This study aimed to develop hydrophilic, gastroretentive matrix tablets of famotidine with good floating and swelling properties. A novel gastroretentive drug delivery formulation was designed using salep, also known as salepi, a flour obtained from grinding dried palmate tubers of Orchis morio var mascula (Orchidaceae family). The main polysaccharide content of salep is glucomannan, highly soluble in cold and hot water, which forms a viscous solution. Salep was characterized for physicochemical properties, thermal stability, chemical interaction, and surface morphology using X-ray diffraction analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Ten different formulations (S1-S10) were prepared using famotidine to salep ratios from 1:0.5 to 1:5. Results demonstrated that all formulations were able to sustain the drug release for more than 24 hours. The S5 formulation, with a famotidine to salep ratio of 1:2.5, had the shortest floating lag time of 35 seconds and 100% drug release within 24 hours. The dissolution data were fitted into popular mathematical models to assess the mechanism of drug release. S5 showed Zero order release (R=0.9746) with Higuchi diffusion (R=0.9428). We conclude that salep, a novel polymer, can be used in controlled release formulations to sustain release for 24 hours, due to inherent swelling and gelling properties.
Orchidaceae is the largest family of flowering plants with over 35,000 species and 850 genera. About 3300 species of orchids are found in Malaysia and the diversity is highest in the Main, Keledang, Bintang and Tahan Ranges. Apart from being prized for their beauty, orchids have long been used by humans for medicinal purposes. Today the uses of orchids have been expanded to the food and cosmetics industries. Many cosmeceutical companies use orchid extracts as an active ingredient in their products. Previous studies provide riveting insights into the potential uses of orchid extracts as an active agent in cosmetics. This paper describes the cosmeceutical potential of orchids as an anti-aging, and skin moisturizing agent. Orchid extracts from Vanda coerulea and V. teres delay aging caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) following LV irradiation through their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. These extracts also show anti-aging properties by stimulating cytochrome c oxidase (complex IV), which is part of the electron transport chain in mitochondria. Stimulation of cytochrome c oxidase improves the respiratory function of mitochondria in keratinocytes. The presence of mucilage in orchids enables them to maintain skin hydration. Mucilage functions as a moisturizer and emollient due to its high water binding capacity. Additionally, orchid extracts provide skin hydration by stimulating aquaporin 3 (AQP3) and LEKTI protein expression. The presence of AQP3 leads to a five-fold increase in water permeability, which subsequently increases stratum corneum hydration. Increased LEKTI protein expression mediated by orchid extracts reduces the degradation of desmoglein-1 and enhances the structural function of desmosomes, which play important roles in preventing water evaporation.
Anoectochilus sp. and Ludisia discolor are known as Jewel orchids. Both species are terrestrial wild orchids that grow in shaded areas of forests. The Jewel orchids are renowned for the beauty of their leaves, which are dark-green laced with silvery or golden veins. The orchids are used as a cure in various parts of Asia. Overharvesting and anthropogenic disturbances threaten the existence of the Jewel orchids in the wild, necessitating human intervention in their survival. An understanding of the structure and adaptations of a plant may assist in its survival when propagated outside of its habitat. In this study, ex vitro leaves of Anoectochilus sp. and L. discolor were subjected to freehand sectioning, and then inspected through brightfield and fluorescence microscopy. The study indicated that all parts of both plants presented typical monocotyledonous characteristics except the leaves. The leaves displayed dorsiventrality with distinct palisade and spongy mesophyll layers. The spongy mesophyll layer contained cells which fluoresced a bright red when exposed to ultraviolet, blue, and green light wavelengths, hinting at the presence of anthocyanins for photoprotection. Cyanidin was detected in the leaves of L. discolor, as enumerated through high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The observations indicated that Anoectochilus sp. and L. discolor are well-adapted to live under shaded conditions with minimal exposure to light.
Anoectochilus roxburghii (Wall.) Lindl. (Orchidaceae) is a precious traditional Chinese medicinal herb and has been perennially used to treat various illness. However, there were unethical sellers who adulterated wild A. roxburghii with tissue cultured and cultivated ones. Therefore, there is an urgent need for an effective authentication method to differentiate between these different types of A. roxburghii. In this research, the infrared spectroscopic tri-step identification approach including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Second derivative infrared spectra (SD-IR) and two-dimensional correlation infrared spectra (2D-IR) was used to develop a simple and rapid method to discriminate between wild, cultivated and tissue cultivated A. roxburghii plant. Through this study, all three types of A. roxburghii plant were successfully identified and discriminated through the infrared spectroscopic tri-step identification method. Besides that, all the samples of wild, cultivated and tissue cultivated A. roxburghii plant were analysed with the Soft Independent Modelling of Class Analogy (SIMCA) pattern recognition technique to test and verify the experimental results. The results showed that the three types of A. roxburghii can be discriminated clearly as the recognition rate was 100% for all three types and the rejection rate was more than 60%. 70% of the validated samples were also identified correctly by the SIMCA model. The SIMCA model was also validated by comparing 70 standard herbs to the model. As a result, it was demonstrated that the macroscopic IR fingerprint method and the classification analysis could discriminate not only between the A. roxburghi samples and the standard herbs, it could also distinguish between the three different types of A. roxburghi plant in a direct, rapid and holistic manner.