Developing nations like Nigeria are blessed with abundant natural resources like Acacia seyal gum which can serve as possible alternatives to imported raw materials for medicine production. This study aims at evaluating and comparing the potentials of purified Acacia seyal gum and cross-linked Acacia seyal gum as a matrix former. A 500 g of crude Acacia seyal gum was purified by dissolving in 1.5 L of distilled water, filtered, precipitated using acetone, dried, size reduced and labeled as “EG”. A 100 g of EG was cross-linked by dissolving in 2 L of distilled water, shaken for 24 h then 1 L of 1 M calcium chloride solution was added, shaken for 6 h, allowed to stand for 6 h, precipitated using acetone, dried, size reduced and labeled as “CG”. The DSC thermogram and FT-IR spectrum of CG revealed new peak and new bands respectively. CG was light brown, gritty, bland and odourless. CG with low moisture content, reduced solubility in water, lower viscosity, higher swelling ratio and rate, low hydration capacity and higher pH was able to sorp water and swell. The lower coarse particles, bulk density, tapped density, true density, flow rate, and angle of repose, compressibility index and Hausner’s ratio demonstrated good flowability of CG. The results obtained suggest that CG will perform better when employed as matrix former in modified release tablet formulation of water-soluble drugs.

Gums from natural sources have found important uses in the pharmaceutical industry and drug delivery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potentials of gum extracted from the seeds of Dioclea reflexa (DR) as a suspending agent (SA) in metronidazole (MTZ) suspensions. The gum was extracted as mucilage by aqueous maceration in distilled water, followed by precipitation and purification with acetone. It was characterized for some physicochemical properties and, after preformulation studies, was incorporated at 5.0 %w/v in the formulation of MTZ suspensions by coarse dispersion method using tragacanth gum (TR) as reference. The suspensions were characterized for sedimentation volume, re-dispersibility, viscosity, stability and drug content. Also, dissolution of MTZ from the suspensions in simulated gastric fluid (pH 1.2) was assessed using a dialyzing membrane and magnetic stirrer assembly. The results showed that viscosity of the DR gum was slightly higher than that of TR. The sedimentation rates of the suspensions, with increase in the concentrations of both the test and reference SAs, were of the order: TR > DR with no significant differences (p < 0.05). Both batches of suspensions were easily re-dispersed to equal extent and were stable over the test period. The drug dissolution profiles from the suspensions were generally low, indicating potentials for prolonged release, in the order: TR > DR, with no significant difference (p < 0.05). The DR gum compared favourably with TR, indicating good properties as potential SA in MTZ suspensions. Further research would help to authenticate the results.