SOLUBILITY ENHANCEMENT OF LURASIDONE HYDROCHLORIDE BY PREPARING SMEDDS

Objective: The objective of the study was to enhance solubility of Lurasidone HCl, an atypical antipsychotic drug, by formulating self-micro emulsifying drug delivery system (SMEDDS) and its characterization.Methods: Solubility study of Lurasidone hydrochloride (LH) was carried out in various surfactants, co surfactants and oils. Pseudo ternary phase diagrams were constructed to identify the self-micro emulsification region. Screening was done so as to determine the proper combination of components. Based on this, LH SMEDDS were prepared using Cremophor RH40 (surfactant), Soluphor P (co-surfactant) and Capmul MCM (oil). The preconcentrate SMEDDS were evaluated for clarity(visual), precipitation, % transmittance, robustness to dilution, freeze thawing, particle size distribution and zeta potential and adsorbed SMEDDS were evaluated for drug content, flow properties, in-vitro dissolution and ex-vivo diffusion studies.Results: The optimized LH SMEDDS composed of 14% Cremophor RH40, 68% Soluphor P, 18% Capmul MCM with a particle size of 3.95 µm and zeta potential of more than 50 mV showing 80% dissolution in 60 min.Conclusion: The results of this study prove that SMEDDS help in improving the solubility, dissolution and bioavailability of lurasidone hydrochloride.Â

Image Steganography with Dual Layer Security Using Fragment and Unite Technique

At the present time where a regularly increasing number of data is made in different structures, kept and transferred, online security is the most vigorous factor. Different ways such as Cryptography, Steganography and Digital Watermarking are used to defend the data. The proposed framework gives additional dual layer of security as Cryptography and Steganography have been combined. Here data will be encrypted by using Encryption Algorithm AES. Then the encrypted data is embedded into a system’s Defaulting image using least significant byte LSB Algorithm. Steganographed Default image is then fragmented into uniform parts and gets unite into reverse sequence using Uniform Fragment and Unite Technique. Reverse Steganographed Default image is then hidden (unseen) into another image. The proposed framework has summarized the goal to be safety and security factors

NOVEL ORAL DELIVERY OF IBUPROFEN SOLUTION IN HARD GELATIN CAPSULES

Objective: The primary objective of the project was to formulate and evaluate hard capsule containing the solution of ibuprofen. It also included enhancement of solubility of ibuprofen in hydrophilic solvents to obtain a unit dose capsule acceptable for human consumption. Methods: Solution of ibuprofen was developed by the salt formation of partial drug using potassium hydroxide in PEG 600 and water. The solution was encapsulated in hard capsules with band sealing. The final formulation was evaluated for uniformity of weight, disintegration, drug content and stability. The dissolution profile was compared with that of available marketed tablets and softgels. Results: The capsules were evaluated and found compliant as per specifications mentioned in general monograph of capsules in IP 2014. The uniformity of weight of the batch of capsules was found to be 734.8 mg (±0.58). The disintegration time of these capsules was observed to be 4.45 min. The drug content was found to be 100.03% and the product is stable over three months of test period under room temperature as well as accelerated conditions. The dissolution profile showed that softgels take longer time to release the drug whereas marketed tablets showed a dissolution profile comparable with that of formulated capsules. Conclusion: The developed capsule is a unit dose of liquid containing solubilized ibuprofen delivering the drug directly into the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). These are newer solid oral dosage forms with higher patient compliance and ease in manufacturing. They require lesser steps and manufacturing area when compared to the manufacturing of compressed tablets

Image Forensics for Forgery Detection using Contrast Enhancement and 3D Lighting

Nowadays the digital image plays an important role in human life. Due to large growth in the image processing techniques, with the availability of image modification tools any modification in the images can be done. These modifications cannot be recognized by human eyes. So Identification of the image integrity is very important in today’s life. Contrast and brightness of digital images can be adjusted by contrast enhancement. Move and paste type of images are Created by malicious person, in which contrast of one source image is enhanced to match the other source image. Here in this topic contrast enhancement technique is used which aimed at detecting image tampering has grown in different applications area such as law enforcement, surveillance. Also with the contrast enhancement, we propose an improved 3D lighting environment estimation method based on a more general surface reflection model. 3D lighting environment is an important clue in an image that can be used for image forgery detection. We intend to employ fully automatic face morphing and alignment algorithms. Also we intend to use face detection method to detect the face existence and 3D lighting environment estimation to check originality of human faces in the image

Formulation, Evaluation, and Pharmacodynamic Investigation of Ziprasidone-b-cyclodextrin In-Situ Nasal Gel

Ziprasidone hydrochloride is an atypical antipsychotic agent with an anti-schizophrenic activity having less solubility and less bioavailability. The nasal route acts as a promising delivery route for CNS targeting drugs due to improved bioavailability and can reduce peripheral side effects. The main aim of the study is to prepare an in-situ nasal gel of ziprasidone-β-cyclodextrin for improvement in the bioavailability of the drug. The in-situ gel was optimized using box-Behnken design. The optimized formulation was evaluated for homogeneity, viscosity, gelation temperature, mucoadhesive strength, in-vitro permeation studies. The pharmacodynamic activity of in-situ nasal gel was checked using the locomotor activity model. According to the statistical analysis of the design expert software, all the models were found significant. The pharmacodynamic investigation of the cyclodextrin mediated in situ nasal gel showed improvement in drug activity compared to a drug, drug-complex given by oral route indicating the nasal delivery of antipsychotic drug improves its effect

Effect of inclusion of citric acid and Lutrol® F-68 on ziprasidone and β-cyclodextrin complexation: Characterization, solubility and dissolution studies

Ziprasidone (ZPR) is an antipsychotic agent having less solubility. It is used for the treatment of schizophrenia. Complexation of hydrophobic drugs with cyclodextrins leads to enhanced solubility and dissolution. In this study, inclusion complexes were prepared by different methods, using ZPR, β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), and different auxiliary agents like hydrophilic polymer and hydroxy acid (1:1:0.5) to improve the aqueous solubility. The characterization of the ternary complexes was carried out using solubility study, Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and in vitro dissolution studies. DSC, XRD, and FT-IR studies showed interaction in drug, cyclodextrin, and auxiliary agents which are confirmed by enhancement of solubility and dissolution. Spray-dried dispersion showed less crystallinity and higher solubility as compared to the kneading method for both citric acid and Lutrol® F-68. Thus, the investigation concludes that the presence of the auxiliary agent has a synergistic action on complexation with cyclodextrin, which helps to modify the physicochemical properties of the drug

The Rise of Extracellular Vesicles as New Age Biomarkers in Cancer Diagnosis: Promises and Pitfalls

Cell-to-cell interactions in the intricate microenvironment of tissue have a significant impact on the progression of cancer at every stage. Both cancer cells and stromal cells are responsible for the secretion of soluble chemical compounds as well as membrane-encased components, which both influence and govern the cell-to-cell interactions within the micro-environment of tumor cells. These membrane structures are identified as extracellular vesicles (EVs), which include exosomes and microvesicles. These nanosized vesicles are made up of bilayered proteolipids and have dimensions ranging from 50 to 1000 nm. It has been speculated that extracellular vesicles that originate from cancer cells perform a variety of functions in the development and progression of cancer which may involve the transport of regulatory materials, such as oncogenic proteins between nearby cells and to distant biological locations. In addition, their level in the serum of cancer patients is noticeably higher than those of healthy controls. The release of extracellular vesicles into the extracellular space is a continual process in both healthy and diseased cells. These extracellular vesicles hold molecular signatures that are defining features of health as well as disease. And hence, the EVs present in biological fluids provide unparalleled and noninvasive access to the necessary molecular details about the health status of the cells. Recent discoveries about these complex extracellular organelles have accelerated the discovery of cancer-specific biological markers as well as the development of unique diagnostic tools based on extracellular vesicles. In this mini-review, we aim to highlight the hopes and hypes associated with the applications of extracellular vesicles as biomarkers for cancer diagnosis