Optimization and Characterization of Purified Polysaccharide from Terminalia Belarica Gum as Pharmaceutical Excipient

Natural polysaccharides are drawing a great deal of attention in the recent years as excipient in the pharmaceutical industry. Due to the advances in drug delivery technology, natural polysaccharides are included in controlled drug delivery to fulfill multitask functions and in some cases directly or indirectly influence the extent and /or rate of drug release. In the present study, the polysaccharides extracted from Terminalia belarica gum (TBG) were evaluated for its safety and potency towards pre formulation studies as a pharmaceutical excipient. The study was undertaken with an objective to expound the physicochemical, thermal and functional properties of polysaccharide obtained from Terminalia belarica gum (TBG). A purified component of polysaccharide was isolated from Terminalia belarica gum (TBG) by gel filtration method. Elemental analysis, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), Differential scanning microscopy (DSC) and Fourier-transformed infrared (FT-IR) techniques were used to characterize the polysaccharide. Elemental analysis (CHN analysis) of the polysaccharide has shown the contents of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen contents to be 39.31, 5.56 and 0.18 (w/w %) respectively. SEM analysis suggests that the polysaccharide has irregular particle size, mostly seen in aggregates and fibrous in nature. The XRD pattern of the polysaccharide indicates both crystalline and amorphous structure. The experimental work provides enough evidence to exploit this natural biopolymer in food and pharmaceutical industry.