Design and in vitro evaluation of oral colon targeted drug delivery systems for tinidazole

The aim of the present investigation is to develop colon targeted drug delivery sytems for tinidazole using guar gum as a carrier in the treatment of amoebiasis. Fast-disintegrating tinidazole core tablets were compression-coated with 55, 65 and 75% of guar gum. All the formulations were evaluated for the hardness, drug content uniformity, and subjected to in vitro drug release studies. The amount of tinidazole released from tablets at different time intervals was estimated by HPLC method. The compression-coated formulations released <0.5% of tinidazole in the physiological environment of stomach and small intestine. When the dissolution study was continued in simulated colonic fluids, the compression coated tablet with 55% of guar gum coat released 99% of tinidazole after degradation by colonic bacteria at the end of 24 h of the dissolution study. The compression coated tablets with 65 and 75% of guar gum coat released about 67 and 20% of tinidazole, respectively in simulated colonic fluids indicating the susceptibility of the guar gum formulations to the rat caecal contents. The results of the study show that compression coated tinidazole tablets with either 55 or 65% of guar gum coat is most likely to provide targeting of tinidazole for local action in the colon owing to its minimal release of the drug in the first 5 h of physiological environment of stomach and small intestine. The tinidazole compression coated tablets showed no change either in physical appearance, drug content or in dissolution pattern after storage at 40degreesC/75% RH for 6 months.