Preparation and evaluation of berberine hydrochloride taste-marking pellets coated by refined methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer Ⅳ

OBJECTIVE To prepare berberine hydrochloride taste-marking pellets coated by refined methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer and evaluate the taste masking effect. METHODS Ultraviolet spectrophotometry method was established for berberine hydrochloride content determination. Berberine hydrochloride pellets were prepared by fluidized bed with sucrose pellets as core. Raw methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer, refined methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer and Eudragit^®EPO were used to prepare coating materials and berberine hydrochloride taste-marking pellets were coated with these different coating materials respectively by different increasing coating weight. The taste test and dissolution rate of berberine hydrochloride taste-marking pellets was then studied. RESULTS The berberine hydrochloride was prepared with uniform drug content and satisfied with the drug loading efficiency. The bitter taste was significantly masked and the dissolution rate was significantly decreased with the increased of coating weight. For the refined methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer, the bitter taste could be masked only until the coating weight reach 4%, which could be masked when the coating weight reach 3% for Eudragit^®EPO. CONCLUSION With the same coating weight, Eudragit^®EPO shows best taste marking ability among the three kinds of coating materials while the methacrylic acid alkyl ester copolymer shows better taste marking ability than the raw materials.