Solid dosage forms (powders and tablets) as an alternative to prevent zinc nutritional deficiency

Abstract

The objective of this work was to develop solid dosage forms (powders and tablets) containing zinc to supply the requirements of at-risk populations. Firstly, zinc loaded powders (17 mg/g powder) were obtained through co-crystallization in sucrose matrix with high encapsulation efficiency (98 %). The co-crystallized products showed values of water activity (0.6) and moisture content (2 %) characteristics of good stability. These products were also analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and no degradation peaks were found below 100 °C, showing a high thermal stability. Moreover, the zinc loaded powders showed similar FTIR spectra than raw sucrose indicating that interactions between the active compound and the matrix would not take place. Then, tablet formulations were obtained based on the co-crystallized powders with zinc (80 % w/w), native corn starch (20 % w/w) and magnesium stearate (1g /100g of blend). These blends showed low moisture content and acceptable flowability and compressibility. Finally, the formulations were directly compressed and tablets with high zinc content (4.5 mg per tablet) and optimal values of hardness (around 18 kPa) were obtained. <i>In vivo</i> disintegration time was evaluated by an untrained panel of ten judges obtaining values of around 3 min. Sensory evaluation of the tablets showed an acceptance level of 55 %, thus, these systems could be a good alternative to help in preventing zinc deficiency.