Course Code: BP603T

Course Title: Herbal drug Technology

Course Leader:
Dr. R. Gowri
gowri.pc.ph@msruas.ac.in

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 Contents

• Binders

• Diluents

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 Lecture No 9
Herbal excipients

At the end of the session, student will be able to

• Explain the various excipients used for formulating cosmetics

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 Binders
• Binders are agents employed to impart cohesiveness to the granules
- which ensures the tablet remains intact after compression.

• Binders are added to tablet formulation to impart plasticity and thus

increase the interparticulate bonding strength within the tablet.

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 Advantage: Natural binders
• low toxicity, biodegradable, availability and low cost

• can also modify the release of drug, thereby, influencing the

absorption and subsequent bioavailability of the incorporated
drug

• Increase stability, precision and accuracy of dosage form

• improve the organoleptic properties of the drugs where

necessary in order to enhance patient adherence

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 Disadvantage: Natural binders

• Over time they occasionally lead to tablet hardening and a decrease

in dissolution performance.

• When polymer binders are chosen, the addition of strong

disintegtants such as super disintegrants is typically required but
these are considerably expensive and have a negative effect on
product stability as well as film coating appearance of the finished
products

• E.g. Plant starch, pregelatinized starch, gelatin, Plant Gums: acacia,

tragacanth

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 Acacia
• Source: dried gummy exudation from the stems and branches
of Acacia arabica, A. senegal etc,

• Family: Leguminosae

• English: Indian Gum, Hindi: Babul

• Description: White or yellowish- white thin flakes, spheroidal

spheres (up to 32 mm in diameter), powder, granules, or
spray-dried powder. Odourless and bland taste

• Constituents: (-) arabinose, (+-) galactose, (-- rhamnose), (+ -

glyceronic acid)
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 Tragacanth
• Source: Dried gummy exudate obtained from the stem of

Astragalus gummifer, Legumiosae

• White or pale yellowish white flake

• Polysaccharide – Tragacanthin and bassorin

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 Gelatin
• Syn: Gelfoam, Puragel, Gelatina

• Source: A protein obtained by partial hydrolysis of animal

collagenous tissues like bone, skin, tendon and ligaments.

• Description: faintly yellow amber coloured solid with

characteristic odour. Its available in the form of flakes, sheets,
shreds, powder or granules.

• Suitable for both wet granulation and direct compression as

tablet binders

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 Starch
• Source: Polysaccharide obtained from either rice(Oryza

sativa), or maize (Zea mays) or of wheat (Triticum aestivum)

or from tubers of potatoe (Solanum tuberosum)

• Very fine powder, white or slightly yellowish powder

• Polysaccharide – amylose and amylopectin

• 5-25% used

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 Diluent
• Diluents are inert powders acting as fillers in the formulation

of tablets, capsules and powders for sachets

• used to make up the volume of tablet if tablet is inadequate

to produce the volume

• Provide better tablet property like improved cohesion and

flow

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 Diluent - Properties
• Non toxic
• Easily available
• Physically and chemically stable
• Inert

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 Diluent
• Water insoluble diluents
Starch
Microcrystalline cellulose
calcium phosphate
• Water soluble diluents
Lactose
sucrose
Mannitol
Sorbitol

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 Microcrystalline cellulose

• Refined wood pulp - excipient

• Used as a binder/diluent in oral tablet and capsule

formulations, typically in dry granulation, wet granulation,
and direct compression processes.

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 Lactose

Natural disaccharide - milk of most mammals

White or almost white crystalline powder

Used as filler or diluent - tablet, capsule, infant feed formula

and in dry powder inhalation

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 Sucrose
• Sugar obtained from Saccharum officinarum, Beta vulgaris

• Graminae, Chenopodiaceae

• White crystals

• Disaccharaide – non reducing – yield – glucose and fructose

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 Mannitol
• Mannitol is industrially derived from the sugar fructose, and is
roughly half as sweet as sucrose.

• Mannitol is also found naturally in many species, including

plants, bacteria, and fungi

• white, odorless, crystalline powder, or free-flowing granules –

cooling sensation in mouthIn pharmaceutical preparations it is
primarily used as a diluent (10–90% w/w) in tablet
formulations, where it is of particular value since it is not
hygroscopic and may thus be used with moisture-sensitive
active ingredients.
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 Summary

• Binder – Gums, starch and gelatin

• Diluents

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