Bilayer fixed-dose combination tablet for curcumin microparticles and piroxicam and in vitro evaluation

Aim: In the present work, fixed-dose combination of bilayer tablets for piroxicam as and curcumin as immediate-release and sustained-release layer (SRL) respectively for management of inflammatory response. Materials & methods: The SRL include Curcumin polycaprolactone microparticles from spray drying. The tablet layers include Pearlitol 200SD, Microcrystalline cellulose PH101, Aerosil 200, talc each layer. Results: SEM studies confirm spherical microparticles. PXRD and DSC studies confirm the amorphous microparticles. In vitro studies exhibit, an immediate release and sustained release for Piroxicam and Curcumin after 2 h. Cellular uptake studies on RAW 264.7 cells confirm the complete internalization of microparticles. Conclusion: Therefore, it was concluded that microparticles can be formulated into a unit dosage form for the management of inflammation.

Automated summary

The aim of this study was to develop a fixed-dose combination of bilayer tablets for management of inflammatory response, with piroxicam as immediate-release layer and curcumin as sustained-release layer. The sustained-release layer was prepared using curcumin polycaprolactone microparticles obtained by spray drying. The tablet layers contained Pearlitol 200SD, Microcrystalline cellulose PH101, Aerosil 200, and talc. The results showed that the microparticles were spherical according to SEM studies, and were amorphous according to PXRD and DSC studies. In vitro studies demonstrated an immediate release and sustained release of piroxicam and curcumin after 2 hours. Cellular uptake studies confirmed complete internalization of the microparticles by RAW 264.7 cells. Therefore, microparticles can be used to formulate a unit dosage form for the management of inflammation.