FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF TRANSDERMAL PATCH OF AMARANTHUS CRUENTUS FOR THE TREATMENT OF INFLAMMATION

Inflammation is a natural protective response of the body towards harmful stimuli but excessive inflammation can cause several problems and damage tissues. The present work was done for the preparation and evaluation of transdermal patches containing ethanolic extract of Amaranthus cruentus plant for inflammation treatment. The plant material was shade dried and powdered followed by extraction with ethanol in Soxhlet apparatus for duration of four to six hours. The obtained extract was concentrated on water-bath and dried at ambient temperatures. The transdermal patches were prepared by solvent casting method using Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) and Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose (HPMC) as film forming polymers. Polyethylene Glycol 400 (PEG 400) was used as plasticizer and propylene glycol as permeation enhancer. Various physicochemical parameters were evaluated for the prepared formulation patches including appearance, thickness, weight consistency, folding endurance, surface pH, and UV analytical methods. The patches prepared had a green appearance and were flexible and had adequate mechanical strength. Patch thickness was measured to be 0.8 millimetres, while the average weight of the patch was determined to be 67.8 milligrams for the area of 2 by 2 centimetres. The folding endurance was determined to be greater than 300, meaning that the patch presents a good flexibility level, while the measured surface pH was equal to 5-6, which means that the patches can be applied on the skin. The UV analysis was performed at 279 nm making the confirmation of the presence of extract of the plants in the composition was made. To conclude, the analysed patch can be characterized as having acceptable physicochemical characteristics and may represent a promising method of herbals transdermal formulations.