Carboxymethylation and Evaluation of Cassava (Manihot esculenta) Starch as a Potential Super-Disintegrant in Tablet Formulations.

Authors

Tsegay Abraha, Fantahun Molla, Amanuel Teklebrhan, Huria Hussen, Afewerk Getachew

Published in

BioMed research international. Volume 2026. Issue 1. Pages e4575160.

Abstract

Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is a significant source of starch in Ethiopia, with potential pharmaceutical applications. However, native starches often require modifications to enhance their utility, particularly as disintegrants. Carboxymethylation is a well-known modification that improves swelling and disintegration capacity. Therefore, this study is aimed at evaluating carboxymethylated cassava starch (CMCS) as a tablet disintegrant.
CMCSs were produced using monochloroacetic acid under varying reaction conditions. Structural modification was confirmed with FTIR spectroscopy. Physicochemical and powder properties, including degree of substitution (DS), swelling power, viscosity, and flow behavior, were characterized using standard methods. Tablets were prepared using the direct compression method. The tablets were assessed for physical characteristics, disintegration, and dissolution to compare the disintegrant performance of CMCS, native cassava starch (NCS), and sodium starch glycolate (SSG).
Nine CMCS batches were obtained from the modification process and confirmed by FTIR analysis. CMCSs showed improved characteristics such as hydration capacity, swelling power, and solubility compared to NCS. Specifically, CMCS7 (DS = 0.227) exhibited comparable flow, swelling, hydration, and viscosity to SSG. Thus, it was selected as an optimal batch to be used as a disintegrant. Tablets formulated with CMCS7 exhibited superior mechanical strength, low friability, and higher disintegration efficiency ratios compared to NCS while performing comparably to SSG. Tablets containing CMCS showed comparable disintegration to SSG and enhanced initial dissolution.
CMCS demonstrated promising disintegrant properties and could serve as a potential alternative local super-disintegrant in pharmaceutical tablet formulations.

PMID:
42434809
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 11 Jul 2026.

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