05. November 2016

Abstract The natural biopolymer chitin and its deacetylated product chitosan are found abundantly in nature as structural building blocks and are used in all sectors of human activities like materials science, nutrition, health care, and energy. Far from being fully recognized, these polymers are able to open opportunities for completely novel applications due to their exceptional properties which an economic value is intrinsically entrapped. On a commercial scale, chitosan is mainly obtained...

18. October 2016

ABSTRACT The goal in drug delivery research is to meet therapeutic needs relating to particular pathological conditions by developing new formulations. Research in the chronopharmacological field has demonstrated the importance of biological rhythms in drug therapy, and this has brought a new approach to the development of oral drug delivery systems. Chronotherapeutics is the discipline concerned with the delivery of drugs according to the intrinsic activities of a disease over a certain period...

21. June 2016

Abstract Protein stability is the most crucial factor in protein pharmaceutical preparations. Various techniques were applied for producing stable protein formulations such as spray-drying and freeze-drying. However, heating and freezing stresses are disadvantages for proteins using these methods, respectively. Accordingly, excipients have been used to preserve therapeutic effects of proteins during processing and for long period of time. Therefore, influences of Copovidone, Eudragit® RL-PO...

20. June 2016

AIM It is the aim of this study to synthesize hyaluronic acid (HA) derivatives bearing mucoadhesive properties and showing prolonged stability at pH 7.4 and under oxidative condition as liquid dosage form. METHODS HA was modified by thiolation with L-cysteine (HA-SH) and by conjugation with 2-mercaptonicotinic acid-L-cysteine ligand to obtain an S-protected derivative (HA-MNA). The polymers were characterized by determination of thiol group content and mercaptonicotinic acid content....

02. May 2016

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are bio-based nanomaterials typically derived from the acid hydrolysis of the most abundant natural polymer, cellulose. These nanomaterials have garnered significant interest due to their unique properties, such as uniform rod-like shape, high surface area, high strength, liquid crystalline behavior, tailored surface chemistry, biocompatibility, biodegradability, sustainability and non-toxic carbohydrate-based nature. More

27. March 2016

In “The Lives of a Cell”, L. Thomas restated a hitherto prosaic observation as a profound conjecture, i.e, that mitochondria - the earliest aerobic bacteria - may have “created” us as a ‘symbiont utilitarian layer’ for their survival. The same can be argued for the bacteria resident in the gastrointestinal system which, to put it bluntly, may have ‘created’ us in order to feed them. There are more bacteria in the human body (>500 species) than there are human cells. Most of...

21. February 2015