Gelation Factors of Pectin for Development of a Powder Form of Gel, Dry Jelly, as a Novel Dosage Form

: Jellies for oral administration are dosage forms that contain water, as stipulated in the Japanese Pharmacopeia, and heat is generally applied to the jellies during the manufacturing process. Therefore, it is difficult to formulate drugs that may be affected adversely by water and/or heat. To solve this problem, we tried to develop a powder form of gel as a novel dosage form (dry jelly: jelly medicine extemporaneously prepared) that is converted to jelly after addition of water at the time of administration. For this purpose, a basic gel formulation consisting of pectin, glucono-δ-lactone, dibasic calcium phosphate hydrate, and sucrose was investigated to evaluate the critical factors affecting gelation phenomena. The gel form was developed by adjusting the amount of each component of the formulation and of water added. Gelation occurred even with hard water containing metal ions (hardness of approximately 304 mg/L), and no changes in gel hardness occurred. The desired gel hardness could be controlled by adjusting the amount of water. The gel hardness changed over time after the addition of water, but this change did not affect the dissolution behavior of drugs formulated in the dry jelly.