Kaolin in pharmaceutical preparations: a review

Background: Kaolin is a clay mineral with Al2Si2O5(OH)4 structure which can be found in sedimentary rocks also known as clay stones. Kaolin consists of clay materials such as quartz, illite, smectite, and hematite, with the largest constituent component being kaolinite. Kaolin is one of the most common minerals with an abundant presence in the earth's crust compared to other minerals, especially in Indonesia. In the pharmaceutical sector, this clay mineral is widely used in Indonesia. Kaolin is known to be a good adsorbent and has good physical, chemical, and surface physicochemical properties. Objective: This review article aims to provide information about the uses of kaolin in the pharmaceutical industry. Methods: This review article was written by conducting a literature search study method in the PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases. Results: In the pharmaceutical field, kaolin is used as an excipient in various types of medicinal preparations, one of which is as a suspension agent because of its ability to stabilize suspensions in a deflocculated state as an emulsifying agent, crushing agent, filling agent, and drug carrier. As an active substance, kaolin is widely used because it has a therapeutic activity. In the cosmetic industry, kaolin can be administered in a variety of topical dosage forms which act as skin protective agents or sunscreens. Conclusion: Based on the results of the review, it was found that kaolin, with its abundant presence on earth and its great potential in the pharmaceutical field, is used as an active medicinal substance, excipient ingredient, and in the cosmetic field as a sunscreen. Keywords: Kaolin, excipient, active pharmaceutical ingredient, cosmetics

An Algorithm for the Retrieval of High Temporal-Spatial Resolution Shortwave Albedo from Landsat-8 Surface Reflectance and MODIS BRDF

Variations in surface physicochemical properties and spatial structures can prominently transform surface albedo which conversely influence surface energy balances and global climate, making it crucial to continuously monitor and quantify surface dynamics at fine scales. Here, we made two improvements to propose an algorithm for the simultaneous retrieval of 30-m Landsat albedo, based on the coupling of Landsat-8 and MODIS BRDF. First, two kinds of prior knowledge were added to disaggregate BRDF, including the Anisotropic Flat Index (AFX) and the Albedo-to-Nadir reflectance ratio (AN ratio), from MODIS scales into Landsat scales. Second, a simplified data fusion method was used to simulate albedo for the same, subsequent, or antecedent dates. Finally, we validated the reliability and correlations of the algorithm at six sites of the Surface Radiation (SURFRAD) budget network and intercompared the results with another algorithm called the ‘concurrent approach’. The results showed that the proposed algorithm had favorable usability and robustness, with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.015 (8%) and a mean bias of −0.005; while the concurrent approach had a RMSE of 0.026 (14%) and a mean bias of −0.018. The results emphasized that the proposed algorithm has captured subtle changes in albedo over a 16-day period.

Adhesion Behavior of Escherichia coli Strains on Glass: Role of Cell Surface Qualitative and Quantitative Hydrophobicity in Their Attachment Ability

Microbial adhesion to surfaces is thought to involve physicochemical interactions between the substrate and microbial cells. Understanding the physicochemical aspects involved in the adhesion phenomenon, as a critical step in biofilm formation, is essential to finding ways to prevent their formation and control biocontamination risks. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between the adhesion behavior of 12 Escherichia coli strains isolated from food and their surface hydrophobicities using qualitative ( θ w ) and quantitative (ΔGiwi) approaches. The surface physicochemical properties of both bacterial cells and glass material were estimated through contact angle measurements. The adhesive behavior of E. coli strains on a glass surface was assessed. The results showed a good logarithmic relation between the percentage of the adhered cells and their surface hydrophobicity with the quantitative approach ΔGiwi; however, qualitative hydrophobicity ( θ w ) appeared to demonstrate no effect regarding adhesion behavior. This work lays the foundation for future studies and opens an important debate on the mechanisms underlying the adhesion behavior of E. coli strains by using the thermodynamic approach (ΔGiwi) as an important model of hydrophobicity that could explain and predict better bacterial adhesion ability.

Hydroxyapatite-Coated Titanium by Micro-Arc Oxidation and Steam–Hydrothermal Treatment Promotes Osseointegration

Titanium (Ti)-based alloys are widely used in tissue regeneration with advantages of improved biocompatibility, high mechanical strength, corrosion resistance, and cell attachment. To obtain bioactive bone–implant interfaces with enhanced osteogenic capacity, various methods have been developed to modify the surface physicochemical properties of bio-inert Ti and Ti alloys. Nano-structured hydroxyapatite (HA) formed by micro-arc oxidation (MAO) is a synthetic material, which could facilitate osteoconductivity, osteoinductivity, and angiogenesis on the Ti surface. In this paper, we applied MAO and steam–hydrothermal treatment (SHT) to produce HA-coated Ti, hereafter called Ti–M–H. The surface morphology of Ti–M–H1 was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the element composition and the roughness of Ti–M–H1 were analyzed by energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), and Bruker stylus profiler, demonstrating the deposition of nano-HA particles on Ti surfaces that were composed of Ca, P, Ti, and O. Then, the role of Ti–M–H in osteogenesis and angiogenesis in vitro was evaluated. The data illustrated that Ti–M–H1 showed a good compatibility with osteoblasts (OBs), which promoted adhesion, spreading, and proliferation. Additionally, the secretion of ALP, Col-1, and extracellular matrix mineralization was increased by OBs treated with Ti–M–H1. Ti–M–H1 could stimulate endothelial cells to secrete vascular endothelial growth factor and promote the formation of capillary-like networks. Next, it was revealed that Ti–M–H1 also suppressed inflammation by activating macrophages, while releasing multiple active factors to mediate osteogenesis and angiogenesis. Finally, in vivo results uncovered that Ti–M–H1 facilitated a higher bone-to-implant interface and was more attractive for the dendrites, which promoted osseointegration. In summary, MAO and SHT-treated Ti–M–H1 not only promotes in vitro osteogenesis and angiogenesis but also induces M2 macrophages to regulate the immune environment, which enhances the crosstalk between osteogenesis and angiogenesis and ultimately accelerates the process of osseointegration in vivo.

A Study on Surface Physicochemical Properties of Woods Treated in Emulsion of Waterborne Varnish with Sesame and Grape Seed Oil

Aims: An eco-friendly coating emulsion prepared with mixture of oils of sesame and grape seed and alkyd-based waterborne varnish. The prepared emulsion applied four different wood substrates (walnut, beech, cedar and fir) in order to be investigated for some selected surface properties. Study Design: Several test methods were used to evaluate surface physicochemical properties of the coatings. The results obtained may be suggested for the selection of the best varnish-emulsion formulation for the improvement wood substrates and could provide useful evaluation of the test methods employed. Methodology: The wood species of Beech (Fagus sylvatica), Walnut (Juglans regia), Cedar (Cedrus libani) and Fir (Abies nordmandiana) were selected for the investigation. Commercially available alkyd based waterborne varnish was supplied ready to use form. Both sesame oil (Sesamum indicum L.) and grape seed oil (Vitis vinifera L.) were obtained from a company that produces them by the cold press technique commercially. Both oils were used as supplied, without additional processing. These oils were added to varnish at 10% and 20% proportions (volume/volume). The 5 μl of distilled water (surface tension of 72.6 mN /m) was applied on wood surface by a sessile droplet method to measure surface contact angles. The surface hardness and scratch resistance of the cured varnish layers on wood substrates were measured with using pencil hardness test procedure according to ASTM-D-3363 standard. Cross cut test also conducted according to EN ISO 2409 standard. Experimental Findings: It was found that coated walnut samples show 9.8 to 13.5° higher contact angle values in all directions while other three wood samples only show marginally different values (0.1 to 4.3°). The highest contact value of 35.9° and 35.8° was found with samples of Wg20 and Wg10 which treated 20- and 10% grape seed oil proportions in varnish emulsion. The oils of sesame and grape seed typically contain various proportions of fatty acids fractions which are constituents of a carboxylic acid with a long, aliphatic tail. These groups could be created a strong bond in combination with alkyd resin on wood surface. However, the surface energy distribution show only marginally changes regardless of treatment levels and conditions. Therefore, there is not any clear advantage observed on surface wood surface energy levels with coating applications. For 10% grape seed oil/varnish emulsion conditions, the hardness of coated surfaces found to be 3H, 3H, 2H, 2H for walnut, beech, fir and cedar, respectively. At 20% grape seed oil/varnish coatings, all coating surfaces show H level range. For cross hatch experiments, marginally similar trend was observed with 10-and 20% grape seed oil/varnish and 10% sesame oil/varnish emulsion coated wood species. Moreover, it was ranked 2 for fir, ranked 3 for beech and ranked 4 for cedar wood at 20% sesame oil/varnish emulsion coatings. It is noticeable that a correlation was observed between cross cut and surface scratch resistance properties with coated surfaces.

Influence of Surface Characteristics of Different Implant Abutment Materials on Growth of Porphyromonas Gingivalis

The purpose of the present study was to determine the surface physicochemical properties of polished implant abutment materials and to investigate their relationship with the growth of Porphyromonas gingivalis in vitro. Four groups of the most popular prosthetic materials were used in this study: titanium alloy (Ti), yttria-stabilized zirconium oxide (3Y-TZP), polyether ether ketone (PEEK) composite, and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The plate shape specimens (10 × 10 × 0.5 mm) were polished by applying sequential mechanical polishing. Measurements of water contact angle (WCA), surface free energy (SFE) and roughness were performed. Also, the growth of P.gingivalis was measured via counting colony-forming units to milliliter (CFUs/mL). The WCA means were significantly different among all groups, and the highest hydrophilicity was observed on the PEEK, whereas the lowest on PMMA surface. All measured surfaces had similarly low SFE values, but Ti, 3Y-TZP, and PEEK demonstrated more expressed polar parts. All means of roughness were beyond the micro-level and were lower than 0.2 µm. The highest CFUs/mL was assessed on the PMMA and it was significantly different from others, whereas the lowest was on 3Y-TZP. The surface roughness had a significant impact on CFUs/mL growth.

Recent Advanced on the MXene–Organic Hybrids: Design, Synthesis, and Their Applications

With increasing research interest in the field of flexible electronics and wearable devices, intensive efforts have been paid to the development of novel inorganic-organic hybrid materials. As a newly developed two-dimensional (2D) material family, MXenes present many advantages compared with other 2D analogs, especially the variable surface terminal groups, thus the infinite possibility for the regulation of surface physicochemical properties. However, there is still less attention paid to the interfacial compatibility of the MXene-organic hybrids. To this end, this review will briefly summarize the recent progress on MXene-organic hybrids, offers a deeper understanding of the interaction and collaborative mechanism between the MXenes and organic component. After the discussion of the structure and surface characters of MXenes, strategies towards MXene-organic hybrids are introduced based on the interfacial interactions. Based on different application scenarios, the advantages of MXene-organic hybrids in constructing flexible devices are then discussed. The challenges and outlook on MXene-organic hybrids are also presented.