Abstract

EXTRACTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF POLYSACCHARIDE FROM TAMARIND SEED FOR ITS PHARMACEUTICAL APPLICATIONS

Nishant Gaur* and Nayyar Parvez

Abstract

At present, various plant polysaccharides have been studied in various forms of pharmaceutical dosage for their various applications as excipients such as binders, granulating agents, disintegrants, emulsifiers, suspending agents, gelling agents, mucoadhesives, matrix - formers, release retardants, enteric resistants, etc. The aim of the present work was to extract polysaccharide from tamarind seed and to characterize it further as a pharmaceutical excipient. The study includes micromeritic properties, phytochemical screening. Extraction procedure based on water was used to extract polysaccharide from tamarind seed. Micromeritic properties, solubility, organoleptic properties and pH were studied using pharmacopoeial procedures. Results from the study showed that the procedure used to extract gum from tamarind seed was effective. The results obtained easily predict the possibility of using the extracted polymer as a pharmaceutical excipient in terms of micromeritic properties and flow behavior. From the whole study, it can be concluded that polysaccharide tamarind seed can be an important solid pharmaceutical excipient. Results also showed that extracted seed polysaccharide can be used in various pharmaceutical formulations as natural gelling agents.

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