PREPARATION OF GASTRO RETENTIVE MUCOADHESIVE BEADS FOR ATORVASTATIN BY USING IONIC GELATION METHOD WITH DIVALENCE AND TRIVALENCE CURING AGENTS AND THEIR CHARACTERIZATION STUDIES

Atorvastatin alginate beads were prepared by ionic gelation method by using different curing agents and studied the different process variable like the effect of alginate concentration, the effect of rpm and curing agents on drug entrapment and to improve the bioavailability of the drug. The beads examined and qualified the all compatible studies. The amount of drug released in acidic medium was found to be less than alkaline medium and proved drug release is function of surrounding pH effect and beads prepared with aluminium chloride with physical mixture of sodium alginate and carbopol 934P at proportions of 3.3% produces more compacted, stabled and shows prolonged sustained release in comparison to barium chloride at same concentration of polymers. The size of beads, drug entrapment, and drug release depend upon variables like alginate concentration, type of curing agent, rpm, the valence of curing agent and addition of copolymer. The drug entrapment and physical stability will be improved by adding carbopol 934P along alginate polymer. DSC studies clarify Atorvastatin was dispersed in molecular level uniformly and XRD proves and indicating that crystalline conversion into the amorphous form of the drug after entrapment drug into the cross-linked alginate beads. By obtained data, it proved Atorvastatin beads forms suitable oral dosage forms and improved the rate of bioavailability and the data was fitted to Peppas equation and value of diffusional exponent n was found to be 1.216 indicating that the release of the drug from beads follows zero order super case II transport or non-fickian diffusion.