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International Journal of Molecular... Mar 2024The second edition of the Special Issue entitled the "Application Progress of Liposomes in Drug Development" featured contributions predominantly focused on leveraging...
The second edition of the Special Issue entitled the "Application Progress of Liposomes in Drug Development" featured contributions predominantly focused on leveraging liposomes as enhancers and carriers in drug delivery in the context of cancer treatment, although this was not the initial intent of this Special Issue [...].
Topics: Liposomes; Drug Delivery Systems; Drug Carriers
PubMed: 38542423
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25063454 -
Drug Delivery Dec 2023Diseases affecting the esophagus are common. However, targeted drug delivery to the esophagus is challenging due to the anatomy and physiology of this organ. Current... (Review)
Review
Diseases affecting the esophagus are common. However, targeted drug delivery to the esophagus is challenging due to the anatomy and physiology of this organ. Current pharmacological treatment for esophageal diseases predominantly relies on the off-label use of drugs in various dosage forms, including those for systemic drug delivery (e.g. oral tablets, sublingual tablets, and injections) and topical drug delivery (e.g. metered dose inhaler, viscous solution or suspension, and endoscopic injection into the esophagus). In general, systemic therapy has shown the most efficacy but requires the use of high drug doses to achieve effective concentrations in the esophagus, which increases the risk of adverse effects and toxicity. Topical drug delivery has enormous potential in improving the way we treat patients with acute and chronic esophageal diseases, especially those requiring drugs that have low therapeutic index and/or significant adverse effects to non-targeted organs and tissues. This review will address the physiological, pathophysiological, and pharmaceutical considerations influencing topical drug delivery in the esophagus. The main conventional (e.g. liquid formulations, orodispersible tablets, lozenges, pastilles, troches, chewing gum) and innovative (e.g. stent-based, film-based, nanoparticulate-based) drug delivery approaches will be comprehensively discussed, along with the developments to improve their effectiveness for topical esophageal drug delivery. The translational challenges and future clinical advances of this research will also be discussed.
Topics: Humans; Drug Delivery Systems; Tablets; Esophageal Diseases; Administration, Inhalation
PubMed: 37344759
DOI: 10.1080/10717544.2023.2219423 -
Small (Weinheim An Der Bergstrasse,... Mar 2024Transdermal drug delivery systems based on physical principles have provided a stable, efficient, and safe strategy for disease therapy. However, the intelligent device... (Review)
Review
Transdermal drug delivery systems based on physical principles have provided a stable, efficient, and safe strategy for disease therapy. However, the intelligent device with real-time control and precise drug release is required to enhance treatment efficacy and improve patient compliance. This review summarizes the recent developments, application scenarios, and drug release characteristics of smart transdermal drug delivery systems fabricated with physical principle. Special attention is paid to the progress of intelligent design and concepts in of physical-based transdermal drug delivery technologies for real-time monitoring and precise drug release. In addition, facing with the needs of clinical treatment and personalized medicine, the recent progress and trend of physical enhancement are further highlighted for transdermal drug delivery systems in combination with pharmaceutical dosage forms to achieve better transdermal effects and facilitate the development of smart medical devices. Finally, the next generation and future application scenarios of smart physical-based transdermal drug delivery systems are discussed, a particular focus in vaccine delivery and tumor treatment.
Topics: Humans; Delayed-Action Preparations; Drug Liberation; Intelligence; Precision Medicine
PubMed: 37852939
DOI: 10.1002/smll.202306944 -
Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach,... Dec 2023Microporous annealed particle (MAP) scaffolds are injectable granular materials comprised of micron sized hydrogel particles (microgels). The diameter of these microgels...
Microporous annealed particle (MAP) scaffolds are injectable granular materials comprised of micron sized hydrogel particles (microgels). The diameter of these microgels directly determines the size of the interconnected void space between particles where infiltrating or encapsulated cells reside. This tunable porosity allows the authors to use MAP scaffolds to study the impact of spatial confinement (SC) on both cellular behaviors and the host response to biomaterials. Despite previous studies showing that pore size and SC influence cellular phenotypes, including mitigating macrophage inflammatory response, there is still a gap in knowledge regarding how SC within a biomaterial modulates immune cell recruitment in vivo in wounds and implants. Thus, the immune cell profile within confined and unconfined biomaterials is studied using small (40 µm), medium (70 µm), and large (130 µm) diameter spherical microgels, respectively. This work uncovered that MAP scaffolds impart regenerative wound healing with an IgG1-biased Th2 response. MAP scaffolds made with large microgels promote a balanced pro-regenerative macrophage response, resulting in enhanced wound healing with mature collagen regeneration and reduced inflammation levels.
Topics: Tissue Scaffolds; Microgels; Biocompatible Materials; Collagen; Wound Healing; Hydrogels
PubMed: 37721722
DOI: 10.1002/adma.202304049 -
Scientific Reports Aug 2023Colloidal silica grouting is a ground improvement technique capable of stabilizing weak problematic soils and achieving large reductions in soil hydraulic conductivities...
Colloidal silica grouting is a ground improvement technique capable of stabilizing weak problematic soils and achieving large reductions in soil hydraulic conductivities for applications including earthquake-induced liquefaction mitigation and groundwater flow control. In the conventional approach, chemical accelerants are added to colloidal silica suspensions that are introduced into soils targeted for improvement and the formation of a semi-solid silica gel occurs over time at a rate controlled by suspension chemistry and in situ geochemical conditions. Although the process has been extensively investigated, controlling the rate of gel formation in the presence of varying subsurface conditions and the limited ability of conventional methods to effectively monitor the gel formation process has posed practical challenges. In this study, a biomediated soil improvement process is proposed which utilizes enriched fermentative microorganisms to control the gelation of colloidal silica grouts through solution pH reductions and ionic strength increases. Four series of batch experiments were performed to investigate the ability of glucose fermenting microorganisms to be enriched in natural sands to induce geochemical changes capable of mediating silica gel formation and assess the effect of treatment solution composition on pH reduction behaviors. Complementary batch and soil column experiments were subsequently performed to upscale the process and explore the effectiveness of chemical, hydraulic, and geophysical methods to monitor microbial activity, gel formation, and engineering improvements. Results demonstrate that fermentative microorganisms can be successfully enriched and mediate gel formation in suspensions that would otherwise remain highly stable, thereby forgoing the need for chemical accelerants, increasing the reliability and control of colloidal silica grouting, enabling new monitoring approaches, and affording engineering enhancements comparable to conventional colloidal silica grouts.
Topics: Fermentation; Reproducibility of Results; Silica Gel; Suspensions; Soil
PubMed: 37648736
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-41402-z -
Trends in Biotechnology Apr 2024Cell-laden droplet microfluidics has revolutionized bulk biochemical analysis by offering compartmentalized microreactors for individual cells, but downstream operations...
Cell-laden droplet microfluidics has revolutionized bulk biochemical analysis by offering compartmentalized microreactors for individual cells, but downstream operations of regular aqueous droplets are limited. Hydrogel matrix can provide a rigid scaffold for long-term culture of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells, and can support several manipulations, facilitating subsequent high-throughput analysis of cellular heterogeneity.
Topics: Microgels; Microfluidics; Hydrogels; Cells, Immobilized
PubMed: 37953082
DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2023.10.010 -
Pharmaceutical Research Oct 2023The pharmaceutical industry involves handling of powders on a large scale for manufacturing of solid dosage forms such as tablets and capsules constituting about 85% of...
INTRODUCTION
The pharmaceutical industry involves handling of powders on a large scale for manufacturing of solid dosage forms such as tablets and capsules constituting about 85% of the dosage forms. During this manufacturing process, powders get electrostatically charged due to numerous particle-particle and particle-equipment wall collisions. Most of the pharmaceutical powders are insulators in nature and they accumulate charge for longer durations making it difficult to dissipate the generated charge. In this study, a surface modified blender has been used to analyze tribocharging in pharmaceutical powders.
METHODS
The surface modified blender has been fabricated using two types of materials, an insulator, and a conductor. The conductor or the metal arm induces charge of opposite polarity to that of the charge induced by the insulator arm and the overall charge on the powder decreases during the tumbling motion of the blender. Ibuprofen was used as the model drug and processed in aluminum, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), stainless steel, surface modified aluminum-PVC (Al-PVC) and surface modified stainless steel- PVC (SS-PVC) blender at 20% RH for different blending times such as 2, 10, 20, 30 and 40 min. To better understand the tribocharging phenomenon in surface modified V blenders, an experimentally validated computational model was developed using Discrete Element Method (DEM) modeling.
RESULTS
Significant reduction (> 50%) in electrostatic charge was observed for Ibuprofen using surface modified blenders in comparison to metal only and insulator only V blenders. Additionally, an identical charging trend was observed between the simulation and experimental data. CONCLUSION: It was established that careful selection of equipment materials could significantly reduce the electrostatic charging of pharmaceutical powders and DEM model could be a really useful tool in assessing the applicability of the modified V blenders.
Topics: Powders; Aluminum; Ibuprofen; Stainless Steel; Static Electricity; Technology, Pharmaceutical
PubMed: 37821767
DOI: 10.1007/s11095-023-03612-y -
Molecular Pharmaceutics Apr 2024Oral dosage forms are the most widely and frequently used formulations to deliver active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), due to their ease of administration and... (Review)
Review
Oral dosage forms are the most widely and frequently used formulations to deliver active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), due to their ease of administration and noninvasiveness. Knowledge of intragastric release rates and gastric mixing is crucial for predicting the API release profile, especially for immediate release formulations. However, knowledge of the intragastric fate of oral dosage forms to date is limited, particularly for dosage forms administered when the stomach is in the fed state. An improved understanding of gastric food processing, dosage form location, disintegration times, and food effects is essential for greater understanding for effective API formulation design. standard and controlled modeling has played a significant role in predicting the behavior of dosage forms . However, discrepancies are reported between and disintegration times, with these discrepancies being greatest in the fed state. Studying the fate of a dosage form is a challenging process, usually requiring the use of invasive methods, such as intubation. Noninvasive, whole body imaging techniques can however provide unique insights into this process. A scoping review was performed systematically to identify and critically appraise published studies using MRI to visualize oral solid dosage forms in healthy human subjects. The review identifies that so far, an all-purpose robust contrast agent or dosage form type has not been established for dosage form visualization and disintegration studies in the gastrointestinal system. Opportunities have been identified for future studies, with particular focus on characterizing dosage form disintegration for development after the consumption food, as exemplified by the standard Food and Drug Administration (FDA) high fat meal.
Topics: Humans; Administration, Oral; Stomach; Gastrointestinal Tract; Contrast Media; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Dosage Forms; Solubility; Tablets
PubMed: 38440796
DOI: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.3c01123 -
Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Aug 2023Continuous direct compression (CDC) of solid oral dosage forms requires materials exhibiting acceptable flow and compression properties. The desired active...
Continuous direct compression (CDC) of solid oral dosage forms requires materials exhibiting acceptable flow and compression properties. The desired active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) powder properties can be difficult to achieve through conventional particle engineering approaches, such as particle size and habit modification during crystallization. Co-processing of API with excipients can significantly improve the powder properties to overcome these difficulties. In this manuscript, performance of a co-processed API was evaluated in a continuous feeding and blending process using GEA ConsiGma® Continuous Dosing and Blending Unit (CDB1). The co-processed theophylline was generated via a methodology in which polymer was precipitated and coated the crystalline theophylline particles resulting in nearly spherical agglomerates. A range of drug loads (1-25% w/w), flow rates (15-40 kg/h) and blender speeds (220-400 rpm) were studied. The results demonstrated that the co-processed API can be successfully fed through a loss-in-weight feeder and blended with other excipients in a high shear blender to generate tablets with acceptable content uniformity at 1-25% w/w drug loads. This study supports that using co-processed API with enhanced powder properties is a promising approach to enable continuous manufacturing for APIs with challenging properties.
Topics: Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; Excipients; Powders; Theophylline; Pharmacy; Tablets; Particle Size; Drug Compounding; Technology, Pharmaceutical
PubMed: 36462708
DOI: 10.1016/j.xphs.2022.11.023 -
International Journal of Pharmaceutics Mar 2024Multiple-unit dosage forms prepared by compacting pellets offer important manufacturing and compliance advantages over pellet-filled capsules. However, compaction may...
Multiple-unit dosage forms prepared by compacting pellets offer important manufacturing and compliance advantages over pellet-filled capsules. However, compaction may negatively affect the release control mechanism of pellets, and subunits may not be readily available after intake. Application of a cushioning layer to the starting units is here proposed as a strategy to obtain tablets with satisfactory mechanical strength, rapid disintegration and maintenance of the expected release profile of individual subunits while avoiding the use of mixtures of pellets and excipients to promote compaction and limit the impact of the forces involved. Cushion-coating with PEG1500, a soft and soluble material, was proved feasible provided that the processing temperature was adequately controlled. Cushioned gastro-resistant pellets were shown to consolidate under relatively low compaction pressures, which preserved their inherent release performance after tablet disintegration. Adhesion problems associated with the use of PEG1500 were overcome by applying an outer Kollicoat® IR film. Through design of experiment (DoE), robustness of the proposed approach was demonstrated, and the formulation as well as tableting conditions were optimized. The tableted cushion-coated pellet systems manufactured would allow a relatively high load of modified-release units to be conveyed, thus setting out a versatile and scalable approach to oral administration of multiple-unit dosage forms.
Topics: Excipients; Delayed-Action Preparations; Drug Implants; Tablets; Administration, Oral
PubMed: 38316318
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2024.123874