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Postage stamps are a significant visual text of an issuing state. In 1947, British India was divided into independent states of India and Pakistan. The successive new regimes in both countries got the freedom to design, print, and circulate the official visual iconography through postage stamps as a symbol of sovereignty for its citizens and the world community. This article explores how India and Pakistan visualized the narrative of national identity and discourse on development through postage stamps in the first two decades of their independence. The article does not intend to retell the narrative of the postcolonial nation-building process in the subcontinent. Instead, the objective is to introduce postage stamps as a primary visual resource for exploring the contours of public history of India and Pakistan by arguing that stamps retain its importance as excellent visual archives for postcolonial scholarly analysis in the age of new media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was focussed on development of curcumin loaded solid binary lipid nanoparticles (C-SBLNs) to ameliorate stability, uptake and therapeutic potential of curcumin during inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). C-SBLNs with nano-size range (210.56 ± 41.22 nm) and high entrapment efficiency (83.12 ± 6.57%) were prepared by solvent emulsification evaporation method using binary lipids i.e. stearic acid and tristearin after optimizing various formulation and process variables. Physicochemical characterization of C-SBLNs by ATR-FTIR confirmed drug entrapment whereas thermal and pXRD study corroborated loss of crystallinity of drug into C-SBLNs. Lyophilized C-SBLNs were found to be spherical shaped with good gastrointestinal stability and prolonged drug release up to 24 h. Optimized C-SBLNs formulation displayed significantly enhanced cellular uptake and localization in inflamed tissues during IBD. Oral administration of C-SBLNs in DSS induced colitis model revealed significant reduction in leucocyte infiltration, oxidative stress, pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α) secretion and maintenance of colonic structure similar to healthy animal group compared to curcumin. Thus, in vitro and preclinical findings of study clearly confirmed that C-SBLNs could be a stable and efficacious alternative platform for curcumin delivery with strong competence in IBD chemotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction/Aim: Alterations in extracellular glutamate levels have been previously found to contribute to cancer-induced bone pain (CIBP). Increased activity of system xc-, a cystine-glutamate membrane antiporter, has been previously implicated in our lab in these nociceptive behaviours. System xc- subunit xCT, is further positively regulated by signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3). In the current investigation, we hypothesized that DR-1–55-mediated inhibition of pSTAT3 will lead to decreased nociceptive behaviours in a validated xCT overexpression model of CIBP. Methods: Using a murine xenograft CIBP model, a high glutamate-releasing xCT/pSTAT3 overexpressing human breast cancer cell line (T47D clone) was injected into the distal epiphysis of the femur of female nude mice. Nociceptive behaviours were monitored through automated von Frey, dynamic weight bearing, and open field testing for the study duration. Three weeks after cell inoculation, a 14-day schedule of intraperitoneal injections of DR-1–55 or vehicle were administered. Results: In vitro, there were elevated levels of glutamate, IL-6, and IL- 1β exhibited in the T47D clone. These cells also showed significant nociceptive behaviours earlier than the T47D wild type (WT). Treatment with DR-1–55 significantly delayed the onset and severity of spontaneous and induced nociceptive behaviours, as seen with behavioural testing. Discussion/Conclusions: This study shows that targeting pSTAT3 may be a viable treatment when managing CIBP, and can be a molecule of interest in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]