Formulation Development and Evaluation of Migraine Almotriptan Loaded Ethosomes Using Box Behnken Design

One of the most common nervous system illnesses is headache disorders, which are characterized by chronic headaches. In Present investigation Almotriptan loaded Ethosomes were prepared by water phase addition method. The three independent factors including Phosphotidylcholine: Cholestrol: DSPE (6:3:1molar ratio), Surfactant concentration and sonication time. A factorial design 3*3(3 factor 3 level) was applied to prepare 17 formulation. Optimization of ethosomal preparation was carried out by applying Box Behnken response surface randomized factorial design following quadratic model using Design of Experiment (DOE) software version 11.04.0. The factor Soya PC: Cholesterol: DSPE in molar ration (6:3:1), Concentration of Tween-80 and sonication time were selected as dependable process and formulation factors that can be effect formulation characteristics like entrapment efficiency, average vesicle size, Polydispersity Index (PDI). All other factors like sonication speed and rotation speed was kept constant All the formulation were prepared by simple solvent evaporation thin film formation method and characterized for the drug entrapment, average vesicle size and PDI, shape morphology. Formulations were optimized on the basis of responses such as average vesicle size, PDI, and entrapment efficiency. All the characterized values of the responses were putted in the formulation design table and analyse to best fitted model for the design. It was observed that, quadaratic model is best fitted model for the design. The prepared ethosomes formulation can further incorporated in situ gel for effective treatment of migraine.

Metal Emulsion-Based Synthesis, Characterization, and Properties of Sn-Based Microsphere Phase Change Materials

A comparative study of the metal emulsion-based synthesis of Sn-based materials in two different types of molten salts (namely LiCl–KCl–CsCl and LiNO3-NaNO3-KNO3 eutectics) is presented, and the properties of Sn, Sn-Cu and Sn-Cu-Zn microsphere phase change materials prepared in chloride salts are evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to understand the effect of element doping. Despite a high ultrasonic power (e.g., 600 W or above) being required for dispersing liquid Sn in the chloride system, well-shaped Sn microspheres with a relatively narrow size range, e.g., about 1 to 15 µm or several micrometers to around 30 µm, can be prepared by adjusting the ultrasonic power (840–1080 W), sonication time (5–10 min) and the volume ratio of salts to metal (25:1–200:1). Such a method can be extended to the synthesis of Sn-based alloy microspheres, e.g., Sn-Cu and Sn-Cu-Zn microspheres. In the nitrate system, however, a very low ultrasonic power (e.g., 12 W) can be used to disperse liquid Sn, and the particles obtained are much smaller. At low ultrasonic power (e.g., 12 W), the particle size is generally less than 10 or 4 µm when the sonication time reaches 2 or 5 min, and at high ultrasonic power, it is typically in the range of hundreds of nanometers to 2 µm, regardless of the change in ultrasonic power (480–1080 W), irradiation time (5–10 min), or volume ratio of salts to metal (25:1–1000:1). In addition, the appearance of a SnO phase in the products prepared under different conditions hints at the occurrence of a reaction between Sn droplets and O2 in situ generated by the ultrasound-induced decomposition of nitrates, and such an interfacial reaction is believed to be responsible for these differences observed in two different molten salt systems. A DSC study of Sn, Sn-Cu, and Sn-Cu-Zn microspheres encapsulated in SiO2 reveals that Cu (0.3–0.9 wt.%) or Cu-Zn (0.9 wt.% Cu and 0.6% Zn) doping can raise the onset freezing temperature and thus suppress the undercooling of Sn, but a broad freezing peak observed in these doped microspheres, along with a still much higher undercooling compared to those of reported Sn-Cu or Sn-Cu-Zn solders, suggests the existence of a size effect, and that a low temperature is still needed for totally releasing latent heat. Since the chloride salts can be recycled by means of the evaporation of water and are stable at high temperature, our results indicate that the LiCl–KCl–CsCl salt-based metal emulsion method might also serve as an environmentally friendly method for the synthesis of other metals and their alloy microspheres.

Mastoparan, a Peptide Toxin from Wasp Venom Conjugated Fluvastatin Nanocomplex for Suppression of Lung Cancer Cell Growth

Lung cancer has a very low survival rate, and non-small cell lung cancer comprises around 85% of all types of lung cancers. Fluvastatin (FLV) has demonstrated the apoptosis and suppression of tumor-cell proliferation against lung cancer cells in vitro. Drug–peptide nanoconjugates were found to enhance the cytotoxicity of anti-cancer drugs. Thus, the present study aimed to develop a nanocomplex of FLV with mastoparan (MAS), which is a peptide that has membranolytic anti-tumor activity. The nanocomplex of FLV and MAS (MAS-FLV-NC) was prepared and optimized for particle size using Box–Behnken design. The amount of FLV had the highest influence on particle size. While higher levels of FLV and incubation time favored higher particle size, a higher level of sonication time reduced the particle size of MAS-FLV-NC. The optimum formula of MAS-FLV-NC used 1.00 mg of FLV and was prepared with an incubation time of 12.1339 min and a sonication time of 6 min. The resultant particle size was 77.648 nm. The in vitro cell line studies of MAS-FLV-NC, FLV, and MAS were carried out in A549 cells. The IC50 values of MAS-FLV-NC, FLV, and MAS were 18.6 ± 0.9, 58.4 ± 2.8, and 34.3 ± 1.6 µg/mL respectively, showing the enhanced cytotoxicity of MAS-FLV-NC. The apoptotic activity showed that MAS-FLV-NC produced a higher percentage of cells in the late phase, showing a higher apoptotic activity than FLV and MAS. Furthermore, cell cycle arrest in S and Pre G1 phases by MAS-FLV-NC was observed in the cell cycle analysis by flow cytometry. The loss of mitochondrial membrane potential after MAS-FLV-NC treatment was significantly higher than those observed for FLV and MAS. The IL-1β, IL-6, and NF-kB expressions were inhibited, whereas TNF-α, caspase-3, and ROS expressions were enhanced by MAS-FLV-NC treatment. Furthermore, the expression levels of Bax, Bcl-2, and p53 strongly established the enhanced cytotoxic effect of MAS-FLV-NC. The results indicated that MAS-FLV-NC has better cytotoxicity than individual effects of MAS and FLV in A549 cells. Further pre-clinical and clinical studies are needed for developing MAS-FLV-NC to a clinically successful therapeutic approach against lung cancer.

Optimization of Ultrasonic-Assisted Enzymatic Extraction of Tannic Acid from Chromolaena Odorota sp.

Previous study only implemented the time consuming and low amount of yield technique for extraction from Chromolaena odorata which is conventional method. Nonconventional extraction method with short extraction time and high amount of yield was applied in this study by applying ultrasound-assisted enzymatic extraction (UAEE). UAEE was used to extract tannic acid from Chromolaena odorata. The extraction parameters involved were enzyme concentration, sonication time and duty cycle at constant temperature of 50°C, solid to liquid ratio of 1:10 and sonication power at 60% amplitude. The optimum extraction process was found at cellulase enzyme concentration of 4%, sonication time of 60 minutes and duty cycle of 50% with the obtained concentration of tannic acid at 1.6152 mg/mL. The study showed that the UAEE could be employed to enhance yield of tannic acid, reduce the extraction time and ensuring green extraction method were applied in the study.

Medical applications of porous silicon

Materials based on porous silicon are extremely attractive for biomedical applications due to their simple and flexible production, biocompatibility, biodegradability, controlled morphology, and multiple ways of introducing the drug into the body. This paper presents the results of studies of porous structures with a broad spectrum antibiotic ceftriaxone. It has been shown that the characteristics of the porous structure change upon saturation of the pores with the drug. It was shown that solutions of porous silicon + ceftriaxone have a characteristic peak at a wavelength of 1070 nm with increasing sonication time

The Separation of Emulsified Water/Oil Mixtures through Adsorption on Plasma-Treated Polyethylene Powder

This work addresses the preparation and characterization of efficient adsorbents for tertiary treatment (oil content below 100 ppm) of oil/water emulsions. Powdered low-density polyethylene (LDPE) was modified by radio-frequency plasma discharge and then used as a medium for the treatment of emulsified diesel oil/water mixtures in the concentration range from 75 ppm to 200 ppm. Plasma treatment significantly increased the wettability of the LDPE powder, which resulted in enhanced sorption capability of the oil component from emulsions in comparison to untreated powder. Emulsions formed from distilled water and commercial diesel oil (DO) with concentrations below 200 ppm were used as a model of oily polluted water. The emulsions were prepared using ultrasonication without surfactant. The droplet size was directly proportional to sonication time and ranged from 135 nm to 185 nm. A sonication time of 20 min was found to be sufficient to prepare stable emulsions with an average droplet size of approximately 150 nm. The sorption tests were realized in a batch system. The effect of contact time and initial oil concentrations were studied under standard atmospheric conditions at a stirring speed of 340 rpm with an adsorbent particle size of 500 microns. The efficiency of the plasma-treated LDPE powder in oil removal was found to be dependent on the initial oil concentration. It decreased from 96.7% to 79.5% as the initial oil concentration increased from 75 ppm to 200 ppm. The amount of adsorbed oil increased with the increasing contact time. The fastest adsorption was observed during the first 30 min of treatment. The adsorption kinetics for emulsified oils onto sorbent followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model.

Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction of Polyphenols from Pomelo (Citrus Grandis Limonia Osbeck L.) Peel

The pomelo peel occupies 50% of the fruit mass in pomelo juice processing. It contains large amounts of phenolic compounds, which may provide benefits to human health. These components should be isolated. In this study, the effects of ethanol concentrations, material-to-solvent ratios (g/mL), temperatures and sonication time on total phenolic content (TPC), naringin content and antioxidant capacity (using DPPH assay) of extract solution was evaluated. The results showed that all experimental factors significantly influenced the extraction of total polyphenol content, naringin content, and antioxidant capacity of the extract. The extraction condition was ethanol 80%, material-to-solvent ratio of 1:25 (w/v) at 60oC, and sonication time of 7.5 min, gave the extract had total phenolic content of 9.05 ± 0.08 mg GAE/g DM, naringin content of 4.65 ± 0.08 mg NE/ g DM, and antioxidant capacity of 4.76 ± 0.03 mg AAE/g DM. The ultrasound treatment was a useful method for improving the extraction of phenolic acid compounds from pomelo peel.

Effect of high intensity ultrasound on main bioactive compounds, antioxidant capacity and color in orange juice

Ultrasound is a useful alternative to thermal processing that can be applied to many food products and juices to aid with enzymes and microorganism inactivation and to improve the efficiency of unit operations generally applied in the food industry. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a high-intensity sonication treatment (frequency 20 kHz; intensity 39.4 W/cm2) applied for treatment times from 0 to 105 min on the content of polyphenols, vitamin C, organic acids, and carotenoids, and on the hydrophilic and lipophilic antioxidant capacity and color of orange juice. Treatments were performed in triplicate and data was statistically analyzed. Sonication time did not have a significant effect ( P > 0.05) on total polyphenols, total vitamin C, organic acid, and carotenoid contents, lipophilic antioxidant capacity, or juice color. The hydrophilic antioxidant activity and the lutein content increased significantly ( P < 0.05) with increased sonication time. These results may be useful as a baseline for the development of sonication treatments that could be used in combination with other traditional and emerging processing approaches to protect the most important bioactive compounds and quality properties of orange juice.

Preparation of Nanostructured Lipid Carriers (NLCs) Loading Violacein Extract for Anti-Acne Products

The objective of this research is to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of Nanostructured Lipid Carriers (NLCs) loading violacein extract. The extract was tested for the antimicrobial activities against 3 strains of pathogenic bacteria; namely Cutibacterium acnes ATCC 6919, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 and Staphylococcus epidermidis ATCC 12228 by agar well diffusion assay. The result indicated that the violacein extract from Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 12472 has strongest antibacterial effect against C. acnes, S. aureus and S. epidermidis with MIC values in range of 0.0146-0.4688 mg/mL with the lowest MBC value of 0.0146 mg/mL against C. acnes. Violacein extract loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carriers (NLCs) for anti-acne products were prepared by using melt-emulsification technique. The studied factors are the ratio of liquid lipid and solid lipid (LL:SL), surfactant concentration and sonication time. The Ratio of Oleic acid and Compritol® 888 ATO (3:1) with Tween 20 (1.5% w/w) and sonication time of 10 minute (F8 formulation) are an optimizing condition for NLC-Base. The resulted formulations showed the NLC-Base had average particle size of 213.7±2.42 nm with a polydispersity index of 0.239±0.003 and Zeta potential of -26.6±0.45 mV. After that, violacein extract (2% w/w) was loaded into the NLCs (VIO-NLCs). Antibacterial activity of VIO-NLCs 2 % was determined by using agar dilution. The result showed that VIO-NLCs 2 % can inhibit the growth of C. acnes for 60 days during storage. Furthermore, VIO-NLCs 2 % can also act as S. aureus and S. epidermidis inhibitor within 30 days shelf life.