In vitro evaluation of novel mucoadhesive buccal tablet of oxytocin prepared with Diospyros peregrina fruit mucilages.

Novel mucoadhesive buccal tablets (NMBTs) of oxytocin were prepared as cores in cup fashion to release and permeate the drug unidirectionally toward the buccal mucosa to reach the systemic circulation directly. Adhesive cups for NMBTs were prepared with mucilage (DPM) isolated from edible Diospyros peregrina fruit. Mucoadhesive properties like shear and tensile and peel strengths of the adhesive cups were estimated on freshly excised bovine buccal mucosa. Core tablets were formulated with oxytocin using two penetration enhancers, sodium taurocholate and sodium thioglycollate. In vitro permeability studies of NMBTs were conducted in a Franz diffusion cell containing 50 ml of phosphate buffer, pH 6.6, at 37+/-0.2 degrees C through excised bovine buccal mucosa, and the amount of drug permeated was estimated at 220 nm on reverse-phase HPLC using a BDS Hypersil C(8) column with acetonitrile and potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate buffer 0.05 M, pH 6.6, (20 : 80 v/v) as the mobile phase, at flow rate of 1.25 ml/m. The NMBTs containing 0.75% w/w sodium taurocholate showed 26% permeability without damaging the histology of the buccal mucosa. The results suggest that this formulation may be a suitable alternative to oxytocin injections.