plant polysaccharides, tamarind seed polysaccharide is emerging as a potential excipient material for pharmaceutical applications.…”

“…Plant polysaccharides are a popular natural bio-polysaccharide group, which are non-toxic, biodegradable, less expensive and freely available in the natural sources. [8][9][10][11] These are found mainly in exudates materials, fruits, seeds, roots, rhizomes, leaves, pods, etc. 12 The fact for increasing significance of the use of plant polysaccharides is that the plant sources are renewable if cultivated or harvested in a sustainable manner and they are able to provide a constant supply of raw materials.…”

“…13 The use of plant polysaccharides in pharmaceutical applications including drug delivery is evolving from their traditional auxiliary function in formulations towards their active role as drug performance enhancers in terms of stability, drug release, target specificity and bioavailability. [9][10][11][12] Currently, an enormous numbers of plant polysaccharides have been isolated from various commonly available local plant sources. [14][15][16][17][18] Even these plant polysaccharides have been utilized in the formulation of various kinds of pharmaceutical products as excipients.…”

Studies on Sida Acuta Hydrogel I: Processing and Physicochemical Properties of the Derived Hydrogel Obtained From South East Nigeria

“…Gums are abnormal products, formed by injury on the plant, unfavorable conditions (e. g. drought) and by a breakdown of cell walls [7].…”