American Journal of PharmTech Research

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors have shown to be effective in the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. These drugs generally belong to the Biopharmaceutical Classification System Class II or IV, indicating that their oral bioavailability is less due to its poor solubility, permeability, or both. Dasatinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor and the present study was aimed to overcome these limitations associated with it. Thus, a transdermal system comprising of the drug loaded into a self-microemulsifying drug delivery system was formulated. The study started by selecting the right combination of the oil (oleic acid), surfactant (Labrasol®), and cosurfactant (polyethylene glycol 400) by performing solubility and emulsification ability studies. The ternary phase diagrams were constructed to identify the microemulsion region. The liquid system was converted into an easy-to-handle gel form using 1% w/w Carbopol ETD 2020 as the gelling agent. The final system had a droplet size of 76.42 ± 1.2 nm, a narrow polydispersity index, and a high zeta potential. The thermodynamic stability studies, dispersibility and dilution tests proved that the formulation would be unaffected and would form the microemulsion instantaneously. In vitro dissolution confirmed close to 100% drug release could be obtained within 30 mins as opposed to the plain drug showing only 50 – 60 % release. In vitro permeability studies, revealed a 1.6-times enhancement in the permeation of the drug. Preparation of a self-microemulsifying drug delivery system and loading it into a topical gel could address the issues associated with the effective delivery of dasatinib.

A prospective observational study was conducted in a tertiary care teaching Hospital, to study the prevalence of superficial fungal infection and related risk factors through clinical diagnosis and to monitor the management of observed superficial fungal infections. Patients diagnosed with superficial fungal infections were selected for the study. Being familiar with the local epidemiology of fungal infections and knowledge of risk factors involved can guide use of antifungal drugs. Appropriate antifungal therapy improves outcomes. Tracking epidemiology helps to detect outbreaks and new risks. Data was collected from case sheets of the patients in a specially designed patient data collection form which include information on demographic characteristics viz. age, sex, clinical signs and symptoms, chief complaints of the patients, drugs used previously if any, drugs given etc. Data was analyzed to find out prevalence and risk factors.100 patients were included with age above 18 years, of which 46.6% were females and 53.4% were males. The most affected age group with superficial fungal infections was from 26-30 years in both males and females. Among all the causative organisms of superficial fungal infections, majority were caused by Tinea corporis (29%) followed by Tinea capitis (28%) and Tinea cruris (25%). Skin was the most affected site of superficial fungal infections followed by scalp, itching being the major symptom followed by redness at the site. In our study, farmers were the most affected socioeconomic group as the exposure of them to the causative organisms is greater.

This experiment, first developed for a NSF Novel Process Workshop, is a highly visual experiment in chemical engineering processes and experimentation. In addition, it the coating process is environmentally benign because it has essentially no volatile emissions. The object of the experiment is to place a protective coating on a pellets, tablets, and metal object. The metal object is coated by first heating in a hot air stream and then dipping the object into a fluidized bed of thermoplastic powder. This experiment can be used throughout the curriculum.  For recruitment at the precollege and freshman level the fluid motion of the gas and particles can be observed through the clear plastic walls of the fluidized bed.  Using brightly colored particles gives the fluid bed the look of an executive desk amusement.  Prospective students and freshman can also feel the water like quality of the bed using a rod or ruler.  Freshmen use the fluidized bed as an example of the engineering measurements of flow rate, temperature, pressure and coating thickness.  They design an experiment to determine the desired coating thickness by varying the dipping time and temperature of the object.