Gupta

Solubility is an important physicochemical factor affecting absorption of drug and its therapeutic effectiveness. Drugs having poor aqueous solubility present one of the major confronts better absorption for good bioavailability of such drugs. The purpose of this study was to prepare and characterize solid dispersions of the poorly water soluble antihypertensive agent valsartan with water soluble carriers such as Kolliphor P 407, Kolliphor P 188, Kolliwax GMS II, Kolliphor HS15, HPMC AS and Soluplus in proportions viz. 1:1, 1:3, 1:5 (Drug: Carrier) with addition of 2% SLS to improve its aqueous solubility and rate of dissolution by solvent evaporation technique. All the formulations showed marked improvement in the solubility behavior and improved drug release. From all the formulations  SD6 was found to be optimized formulation  using soluplus as carrier based on the solubility and dissolution studies. The results obtained showed that the aqueous solubility and rate of dissolution was significantly improved when formulated in solid dispersion as compare to pure drug.

A schematic representation showing different interactions of the dyes with silica gel and aqueous methanol which arise during the separation of curcumin, erythrosine and amaranth from their mixture has been proposed. Effect of foreign substances on the achieved separation has been examined and the limits of detection of the separated dyes have also been calculated. The proposed method is applicable for the identification of these dyes in food samples and separation in spiked sample. Densitographic representation of achieved separation has also been included.

Molecular markers are indispensable tools for identifying a particular sequence of DNA in a pool of unknown DNA. Use of Molecular markers are generally based on naturally occurring DNA polymorphism, which forms the basis for designing strategies to exploit for various purposes such as species identification, genetic diagnostics, characterization  of  transformants, study  of  genome  organization, germplasm characterization  and phylogenic analysis. There are various types of markers viz. morphological, biochemical and DNA based molecular markers. The molecular markers are selected for their appropriate purpose on the basis of high level of accuracy and reproducibility. The main properties which helps in choosing the most reliable marker are: Genetic abundance, level of polymorphism, locus-specificity, co-dominancy, technical demands, operational costs and many more. The DNA based molecular markers are again divided in to two i.e. hybridization based and PCR based molecular markers. RFLP belongs to the first non PCR based techniques and PCR based technique includes RAPD and AFLP. In this review, we discuss about the molecular markers with their merits and demerits. 

Oral route is still the preferred route of drug administration for majority of the population as it is non invasive and convenient but has some inherited flaws as certain patients like young children and geriatric patients have difficulty in swallowing. Recent trends are shifting toward design and development of a novel carrier system for existing drugs. Oral disintegrating films (ODF) play an eminent role, as it dissolves rapidly in the mouth and reaches directly into systemic circulation. Various methods have been used for formulating ODF, among which solvent casting is frequently used. The film consists of generally both hydrophilic and hydrophobic polymers and other suitable excipients which either dissolves or disperses rapidly in the oral cavity and releases the active ingredient. The present review is mainly focused on the formulation approaches, their evaluation and therapeutic benefits of ODF.

Overweight and obesity is one of the major health hazard, an epidemic of 21st century and increasing worldwide. Women tend to gain weight with progression of age. The present study aimed to compute changes in obesity related health risk like weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist hip ratio (WHR), visceral fat (VF) and percent body fat (PBF), physical activity level (PAL) and dietary intake in different age groups of  obese working women  in B.H.U (respondents). For this cross – sectional study was done on 200 respondents and they were selected by purposive sampling technique. Pre-tested and pre-designed questionnaire-cum interview schedule was used for data collection. Anthropometric measurements were taken by standard technique (Jelliffe, 1966). The values of PBF and VF were taken by Omron Body Composition Monitor, HBF 212. The relationship between obesity related health risk, PAL and dietary intake was determined in three age groups i.e. ≤ 35 years, 36 - 50 years and > 50 years. A gradual increase in obesity health risk i.e. height, weight, BMI and PBF was observed with the advancement of age but it is not so in case of WC, WHR and VF. The PAL value ranges between 1.40 – 1.99 and the mean physical activity score was 1.58 ± 0.11. The PAL values showed that majority of respondent’s falls in the category of sedentary lifestyle. The protein, carbohydrate, calcium, phosphorus and total fibre intake was higher in all the age group as recommended by recommended dietary allowances (RDA), 2010. Correlation between ages, obesity related health risk and nutrient intake was observed from the value of Pearson Correlation Coefficient (r).The age shows correlation with weight (r= 0.195, P < 0.01), BMI (r= 0.190, P < 0.01), WC (r= 0.74, P < 0.05) and PBF(r= 0.472, P < 0.001) and a negative correlation with calcium (r= - 0.178, P

The uterus is an organ of the female reproductive system. It is approximately the shape and size of the pear, located inside the pelvis. The bladder, uterus and bowel are supported by a hammock of muscles slung between the coccyx and pubic bone. If these tissues are weakened or damaged, the uterus can slip down in to the vagina which is known as uterine prolpase. It is estimated that the lifetime risk of requiring at least 1 operation to correct incontinence or prolapse is approximately 11%. Common causes of uterine prolpase include obesity, straining on the toilet and hormonal change after menopause. Treatment includes strengthening exercise of pelvic floor muscle. A vaginal pessary for uterine prolapsed during pregnancy was first used in 1949, it can be inserted to support the uterus and reduce the symptoms associated with the prolapsed. Surgery may be needed in many cases.

In the present study we have developed a non-effervescent gastro retentive dosage form containing pantoprazole sodium by emulsion solvent diffusion method. A 23 full factorial design was used for the optimization process and the various responses obtained were evaluated by fitting in the binomial equations. Formulations ERS 1-8 were made utilizing three independent variables such as amount of crospovidone (%), Eudragit®E100 (mg) and Eudragit®RS100 (mg) which were varied at low and high levels and are evaluated for percentage buoyancy, entrapment efficiency and cumulative drug release after 5 h in buffer pH 2.2. The experimental values of the optimized formulation ERS-O coincides well with the predicted values obtained from optimization technique. Design expert 9.0.3 predicts responses as % buoyancy of 75.04±0.05, % entrapment efficiency of 87.57±0.21 and cumulative drug release after 5 h of 97.93±0.15 which were close to the actual values validates the design. The optimized formulation were in size range 20-120 µm with spherical shape, internal hollow cavity and porous boundary wall, moreover only physical cross-linking occurred with zero order release pattern and the in vivo analysis through ethanol induced ulceration method gave better ulcer healing orally than the intravenous route.

The colon is the terminal part of the GIT which has gained increased importance not just for the delivery of the drugs for both local and systemic administration. The delivery of drug for the treatment of local diseases associated with the colon like Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, etc. but also for the systemic delivery of proteins, therapeutic peptides, anti-asthmatic drugs, antihypertensive drugs and anti-diabetic agents. To achieve successful colon targeted drug delivery, a drug need to be protected from degradation, release and absorption in the upper portion of the GI tract and then to be ensured abrupt or controlled release in the proximal colon and that system refers to delivery of drug in to lower part of the GI tract, mainly large intestine. When this is the most important delivery of those drug which are normally inactivated in the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). This review mainly compares the primary approaches for CDDS (Colon Specific Drug Delivery) namely prodrugs, pH and time dependent systems, and microbial triggered systems, which achieved limited success and had limitations as compared with newer CDDS namely pressure controlled colonic delivery capsules, CODESTM, and osmotic controlled drug delivery (ORDS-CT) which are unique in terms of achieving the in vivo site specificity, and feasibility of manufacturing process for the CDDS. These treatments could be more effective if it is possible for drug to be directly delivered to colon. This review article discusses introduction of colon, need and approaches of colonic drug delivery, factor effecting colonic transition, colonic diseases and the novel and emerging technologies for advanced colon targeting for site specific drug delivery to colon. It is a challenging area for future research and holds lots of promises for novel and efficient approach for targeted drug delivery system.

The need of the day is to produce the product that meets customer requirements. As pharmaceuticals are related to health care this should be vital part of industry to produce a product such as tablets, capsules, ointments, creams, gels and emulsions etc. with minimum variation satisfying the needs of customer. Customer requirements are translated into ‘Critical to Quality’ (CTQ) characteristics of the products that they are about to produce by the formulation scientists.  As example, hardness, thickness, uniformity of weight, assay, dissolution etc are CTQ characteristics of tablets, Content uniformity, viscosity, density are CTQ characteristics of a gel etc.  There are various sources of variation which can be monitored by the Quality by Design i.e., QbD approach. Process should be monitored and controlled by using statistical process control which includes six sigma approach, process capability and control charts. Some of the more frequently used indices are Cp and Cpk. Cp represents process capability while Cpk is the process capability index which are determined between USL and LSL which signifies upper specification limit and lower specification limit. Cpk of at least 1.33 is desired, and 1.5 is excellent and if there are not more than 3.4 defects per million units, then six sigma is achieved.

In present study, Brevicin produced from Brevibacillus borstelensis AG1 isolated from Marcha - a natural herbal cake of North East India was used to enhance the shelf life and microbial safety of orange juice. Food borne pathogens viz. Listeria monocytogenes MTCC 839, Bacillus subtilis CRI and Clostridium perfringens MTCC 1739were inoculated at the amount of 8.16, 8.13 and 8.18 log CFU/ml, respectively in orange juice to study the preservative effect of bacteriocin against them as compared to chemical preservative – sodium benzoate and commercial biopreservative i.e. nisin. Viable cells were counted periodically and a consistent reduction in number of viable cells of each tested pathogen was observed. Brevicin when tested was found antagonistic to most challengeable and serious food borne pathogens to control in processed fruit/vegetables products. Brevicin was found active over a wide pH range i.e. 3.0 to 11.0 and thermostable upto 100oC. It showed better preservative potential by reducing the pathogenic load of indicators in orange juiceas compared to control having maximum spoilage proving its potential as a natural preservative to enhance microbial safety and shelf life of different food items.