Design, Development and Characterization of Polyherbal Gel for the Management of Mouth Ulcer
Keywords:
Mouth ulcer, Polyherbal gel, Aloe vera, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Curcuma longaAbstract
Mouth ulcers, particularly recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS), are common inflammatory lesions of the oral mucosa characterized by painful ulceration, discomfort, and difficulty in eating and speaking. The present study was undertaken to develop and characterize a polyherbal mucoadhesive oral gel containing Aloe vera, Glycyrrhiza glabra, and Curcuma longa extracts for localized management of mouth ulcers. The selected herbal materials were subjected to organoleptic evaluation, extraction, determination of extractive yield, and preliminary phytochemical screening. The extracts were incorporated into a Carbopol 940-based oral gel containing glycerin, propylene glycol, and sodium benzoate as formulation excipients. Nine formulations (F1–F9) were prepared by varying the concentrations of the herbal extracts and Carbopol 940. The formulations were evaluated for appearance, homogeneity, pH, viscosity, spreadability, extrudability, mucoadhesive strength, marker content, in-vitro release, antimicrobial activity, and stability. The extractive yields of Glycyrrhiza glabra, Curcuma longa, and Aloe vera were 18.60%, 12.80%, and 15.40%, respectively. All formulations exhibited acceptable physical characteristics and were homogeneous without visible phase separation. The pH values were within a range considered suitable for oral mucosal application. Increasing the concentration of Carbopol 940 increased viscosity and mucoadhesive strength but reduced spreadability and the release rate of the selected marker constituents. Among the formulations, F8 demonstrated a satisfactory balance of viscosity, spreadability, mucoadhesive strength, marker content, and sustained-release characteristics and was therefore selected as the optimized formulation. The findings indicate that the developed polyherbal gel has potential as a localized herbal formulation for supporting the management of mouth ulcers. Further in-vivo and clinical investigations are required to establish its safety and therapeutic efficacy.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Ashwin Sharma, Ankit Agrawal, Abhilasha Tiwari, Diksha Sharma, Arun Kumar Gupta (Author)
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