FABRICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF MICROEMULSION BASED ORAL SOLID DOSAGE FORM OF GLIMEPIRIDE

The aim of this investigation was to develop a solid microemulsion of Glimepiride for enhancing its solubility, and its dissolution rate. For this purpose, solubility of Glimepiride was determined in various vehicles. Oil, Surfactant and Cosurfactant were selected based on the solubility. Pseudo-ternary phase diagrams were constructed to identify the microemulsion existing zone. The optimized microemulsion formulation was characterized for its refractive index, % transmittance, pH, viscosity, drug content and particle size. Particle size of the optimized microemulsion formulation was found to be 38.83 nm. Various adsorbents were incorporated in the optimised liquid microemulsion to get solid microemulsion. The solid microemulsion from Aerosil 200 was optimized because of very low amount (1:1) of Aerosil was incorporated in microemulsion as compare to other adsorbent. The prepared solid microemulsions were subjected to characterisation for angle of repose, bulk density, tapped density, Hausner’s Ratio, Carr’s index, drug content, in-vitro drug release study and stability studies. The solid microemulsion with Aerosil 200 showed excellent free flowing property and % compresabilty. From in-vitro drug release studies, the release of Glimepiride from solid microemulsion prepared from Aerosil 200 (91.37±0.13 %) was found to be higher than the pure drug (56.53±0.10 %). Thus the microemulsion based solid dosage form of Glimepiride can be a promising approach to increase solubility and absorption of the drug to increase its bioavailability for oral drug delivery.