Development and evaluation of a novel pellet-based tablet system for potential colon delivery of budesonide

The Potential Use of Core-Shell Structured Spheres in a Packed-Bed DBD Plasma Reactor for CO2 Conversion

This work proposes to use core-shell structured spheres to evaluate whether it allows to individually optimize bulk and surface effects of a packing material, in order to optimize conversion and energy efficiency. Different core-shell materials have been prepared by spray coating, using dense spheres (as core) and powders (as shell) of SiO2, Al2O3, and BaTiO3. The materials are investigated for their performance in CO2 dissociation and compared against a benchmark consisting of a packed-bed reactor with the pure dense spheres, as well as an empty reactor. The results in terms of CO2 conversion and energy efficiency show various interactions between the core and shell material, depending on their combination. Al2O3 was found as the best core material under the applied conditions here, followed by BaTiO3 and SiO2, in agreement with their behaviour for the pure spheres. Applying a thin shell layer on the cores showed equal performance between the different shell materials. Increasing the layer thickness shifts this behaviour, and strong combination effects were observed depending on the specific material. Therefore, this method of core-shell spheres has the potential to allow tuning of the packing properties more closely to the application by designing an optimal combination of core and shell.

A Critical Review of Analytical Methods in Pharmaceutical Matrices for Determination of Corticosteroids

Corticosteroids are a class of hormones released by the adrenal cortex, which includes glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids. Glucocorticoids have an important role in the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and calcium and effective anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive activity. Due to their intense immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activity, glucocorticoids are used in the treatment of various inflammatory, malignant, allergic conditions such as rhinitis, asthma, dermatological, rheumatic, ophthalmic and neurological diseases, as well as after organ transplants. They are the most widely prescribed drugs in the world. The objective of this review is to provide an overview of the analytical methods in pharmaceutical matrices for determination of corticosteroids. In this study, the predominance of liquid chromatography methods for the analysis of corticosteroids from pharmaceutical products is evident for both liquid and semisolid dosage forms as well as for solids. The same can be said for topical, oral and parenteral formulations. Methods such as spectrophotometry are also used, but given the advantages of chromatographic methods such as better selectivity and sensitivity, they have become the choice for analysis of these drugs, however, most methods still do not meet the credentials of "green chemistry."

Biomaterial-Derived Calcium Carbonate Nanoparticles for Enteric Drug Delivery

Oral drug delivery systems provide the most convenient, noninvasive, readily acceptable alternatives to parenteral systems. In the current work, eggshell-derived calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) nanoparticles were used to develop enteric drug delivery system in the form of tablets. CaCO₃ nanoparticles were manufactured using top-down ball-milling method and characterized by X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and loaded with 5-fluorouracil as a model drug. Tablets with varying CaCO₃ core and binder compositions were fabricated and coated with Eudragit S100 or Eudragit L100. Suitability for enteric delivery of the tablets was tested by oral administration to rabbits and radiography. Radiograph images showed that the tablet remained in the stomach of the rabbit for up to 3 hours. Further modifications of these biomaterial-derived nanoparticles and the coatings will enable manufacturing of stable formulations for slow or controlled release of pharmaceuticals for enteric delivery.

Eudragit nanoparticles loaded with silybin: a detailed study of preparation, freeze-drying condition and in vitro/in vivo evaluation

The objective of this work was use of silybin nanoparticles in treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC). Eudragit RL PO nanoparticles loaded with silybin were produced using solvent-evaporation emulsification technique. Then, they were coated by Eudragit FS30D. Drug release was studied in different physiological environments. Colitis was induced by 4% of acetic acid in rats which received freeze-dried nanoparticles of silybin (75 mg/kg/day), dexamethasone (1 mg/kg/day), blank nanoparticles and normal saline orally for 5 days. Then macroscopic, histopathological evaluation and biochemical analysis, including myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels in colon tissues were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Macroscopic and histopathological scores were improved by the optimised nanoparticles. The optimised nanoparticles had a particle size of 109 ± 6 nm, zeta potential of 15.4 ± 2 mV, loading efficiency of 98.3 ± 12% and release efficiency of 40.8 ± 5.5% at 24 h. TNF-α, IL-6 and MPO activity were reduced significantly by nanoparticles compared to control group (p < 0.05).

Curcumin loaded microsponges for colon targeting in inflammatory bowel disease: fabrication, optimization, and in vitro and pharmacodynamic evaluation

The present study was aimed to develop and optimize the microsponges of curcumin for colon specific drug delivery in a view to bypass the upper gastrointestinal tract (GIT) for enhanced therapeutic effect. Microsponges were developed by quasi emulsion solvent diffusion method using 3(2) full factorial design. Prepared microsponges were optimized in order to analyze the effects of independent variables (volume of ethanol and Eudragit L100) on the encapsulation efficiency, particle size, and drug release. The optimized formulation was subjected to in vivo study using acetic acid induced colitis model in rats. The F7 was selected as optimized formulation based on particle size of 41.63 μm, % entrapment efficiency of 78.13%, and % cumulative drug release of 84.12%, and desirability factor of 0.83. Release studies revealed that microsponges prevented the premature release of curcumin in upper GIT and specifically released the drug at colonic pH. The drug release profile of F7 formulation was subjected to different kinetic models and based upon the best correlation coefficient (r(2) = 0.9927) the release was found to follow Higuchi model, which suggested diffusion as the main mechanism of drug release. Pharmacodynamic study showed that curcumin loaded microsponges causes a significant decrease in edema, necrosis, and hemorrhage of colon as compared to free curcumin. This study proves that curcumin loaded microsponges may act as a promising drug delivery system for treatment of ulcerative colitis.