Evaluation of millet (Pennisetum glaucum and Pennisetum americanum) starches as tablet disintegrants

Purpose: This study is aimed at evaluating the disintegrant property of locally sourced millet (Pennisetum glaucum (PG) and Pennisetum americanum (PA)) starches in comparison with maize starch BP (MS). Methods: The millet starches were extracted by the wet extraction method and compared with MS as disintegrants at various concentrations (0-12.5%w/w) in the preparation of paracetamol granules and tablets. The granules were analyzed for their physicochemical properties such as; flow rate, moisture content, angle of repose, Carr’s index (CI), Hausner ratio (HR) and sieve analysis while the tablets were subjected to weight uniformity test, tablet thickness, crushing strength (CS) test, friability (FR) test and disintegration time (DT) test evaluations. Results: The percentage yield of PA and PG starches were 56.2 and 50.0 % w/w respectively. PA and PG granules’ flow rate increased as the disintegrant concentration increased (8.06 to 13.17 g/sec) but MS had a better flow rate (<9.28 g/sec). The angle of repose for PA and PG ranges from 30.52 to 33.98o compared with MS of 23.11 to 33.11o. Moisture content of PA, PG and MS granules exceeded 20 %. The CI values for PA was <25 % PG increased from 18.40 to 28.06 % while MS was <25 %. HR values were all >1.2.The weight of the tablets produced ranges from 602±5.6 to 656±4.6 mg. Their thickness was in the range of 5.35 to 6.09 mm. The tablets were relatively hard (CS >5.0 kgf). Tablets with disintegrant concentration of 12.5 % w/w had values of FR >1.0 %. The DT for PA and PG decreased as disintegrant concentration increases but all the tablets DT was <1.0 min. The (CS/FR)/DT values for PA and PG (18.62 to 29.41) were greater than MS (7.41 to 23.97). Conclusion: The study revealed that the locally sourced PA and PG starches can be used as disintegrants. The starches compared well with MS and could serve as an alternative to MS as a disintegrant in the manufacture of solid dosage forms. Keywords: Disintegrant, tablets, Pennisetum glaucum, Pennisetum americanum, starch