Assignment Tropic : Decomposition and Stabilization of Medicinal Agents

Decomposition: When a plant, animal, or insect dies, that plant, animal, or insect is
broken into tiny pieces and those pieces part of the soil. This is called decomposition. But in pharmaceutical
sector Degradation and decomposition are interchangeably used in pharmaceutical sciences and are defined
as the physical or chemical processes that lead the product to decline in its intended quality characteristics,
which are claimed by the manufacturer. Both physical and chemical degradation reactions affect the stability
of drugs. Physical degradation includes loss of water and volatile compounds, polymorphic changes, crystal
growth, change in color and water absorption. On the other hand, chemical degradation processes include
hydrolysis, oxidation, decarboxylation, elimination, isomerization , demonization, epimerization, photo
degradation and dehydration. Various pharmaceutical dosage forms demonstrate different mechanisms of
drug decomposition or degradation.

Stabilization of Medicinal Agents: The term drug stability refers to

the extent to which a drug substance or product retains, within specified limits and throughout its period of
storage and use, the same properties and characteristics that it possessed at the time of its manufacture. The
type of stability is generally divided into chemical, physical, microbiological, therapeutic, and toxicological.
Decomposition flow chart
Hydrolysis: Hydrolysis is a common form of a chemical reaction where water is mostly used to break down
the chemical bonds that exists between a particular substance. Hydrolysis is derived from a Greek word hydro
meaning water and lyses which translates to the word break or to unbind. Usually in hydrolysis the water molecules
get attached to two parts of a molecule. One molecule of a substance will get H+ ion and the other molecule receives
the OH- group. Hydrolysis reaction is mainly used to break down polymers into monomers.

The general formula of a hydrolysis reaction is:

AB+H2O→AH+BOH
Types of Hydrolysis:
There are several types of hydrolysis, and we will look at them in brief below.

Salts: This is the most common type of hydrolysis. Hydrolysis of salts generally refers to the
reaction of salt with water where it involves the interaction between captions or anions of salts
and water. During hydrolysis, a salt breaks down to form ions, completely or partially depending
upon the solubility factor.

Acid and Base: Acid–base-catalysed hydrolysis can be found during the hydrolysis of esters or
amides. Here, the process of hydrolysis occurs when water or hydroxyl ion reacts with the
carbon of the carbonyl group of the ester or amide where new compounds are formed. The
products of both hydrolysis are compounds with carboxylic acid groups.

ATP: Most biochemical reactions that occur in living organisms are in the form of ATP hydrolysis
which takes place with the help of enzymes acting as catalysts. The catalytic action of enzymes
allows the hydrolysis or breaking down of proteins, lipids, oils, fats and carbohydrates.
 Oxidation
Oxidation is the loss of electrons during a reaction by a molecule, atom or
ion. Oxidation occurs when the oxidation state of a molecule, atom or ion is
increased. The opposite process is called reduction, which occurs when there is a
gain of electrons or the oxidation state of an atom, molecule, or ion decreases.

Carboxylation
Carboxylation is a chemical reaction in which a carboxylic acid group is produced by
treating a substrate with carbon dioxide. ... In chemistry, the term carbonation is
sometimes used synonymously with carboxylation, especially when applied to
the reaction of carbanionic reagents with CO2
 Decarboxylation
Decarboxylation is the removal of carbon dioxide from carboxylic acids.
Decarboxylation of simple carboxylic acids requires very high
temperatures, at which the organic product often decomposes. In
contrast, β-ketoacids undergo decarboxylation upon warming. The
molecule of a β-ketoacid is stabilized by an intramolecular hydrogen
bond that creates a six-membered ring, allowing the reaction to
occur via a relatively stable, six-membered cyclic transition state.

Isomerisation
Isomerization is defined as the transformation of a molecule into a different
isomer, and it can adopt two distinct conformations: cis or trans.
Isomerization is defined as the transformation of a molecule into a
different isome, and it can adopt two distinct conformations: cis or trans.
Protein isomerization was first described in 1968 [5] to dramatically
affect protein conformation by disrupting the secondary structer of
polypeptides. Isomerization occurs spontaneously, but enzymes
called proline issomer have evolved to accelerate switching between
different conformations.
 Physical degradation
Physical degradation involves changes to materials resulting from ambient conditions like
sunlight, heat, humidity, exposure to chemicals or general wear and tear. Its form depends on
the material in question, but generalised examples of the symptoms of degradation of
materials include discoloration, swelling, loss of strength, changes in the properties of
materials or signs of deterioration. Physical degradation may affect any material.
 Microbial Degradation
Microbial degradation is one of the most promising approaches, as it exploits the ability of
microorganisms for removal of pollutants from contaminated sites in the most effective,
leasthazardous, and most environmentally friendly way.