Abstract
With a view to an application of chitin and chitosan to pharmaceutical preparations, the dissolution behavior of ground mixtures of prednisolone with chitin and chitosan was investigated. Ground mixtures of prednisolone with chitin and chitosan were prepared by cogrinding in a ball mill. The X-ray diffraction patterns and results of differential scanning calorimetry suggested that the size of crystals of prednisolone was decreased in the ground mixtures. The dissolution rate of prednisolone from the ground mixtures was significantly greater than that from the physical mixture or from intact prednisolone powder. These results indicate that chitin and chitosan can improve the dissolution properties of prednisolone.