Statistical evaluation of influence of viscosity and content of polymer on dipyridamole release from floating matrix tablets: A technical note

Conclusion  The present investigation described the influence of viscosity and content of HPMC on dipyridamole release using 3² full factorial design. All formulations had desired floating lag time (<2 minutes) regardless of viscosity and content of polymeric matrices. Results of multiple regression analysis indicate that both factors significantly affect the diffusion exponent (n), release rate constant (k), and percentage drug release at 1 hour, 4 hours, 6 hours, and 12 hour, (P<.05). Mechanism of drug release was found to be anomalous type to case-II transport depending upon the viscosity and content of polymer. It was found that content of HPMC had a dominant role in the initial phase of drug release, while in the later phase viscosity of HPMC Predominated. Published: August 24, 2007     

Formulation and development of floating capsules of celecoxib: In vitro and in vivo evaluation

The objective of the present study was to develop a hydrodynamically balanced system for celecoxib as single-unit floating capsules. Various grades of low-density polymers were used for formulation of these capsules. The capsules were prepared by physical blending of celecoxib and the polymer in varying ratios. The formulation was optimized on the basis of in vitro buoyancy and in vitro release in citrate phosphate buffer pH 3.0 (with 1% sodium lauryl sulfate). Capsules prepared with polyethylene oxide 60K and Eudragit RL100 gave the best in vitro percentage release and were used as the optimized formulation. By fitting the data into zero-order, first-order, and Higuchi models, we concluded that the release followed zero-order kinetics, as the correlation coefficient (R value) was higher for zero-order release. For gamma scintigraphy studies, celecoxib was radiolabeled with technetium-99m by the stannous reduction method. To achieve the maximum labeling efficiency the process was optimized by studying the reaction at various pH conditions and stannous concentration levels. The radiolabeled complex was added to the optimized capsule, and dissolution studies were performed to ensure that there was no leaching of radioactivity from the capsules. Gamma imaging was performed in rabbits to assess the buoyancy of the optimized formulation. The optimized formulation remained buoyant during 5 hours of gamma scintigraphic studies in rabbits.     

Gastroretentive drug delivery system of carbamazepine: Formulation optimization using simplex lattice design: A technical note

Summary and Conclusion  An attempt was made to develop a gastroretentive drug delivery system of carbamazepine using HPMC, sodium bicarbonate, and EC as matrixing agent, gas-generating agent, and floating enhancer, respectively. A simplex lattice design was applied to investigate the combined effect of 3 formulation variables (ie, amount of HPMC (X ₁), EC (X ₂), and sodium bicarbonate (X ₃). Results of multiple regression analysis indicated that low levels ofX ₁ andX ₂ and a high level ofX ₃ should be used to manufacture the tablet formulation with desired in vitro floating time and dissolution. Formulation S3 was selected as a promising formulation and was found stable at 40°C temperature and 75% RH for 3 months. Published: February 9, 2007     

FEM simulation of tapered cap floating sleeve antenna for hepatocellular carcinoma therapy

ABSTRACT

Malignant liver tumors are the sixth most common and deadly cancer in the world and the third most common cause of cancer mortality. Hepatocellular carcinoma (primary liver cancer) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide with one of the highest mortality rates. Microwave ablation (MWA) is a new, promising, and multidisciplinary technology designed to destroy unhealthy tissue of various natures by radiating electromagnetic waves with microwave antennas. The finite element method (FEM) has been used in the present work to generate the simulated models of tapered cap floating sleeve antenna for validation of its design concepts, because FEM allows modeling of complex geometries that cannot be solved by analytical methods or finite difference models. The performances have been evaluated in terms of objective metrics, ablation zone, antenna matching, power absorption and SAR pattern.     

Grasses cope with high‐contrast ecosystem conditions in the large outflow of the Banhine wetlands,Mozambique

Ecosystems with highly pulsed water supply must be better understood as climate change may increase frequency and severity of intense storms, droughts and floods. Here we collected data over 3 years (2016–2018) in the episodic wetland outflow channel (Aluize), Banhine National Park, in which the system state changed from dry to wet to dry. Field sampling included vegetation records, small‐scale vegetation zoning, the seed bank and water and soil quality. The same main plant species were found in both dry and wet conditions across the riverbed of the outflow channel. We found only very few diaspores of plants in the soil after prolonged drought. In the subsequent flooded state, we examined very dense vegetation on the water surface, which was dominated by the gramineous species Paspalidium obtusifolium. This species formed a compact floating mat that was rooted to the riverbed. The Cyperaceae Bolboschoenus glaucus showed high clonal growth in the form of root tubers, which likely serve as important food reservoir during drought. Soil and water analyses do not indicate a limitation by nutrients. We outline how resident people may change the plant community structure with an increasing practice of setting fire to the meadows in the dried‐up riverbed to facilitate plant regrowth as food for their livestock.     

Shallow moving structures promote marine invader dominance

Global increases in urban development have resulted in severe habitat modification in many estuaries. Most are now dominated by artificial structures, which might have a myriad of effects on native species. The provision of extra hard substrata presents additional free space, and recent research suggests non-indigenous epifauna may be able to exploit these artificial structures (particularly pontoons) more effectively than native species. The early development of fouling assemblages was compared on settlement plates attached to fixed or moving experimental structures at depths of 0.5 m and 2 m. Invertebrate invaders as a group were disproportionately more numerous on shallow, moving plates (essentially floating surfaces) than on deeper plates, whereas native epifauna were less numerous than invaders in all treatments. Importantly, however, individual invasive species showed differing effects of movement and depth. Future management strategies should take into account the potential for shallow, moving structures to enhance invader dominance and strongly consider using fixed structures to reduce opportunities for invaders.     

Effects of clonal integration,nutrients and cadmium on growth of the aquatic macrophyte Pistia stratiotes

许多湿地同时遭受养分和有毒金属的污染,其植被多数为克隆植物。我们假设,富养化和克隆整合可以通过增加植物的生长来提高对有毒金属污染的植物修复能力,即使在毒性胁迫环境下也是如此。为验证此假说,我们将常见、广布的匍匐茎漂浮植物大薸(Pistia stratiotes L.)的单个分株种植在两种不同的养分条件下和两种镉污染处理(无镉或含0.6 mg L⁻¹ 的镉)中42天。通过保持或切断母株与其后代分株之间的连接来维持或阻止克隆整合,并通过保留或移除切断后的后代分株来控制克隆内竞争的有无。由于高养分条件下克隆后代分株的数量增加了一倍,因此镉处理下大薸的生物量在高养分条件下几乎是在低养分条件下的两倍。切断匍匐茎连接对整个克隆(母株和后代分株的总和)的生物量没有影响。切断连接后去除后代分株对镉污染下母株的生物量没有显著的影响,但却显著增加了无镉污染下母株的生物量。这些研究结果支持富养化可以提高水生植物对有毒金属污染的修复能力这一假说,但并不支持克隆整合有利于植物修复的假说。因此,水生植物(如大薸)可能有助于对同时遭受有毒金属和养分污染的湿地进行修复,但克隆片段化对植物的这种修复能力可能没有显著影响。     

Floating mist nets: a technique for capturing birds in flooded habitat

ABSTRACT.   Banding birds is essential for detailed demographic studies of avian populations. Mist nets are a widely used, effective method of capturing birds for banding, but are difficult to use under certain conditions. While conducting a demographic study of Southwestern Willow Flycatchers ( Empidonax traillii extimus ), rising reservoir levels flooded large tracts of flycatcher breeding habitat and made traditional mist-netting techniques impossible to use. In response, we devised a technique for capturing birds over deep water using mist nets suspended between poles kept afloat on compact buoys. In 2005, we used this technique to safely capture 17 Willow Flycatchers that could not have been captured by any other means, and over 40 additional passerines were incidentally captured with no injuries occurring. This versatile apparatus was simple to build and employ, and capture success was similar to that over dry land.     

Synthesis of phosphatidylserine by base exchange in Triton-insoluble floating fractions from rat cerebellum

Phosphatidylserine (PS), which is synthesized in mammalian tissues by the exchange between free serine and the nitrogen bases present in membrane glycerophospholipids, is strictly required for protein kinase C (PKC) activity. PKC, as other molecules involved in signal transduction, is present in lipid rafts, considered as a platform for molecular signaling. Membrane microdomains enriched in components of rafts can be isolated on the basis of their insolubility in Triton X-100 at 4 degrees C and their low density in sucrose density gradient. This study demonstrates the existence of serine base exchange enzyme (SBEE) in Triton-insoluble floating fractions containing associated PKC. Using two fractions of detergent-resistant membranes from rat cerebellum, we observed a correlation between the level of SBEE activity and that of membrane-associated PKC. This suggests that SBEE, synthesizing PS in the binding area for PKC, participates to signal transduction. The capability of SBEE to utilize not only serine but also ethanolamine, as free exchanging base, suggests a mechanism for modulating in loco PS concentration.