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A sustained-release tablet formulation should ideally have a proper release profile insensitive to moderate changes in tablet hardness that is usually encountered in manufacturing. The matrix tablets were prepared by wet granulation method which is now days considered a cost effective and simple method of manufacturing. It is considered as an appropriate method for hygroscopic and thermolabile substances. Four formulations of different polymer percentages were formulated, (F1-F4).The formulated tablets were characterized by hardness, friability, thickness, weight variation and in vitro drug release. The formulated tablets had acceptable physicochemical characters. The quantity of pioglitazone present in the tablets and the release medium were estimated by a simple, rapid and validated UV method. The dissolution results show that increased amount of polymer resulted in reduced and extended drug release. This formulation may provide an alternative for oral controlled delivery of pioglitazone and be helpful in the future treatment of primary normoreactive types of inflammation. Keywords: Ibuprofen, HPMC, Wet granulation method, Dissolution

The oral delivery of drugs with a narrow absorption window in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) is often limited by poor bioavailability with conventional dosage forms due to incomplete drug release and short residence time at the site of absorption. There have been many efforts to improve oral drug bioavailability and therapeutic efficacy and patient compliance. A variety of controlled-release oral delivery systems have been developed to meet these needs. Gastroretentive drug delivery systems (GRDDS) such as bioadhesive or mucoadhesive, high-density, expandable and floating, superporous hydrogels and magnetic systems have the potential to achieve retention of the dosage form in the upper gastrointestinal tract (GIT) that can be sufficient to ensure complete solubilization of the drugs in the stomach fluids, followed by subsequent absorption in the stomach or proximal small intestine. In Present work develop a gastroretentive sustained release dosage form of a water-soluble drug, Verapamil hydrochloride, from a completely aqueous environment avoiding the use of any organic solvent, thus releasing the drug for a prolonged duration of time. The effects of factors like concentration of oil, drug: polymer ratio and alginate: pectin ratio on drug entrapment efficiency, floating lag time and morphology and drug release was studied. Keywords:Verapamil hydrochloride, Controlled release, Floating beads, Evaluation

Multiple specialists are involved in the treatment of esophageal and gastric cancers in order to improve patient outcomes. Starting with the initial staging evaluation, a multidisciplinary team approach ensures that all members are on board with the treatment strategy. Chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and palliative therapies (endoscopic and surgical) are frequently used in the treatment of esophageal and gastric cancer, and close communication between professionals in these domains is required to guarantee effective clinical decision making. The Esophageal and Gastric Multidisciplinary Clinic at the University of Colorado was established to bring together all experts involved in the treatment of these diseases for a weekly meeting in order to provide patients with coordinated, tailored, and patient-centered care. This article explains the components and advantages of establishing a multidisciplinary programme to treat esophageal cancer patients. Key words:Esophageal, Gastro- esophageal cancer, Multi-modelling, Treatment

Rapid development of multidrug-resistant HIV strains, poor bioavailability, and cumulative toxicities have hampered the early effectiveness of combinatorial antiretroviral therapy (cART) in the treatment of HIV infection, necessitating the development of alternative antiretroviral drug discovery strategies and additional therapeutic agents with novel action modes or targets. From this standpoint, we first evaluate current antiretroviral medication discovery and optimization methodologies, using cases from the recent literature as examples. The advent of the substrate envelope concept as a new technique for overcoming HIV drug resistance is highlighted, as is the discovery of phosphate ester-based prodrugs as a means of improving HIV inhibitors' water solubility. Present review focus on HIV Life Cycle, Anti-HIV Drug Discovery, Classes of currently approved drugs, Summary of the possible HIV targets and interventions, Anti-HIV Drugs Development, Perspectives that could inspire future anti-HIV drug discovery.

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). Although surgery is the first-line treatment, BCC can lead in some cases, to a metastatic or advanced form, requiring targeted combination therapies. The Hedgehog (Hh) signalling pathway is the major pathway associated with the formation of basal carcinoma tumorigenesis, thus, targeting this is a promising therapeutic approach. Some Hh inhibitors have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), such as vismodegib and sonidegib. However, both of these showed limited effectiveness against resistant tumors. Therefore, an essential understanding of the mechanisms involved in the Hh signaling pathway is necessary to improve tumor inhibition.

Skin cancers are one of the most widespread and complex forms of the disease, resulting in very high mortality rates across the world. The current treatments available for skin cancer include chemotherapy, surgery, radiotherapy, etc. The selected treatment options for skin cancer are usually decided based on the condition of a patient and the type of skin cancer. The effectiveness of skin cancer therapy is still limited because of poor penetrability of the drug into stratum corneum or lesions, low efficacy, required higher concentration of the active pharmaceutical ingredients to reach a therapeutic effect. Besides, low bioavailability at the site of action, the requirement of high dose, causes skin irritation, which significantly hinders the drug absorption through the stratum corneum. Thus, nanocarriers have been used to bypass the problems associated with conventional anti-cancer drug delivery systems. In the current scenario, nanotechnology-based therapy has shown great potential in the management of skin cancer, and these can be used for a more efficient drug delivery system to treat cancers. In this review article, the information on different nanocarrier systems for skin cancer has been elucidated. Moreover, the various nanoparticulate strategies and their effectiveness to treat skin cancer have been discussed.

This study reports structural characterization of liquid crystalline (LC) phase, formed through water driven transition in a nonionic microemulsion (ME). ME was formulated with α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol succinate (TPGS) – Span 80 (3:1) as surfactant mixture and Captex 355 (a medium chain triglyceride) as oil phase. The role of surfactant mixture was elucidated by small angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments. SANS analyses revealed that, at a specific ratio, TPGS micelles and Span 80 vesicles interacted to form ellipsoidal nanostructures. The ME transformed to LC phase during progressive water addition. Subsequent structural changes were investigated by polarized light microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, texture profile and rheological analyses. Transition occurred with 19–24% water addition and it was accompanied with; (a) change of isotropic ME to birefringent LC phase, and (b) improvement in the rheological properties. Interestingly, the transition downshifted to 9.8% water level upon loading the oil phase with 20 mg/ml paclitaxel (PLX). LC structures remained stable at physiological temperature up to 72 h and offered controlled release of PLX under artificial sink conditions. We suggest that in situ development of LC phase can be explored to create long-residing intra-muscular depot formulations.

Chlorin e6 is a chlorine-based porphyrin containing photosensitizer mainly used for the therapy in cancers like neck and head, early-stage lung cancer, and topical skin cancers. The present study provides a comprehensive account of a highly sensitive, precise, and validated method for the quantification of chlorin e6 in its liposomal formulation. This method is based on the systemic study of the fluorescence action of chlorin e6 in acetonitrile solvent. This experiment follows the analytical method validation parameters as per the International Conference on Harmonization (ICH). Chlorin e6 molecule exhibits strong fluorescence at a wavelength of emission 665 nm, upon excitation at a wavelength of excitation 400 nm in acetonitrile. The linearity of the fluorescence concentration plot was observed over a concentration range of 50 to 1000 ng/mL. The developed and validated method was successfully applied for the estimation of encapsulation efficiency in in-house developed stealth liposomes. Also, stock solution stability and photodegradation study of chlorin e6 were further conducted.

Development of nanomedicines has become an attractive strategy in the delivery of therapeutics to overcome the problems associated with conventional therapy especially for cancer, skin infections, tuberculosis, and other long-term disorders. Preparation of nanocarriers includes multiple constituents and multiple steps which need to be understood in-depth. It is expected that the application of quality by design (QbD) approach can overcome the existing issues related to nanoformulation development and can provide wider acceptability for regulatory agencies to form constructive guidelines for their approval. The objective of QbD in nanocarrier drug delivery is to derive meaningful product specifications based on safety, efficacy, and clinical performance. It helps in investigation of variable factors with respect to materials and process involved and ultimately enhances the process capability with minimum product variability. This book chapter has compiled various QbD components which can be easily implemented for preparation and optimization of robust nanoformulations.

Karen Tei Yamashita’s novel, Through the Arc of the Rain Forest (1990), represents environmental, ethical, and economic dilemmas in an age of planetary environmental crisis, depicting clashes between predatory market forces and indigenous Amazonian indigenous communities. Yamashita’s use of magical realism simultaneously represents the value-laden ethos of a pre-literate society, even as it arguably portrays them as defenseless against the onslaught of capitalism’s encroachments. This paper enquires if magical realism has, in the twenty-first century, exhausted itself, reduced to an exaggerated narrative trope that caters to the perceived cultural otherness and differences of those residing outside non-metropolitan borders for the benefit of cosmopolitan audiences. Analyzing Yamashita’s advocacy of lesser-valorized modes of communication and relationships between humans that include spiritual kinship and therapeutic touch, this paper argues that Yamashita broadens the scope of magical realism by drawing attention to modes of living that by their very simplicity and pure-heartedness appear to present a way of life that is infused with magic, but are in essence only a celebration of ethical living. This reading examines the capacities and limitations of magical realism as an innovative form of literary experimentation, capable of social and environmental change.

In this experiment, we examined the modulatory effects of testosterone on the parkinsonism-inducing drug 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1, 2, 3, 6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) in two strains of mice. Orchidectomized male CD-1 and C57/BI mice were implanted with either empty Silastic capsules or capsules containing testosterone and subsequently treated with MPTP. A small area of the corpus striatum was removed for determination of dopamine (DA) content, whereas the remainder was superfused and used to measure L-DOPA (5 μM)-evoked DA release. In animals treated with MPTP, L-DOPA-evoked DA release was reduced significantly in CD-1 mice, but not in C57/BI mice, treated with testosterone. No differences in L-DOPA-stimulated DA release between MPTP- versus vehicle-treated mice was observed in either the CD-1 or C57/BI mice receiving empty Silastic capsules. Corpus striatum DA contents were more severely depleted in the MPTP-sensitive C57/BI versus the CD-1 mouse strain irrespective of hormone treatment. These results confirm previous results demonstrating differences in these two mouse strains in response to the neurotoxic effects of MPTP upon corpus striatum DA content. More interestingly, they show an important differential modulatory effect of testosterone upon L-DOPA-evoked DA release as a function of MPTP treatment and indicate that testosterone significantly alters the neurotoxic effects of MPTP in the CD-1 mouse.