Taste Masking of Ayurvedic Nutraceutical Formulation by Pan Coating Process

Background: Ayurvedic medicines and nutraceuticals are gaining popularity among physicians and patients for better therapeutic value. Lack of quality standards and problems, in preparing or testing them, are the main hurdles experienced by both the practitioners and the patients. Objective: The objective of the study was to improve the palatability of the Ayurvedic Nutraceutical Preparation (ADS) by masking its bitter taste and to standardize the taste masking procedure. In the present study Eudragit E 100 was used as an acid soluble coating material. Materials and Methods: ADS powder was converted into granules with PVP K30 as a granulating agent and the ADS granules were coated with Eudragit E 100 coating solution by pan coating process. Various IPQC tests namely flow properties, moisture content were performed on the granules before and after coating for determination of endpoint of granulation and coating respectively. The ADS powder and granules were evaluated for bitter taste. Results: ADS granules were advantageous over ADS powder since the flow properties of ADS granules were better than the flow properties of ADS powder, a prerequisite of pan coating process. Eudragit E 100 inhibited the contact in between the plant extracts and the taste buds due to insolubility of Eudragit E 100 in saliva. Sensory evaluation of taste indicated that the taste of coated granules was significantly masked. Conclusion: The bitter taste of ADS was improved successfully with Eudragit E 100 as a coating agent and the pan coating process. An attempt was made to standardize the pan coating process.