DEVELOPMENT AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ORAL DISINTEGRATION FILMS BASED ON SODIUM ALGINATE AND GALACTOMANNAN: AN ALTERNATIVE FOR THE DELIVERY OF ACTIVE INGREDIENTS

Oral Disintegration Films (ODD) emerge as an efficient alternative to traditional forms of administering compounds, such as capsules and pills, because they have rapid disintegration and greater bioaccessibility of the active ingredients. For its production, biopolymers stand out, as they are biodegradable and come from renewable sources. Among them, galactomannan (derived from seeds of Caesalpinia pulcherrima) and sodium alginate (derived from Lessonia and Laminaria algae) have ideal properties for the formulation of these films. This study aimed to develop and characterize FDOs with different proportions of sodium alginate (A) and galactomannan (G) - 100A, 75A:25G, 50A:50G, 25A:75G and 100G - for possible delivery of active compounds, maintaining the constant ratio of 1 g polymer/100mL filmogenic solution and 0.4 g sorbitol/g polymer (plasticizer). The films were produced by solubilization of the polymers in distilled water (25 °C) under magnetic stirring for 1 hour followed by heating to 90°C for 10 minutes and adding sorbitol. The DES were spread on 12x12 cm acrylic plates by the casting method and placed to dry in an oven with air circulation and renewal (40 °C/24 hours). The FDOs were removed from the plates and stored in desiccators containing saturated sodium bromide solution for five days before the start of the analyses. Aspects such as preliminary characteristics (homogeneity and film-forming ability), in vitro disintegration time (time required for a drop of distilled water to perforate the film), and contact angle (using a goniometer coupled with a digital camera) were evaluated. All formulations showed good homogeneity, transparency, and film-forming ability, without visible defects. Formulations with higher alginate content exhibited greater surface gloss. Regarding disintegration time, all FDOs disintegrated in less than 30 seconds, with the fastest being those with higher alginate concentration, 100A and 75A25G (7.00 and 8.67 seconds, respectively). For the contact angle parameter, all FDOs exhibited values below 90° (44.24° to 61.96°), confirming the hydrophilicity of the films, which can be attributed to the presence of hydroxyl and carboxyl groups in their structures. This property may promote the rapid disintegration of FDOs when in contact with water/saliva. Therefore, it was observed that the developed formulations presented favorable characteristics for the development of FDOs, with potential for the delivery of active compounds.