Co-precipitation of mangiferin with cellulose acetate phthalate by Supercritical antisolvent process

Abstract

Mangiferin, a common polyphenol present in mango plants, and cellulose acetate phthalate, a polymeric derivative of cellulose acetate, have been precipitated together by a supercritical antisolvent process (SAS) with two different nozzle devices. In the first approach (SAS1) the polymer and mangiferin were dissolved together in a solvent and the solution was sprayed into the vessel through a single nozzle. In a second approach (SAS2), separate solutions of the polymer and mangiferin were prepared and these were sprayed through different nozzles into the same vessel. Submicron and microparticles precipitated in the SAS1 and SAS2 processes, respectively. The percentage of mangiferin in the precipitates was higher in the first process than in the second one, which shows that mangiferin precipitation was favored when a single nozzle was used. The delivery profiles of mangiferin were obtained for simulated gastric and intestinal fluids. All of the co-precipitates were released more slowly than processed and commercial mangiferin. Moreover, the percentage of mangiferin released was lower in gastric than intestinal fluid. The presence of the polymer in the precipitate slowed down the delivery of the mangiferin both in the intestinal and the gastric fluids in the SAS1 process. However, in the SAS2 process the differences in solution flow rates led to a delayed release profile.