A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)

Dexamethasone is a chemical drug that is usually added to herbal medicine because of its effects on pain relief, arthritis, anti-inflammation, etc. Chemical drugs should not be used in herbal medicine because uncontrolled consumption causes some side effects. A polymer-based indicator was developed...

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Main Authors: Rimadani Pratiwi, Vandie Charlie, Nyi Mekar Saptarini, Driyanti Rahayu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-06-01
Series:Polymers
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/13/2862
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author Rimadani Pratiwi
Vandie Charlie
Nyi Mekar Saptarini
Driyanti Rahayu
author_facet Rimadani Pratiwi
Vandie Charlie
Nyi Mekar Saptarini
Driyanti Rahayu
author_sort Rimadani Pratiwi
collection DOAJ
description Dexamethasone is a chemical drug that is usually added to herbal medicine because of its effects on pain relief, arthritis, anti-inflammation, etc. Chemical drugs should not be used in herbal medicine because uncontrolled consumption causes some side effects. A polymer-based indicator was developed to detect dexamethasone in herbal medicine samples in a fast and simple way compared to instrumental analysis. The indicator strips were made by mixing polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) polymer with sulfuric acid (H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>) as a reagent. When reacting with dexamethasone, H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> can cause the color to change into a specific light pink-purple color. Indicator strips were prepared with a composition of 5% PMMA in ethyl acetate:H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> (9:1) by using the reagent blending method. The indicator strips showed a pink-purple color when they were applied to a positive herb containing dexamethasone. The indicator strips could selectively detect dexamethasone rather than other active substances that are often found in herbal medicine. These indicator strips could also detect dexamethasone with the smallest detection limit of 13.13 ppm, and they had a stability of up to 36 days. Detection was carried out in real samples to show the performance of the indicator strips. The result showed that of nine samples, five were confirmed to contain dexamethasone. These results showed a good agreement with the results of thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). According to the result, these indicator strips provide a simple and applicable method for on-site analysis to detect dexamethasone in samples.
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spelling doaj.art-a32afcea7d8b4879b86f3a988b52526d2023-11-18T17:21:13ZengMDPI AGPolymers2073-43602023-06-011513286210.3390/polym15132862A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)Rimadani Pratiwi0Vandie Charlie1Nyi Mekar Saptarini2Driyanti Rahayu3Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjran, Bandung 45363, IndonesiaDepartment of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjran, Bandung 45363, IndonesiaDepartment of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjran, Bandung 45363, IndonesiaDepartment of Pharmaceutical Analysis and Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Padjadjran, Bandung 45363, IndonesiaDexamethasone is a chemical drug that is usually added to herbal medicine because of its effects on pain relief, arthritis, anti-inflammation, etc. Chemical drugs should not be used in herbal medicine because uncontrolled consumption causes some side effects. A polymer-based indicator was developed to detect dexamethasone in herbal medicine samples in a fast and simple way compared to instrumental analysis. The indicator strips were made by mixing polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) polymer with sulfuric acid (H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>) as a reagent. When reacting with dexamethasone, H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> can cause the color to change into a specific light pink-purple color. Indicator strips were prepared with a composition of 5% PMMA in ethyl acetate:H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub> (9:1) by using the reagent blending method. The indicator strips showed a pink-purple color when they were applied to a positive herb containing dexamethasone. The indicator strips could selectively detect dexamethasone rather than other active substances that are often found in herbal medicine. These indicator strips could also detect dexamethasone with the smallest detection limit of 13.13 ppm, and they had a stability of up to 36 days. Detection was carried out in real samples to show the performance of the indicator strips. The result showed that of nine samples, five were confirmed to contain dexamethasone. These results showed a good agreement with the results of thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). According to the result, these indicator strips provide a simple and applicable method for on-site analysis to detect dexamethasone in samples.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/13/2862dexamethasonepolymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)indicator strip
spellingShingle Rimadani Pratiwi
Vandie Charlie
Nyi Mekar Saptarini
Driyanti Rahayu
A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
Polymers
dexamethasone
polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
indicator strip
title A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
title_full A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
title_fullStr A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
title_full_unstemmed A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
title_short A Polymer-Based Indicator for Detecting Dexamethasone in Herbal Medicine Using Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
title_sort polymer based indicator for detecting dexamethasone in herbal medicine using polymethylmethacrylate pmma
topic dexamethasone
polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
indicator strip
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/15/13/2862
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