INDIGENOUS NIGERIAN EXCIPIENTS (POLYMERS AND LIPIDS) FOR APPLICATION IN PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES

. are substances that are included in pharmaceutical dosage forms, not for their direct therapeutic action, but to aid the manufacturing process, to protect, support or enhance stability, or for bioavailability or patient acceptability. Most of the excipients used by the pharmaceutical industries in Nigeria are imported and large amount of the country's foreign exchange earnings are largely spent on the importation of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and excipients. Nigeria still relies on imported finished pharmaceutical dosage forms such as suspensions, syrups, tablets, creams, ointments, suppositories, powders, capsules, and parenteral products. These are imported by either multinational drug companies, the government, or wealthy indigenous private entrepreneurs. Significant attention has not been paid to the local production of raw materials, pharmaceutical dosage formulations, or processing equipment. This problem, however, can be averted by outsourcing excipients locally that are easily available and accessible in Nigeria. These excipients could be of lipid and/or polymeric origins. This review focuses on excipients that are indigenous to Nigeria and can be outsourced locally, in order to apply it in pharmaceutical industries. Keywords: Excipients, Lipid, Polymeric, Indigenous.