Evaluation of Trapa bispinosa Roxb. starch as pharmaceutical binder in solid dosage form

Since last five decades ago many natural, semisynthetic and synthetic compounds have been explored as excipients for pharmaceutical drug development. In all these compounds starches remain a strong choice because of its high availability, biocompatibility and multifunctional behaviour. Starches are one of the most used pharmaceutical excipient globally[1]. Although maize and potato starch is the most frequently used excipient in tableting, many researchers have tried to develop various botanical starches for use as tablet excipients[2-10]. Binders are substances which impart necessary cohesiveness between the granules for proper bonding during compression. Binders are added to tablet formulation to impart plasticity and thus increase the interparticulate bonding strength within the tablet granules and also increase the degree of consolidation or compactions while decreasing the brittle fracture tendency during tableting[11]. Water chestnut [Trapa bispinosa (T. bispinosa) Roxb.] is an aquatic angiosperm and found throughout Southeast Asian regions like India, Pakistan etc[12]. Starch is the major carbohydrate reserve in water chestnut. Despite in high carbohydrate content, mainly in the form of starch, water chestnut is not included among starches for industrial purpose, which is mainly obtained from potato, maize, tapioca and rice. Earlier some workers evaluated its disintegration ability in tablet dosage form[13]. Diclofenac was chosen as a model drug. It is mainly used as antiinflammatory and analgesic agent in the treatment of arthritis and acute injury. In the present study we aim to evaluate the binding efficiency of T. bispinosa in diclofenac sodium based tablets, and simultaneously comparative study was carried out with official starches.