Improving the Efficiency and Safety of Aspirin by Complexation with the Natural Polysaccharide Arabinogalactan

The main undesirable side effect of the aspirin is the damage to the gastrointestinal mucosa, leading to the formation of erosions, peptic ulcers, and as a result, bleeding. To overcome this problem "host-guest" complexation with natural polysaccharide arabinogalactan could be applied.

The complex with a weight ratio of ASA:AG = 1:10 was prepared by solid phase method in a rotary mill. Complex was administered orally to mice or rats at doses of 250, 500 or 1000 mg/kg. The "acetic acid induced writhing" and "hot plate" tests were used as an in vivo pain models. The antiinflammatory activity was studied using "histamine swelling" test. Also, long-term (30 days) oral introduction of the complex to rats was performed and gastric mucosa damages were evaluated. In all experiments pure aspirin (ASA) was used as a control in appropriate doses.

The minimal effective analgesic dose of the complex was 250 mg/kg, equivalent to 23 mg/kg of ASA, a dose in which aspirin itself was not active. The anti-inflammatory effect was found at relatively higher doses: 500 and 1000 mg/kg (46 and 92 mg/kg of ASA respectively) for the complex and only at 100 mg/kg for the ASA. Long-term introduction of the complex at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg was safe for gastric mucosa, while ASA at the dose of 50 mg/kg showed a strong gastric mucosal damage.

The effective analgesic and anti-inflammatory doses of 1:10 aspirin complex with arabinogalactan are twice less compared to pure aspirin and safer for the gastrointestinal mucosa.