Natural Polysaccharides of Mulberry Leaves Acting as Pharmaceutical Excipients
Keywords:
Mulberry leaves, Morus alba, polysaccharides, natural excipients, pharmaceutical excipients, binding agent, film former, mucoadhesion, controlled release, drug deliveryAbstract
Mulberry (Morus spp.) leaves are traditionally recognized as a source of nutrients, antioxidants, flavonoids, and bioactive phytoconstituents. However, their natural polysaccharides are increasingly investigated as pharmaceutical excipients. Because of their biodegradability, biocompatibility and low toxicity. mulberry leaf polysaccharides (MLPs) have attracted considerable attention because of their antioxidant, hypoglycaemic, and anti-inflammatory properties. Recent reviews indicate that MLPs are predominantly heterogeneous polysaccharides containing glucose, galactose, arabinose, and galacturonic acid, From a pharmaceutical-material perspective, these structural characteristics suggest potential applications as binders, viscosity modifiers, film-forming polymers, suspending/stabilizing agents, mucoadhesive materials, Thus, MLPs should currently be regarded as promising candidate multifunctional excipients rather than established compendial pharmaceutical excipients. Overall, this article explores the pharmaceutical-excipient potential of mulberryleaf polysaccharides, structural characteristics including their application in tablets, oral films, suspensions, microsystems, hydrogels, and advanced drug-delivery platforms and future development pathways.
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