High performance thin-layer chromatography and in vitro cytotoxic studies on ethanol extract of Matricaria chamomilla L (Asteraceae) flowers

Purpose: To develop a high performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC procedure for quantitation of apigenin in ethanol extract of Matricaria chamomilla (Babunaj) flowers, and to evaluate the extract for in vitro cytotoxic effect on MCF-7 cell lines. Methods: Quantification of apigenin was carried out using a CAMAG TLC system. A combination of toluene, ethyl acetate and formic acid (4.5:3.5:0.2 v/v/v) was used as mobile phase, with densitometry detection at 336 nm. The HPTLC procedure was subjected to validation as per ICH guidelines. The cytotoxicity of the extract was assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Results: A sharp apigenin band at Rf of 0.51 was obtained, and the content of apigenin in the extract was 0.062 % w/w. The detection limit (LOD) and quantification limit (LOQ) were 0.19 and 0.57 ng/band, respectively. MTT assay results indicate that M. chamomilla was cytotoxic to Michigan Cancer Foundation-7 (MCF-7) cells, with half-maximal concentration (IC50) of 74 µg/mL. Conclusion: The developed HPTLC method is linear, precise, accurate and specific for the determination of apigenin. M. chamomilla exerts cytotoxic effect on MCF-7 cell line via induction of apoptosis

A prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial of an "embodied" virtual reality intervention for adults with low back pain

Adults with chronic low back pain, disability, moderate-to-severe pain, and high fear of movement and reinjury were recruited into a trial of a novel, automated, digital therapeutics, virtual reality, psychological intervention for pain (DTxP). We conducted a 3-arm, prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial comparing DTxP with a sham placebo comparator and an open-label standard care. Participants were enrolled for 6 to 8 weeks, after which, the standard care control arm were rerandomized to receive either the DTxP or sham placebo. Forty-two participants completed assessments at baseline, immediately posttreatment (6-8 weeks), 9-week, and 5-month follow-up. We found that participants in the DTxP group reported greater reductions in fear of movement and better global impression of change when compared with sham placebo and standard care post treatment. No other group differences were noted at posttreatment or follow-up. When compared with baseline, participants in the DTxP group reported lower disability at 5-month follow-up, lower pain interference and fear of movement post treatment and follow-up, and lower pain intensity at posttreatment. The sham placebo group also reported lower disability and fear of movement at 5-month follow-up compared with baseline. Standard care did not report any significant changes. There were a number of adverse events, with one participant reporting a serious adverse event in the sham placebo, which was not related to treatment. No substantial changes in medications were noted, and participants in the DTxP group reported positive gaming experiences

A prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial of an "embodied" virtual reality intervention for adults with low back pain

Adults with chronic low back pain, disability, moderate-to-severe pain, and high fear of movement and reinjury were recruited into a trial of a novel, automated, digital therapeutics, virtual reality, psychological intervention for pain (DTxP). We conducted a 3-arm, prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial comparing DTxP with a sham placebo comparator and an open-label standard care. Participants were enrolled for 6 to 8 weeks, after which, the standard care control arm were rerandomized to receive either the DTxP or sham placebo. Forty-two participants completed assessments at baseline, immediately posttreatment (6-8 weeks), 9-week, and 5-month follow-up. We found that participants in the DTxP group reported greater reductions in fear of movement and better global impression of change when compared with sham placebo and standard care post treatment. No other group differences were noted at posttreatment or follow-up. When compared with baseline, participants in the DTxP group reported lower disability at 5-month follow-up, lower pain interference and fear of movement post treatment and follow-up, and lower pain intensity at posttreatment. The sham placebo group also reported lower disability and fear of movement at 5-month follow-up compared with baseline. Standard care did not report any significant changes. There were a number of adverse events, with one participant reporting a serious adverse event in the sham placebo, which was not related to treatment. No substantial changes in medications were noted, and participants in the DTxP group reported positive gaming experiences

Processing of triplex-directed psoralen DNA interstrand crosslinks by recombination mechanisms

Gene targeting via homologous recombination (HR) is an important application in biotechnology and medicine. However, in mammalian cells HR is much less efficient than random integration. Triplex-forming oligonucleotides (TFOs) linked to DNA damaging agents (e.g. psoralen) can stimulate HR, providing the potential to improve gene therapy applications. To elucidate factors affecting TFO-directed psoralen interstrand crosslink (ICL)-induced recombination, we constructed a series of plasmids with duplicated supF reporter genes, each containing an inactivating deletion, to measure HR frequencies in mammalian cells. Our results indicated that TFO-directed ICL-induced recombination frequencies were higher in the plasmids with larger distances between duplicated supF genes than with a smaller separation distance. However, the position of the ICL relative to the reporter genes did not affect HR frequencies. Recombination spectra were altered by the distance between supF copies. Although single-strand annealing (SSA) recombinants were predominant in all plasmid substrates, the plasmid with the shortest interval (60 bp) revealed a significant proportion of gene conversions (GCs). GCs occurred exclusively in the gene containing the shortest deletion, regardless of the distance between supF genes, ICL position or deletion orientation. Our analyses indicated that SSA is the predominant mechanism of ICL processing of these substrates in mammalian cells

A prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial of an "embodied" virtual reality intervention for adults with low back pain

Adults with chronic low back pain, disability, moderate-to-severe pain, and high fear of movement and reinjury were recruited into a trial of a novel, automated, digital therapeutics, virtual reality, psychological intervention for pain (DTxP). We conducted a 3-arm, prospective, double-blind, pilot, randomized, controlled trial comparing DTxP with a sham placebo comparator and an open-label standard care. Participants were enrolled for 6 to 8 weeks, after which, the standard care control arm were rerandomized to receive either the DTxP or sham placebo. Forty-two participants completed assessments at baseline, immediately posttreatment (6-8 weeks), 9-week, and 5-month follow-up. We found that participants in the DTxP group reported greater reductions in fear of movement and better global impression of change when compared with sham placebo and standard care post treatment. No other group differences were noted at posttreatment or follow-up. When compared with baseline, participants in the DTxP group reported lower disability at 5-month follow-up, lower pain interference and fear of movement post treatment and follow-up, and lower pain intensity at posttreatment. The sham placebo group also reported lower disability and fear of movement at 5-month follow-up compared with baseline. Standard care did not report any significant changes. There were a number of adverse events, with one participant reporting a serious adverse event in the sham placebo, which was not related to treatment. No substantial changes in medications were noted, and participants in the DTxP group reported positive gaming experiences.</p

A Fast and Validated Reversed-Phase HPLC Method for Simultaneous Determination of Simvastatin, Atorvastatin, Telmisartan and Irbesartan in Bulk Drugs and Tablet Formulations

The aim of this study was to develop and validate a fast and simple reversed-phase HPLC method for simultaneous determination of four cardiovascular agents—atorvastatin, simvastatin, telmisartan and irbesartan in bulk drugs and tablet oral dosage forms. The chromatographic separation was accomplished by using Symmetry C18 column (75 mm × 4.6 mm; 3.5 μ) with a mobile phase consisting of ammonium acetate buffer (10 mM; pH 4.0) and acetonitrile in a ratio 40:60 v/v. Flow rate was maintained at 1 mL/min up to 3.5 min, and then suddenly changed to 2 mL/min till the end of the run (7.5 min). The data was acquired using ultraviolet detector monitored at 220 nm. The method was validated for linearity, precision, accuracy and specificity. The developed method has shown excellent linearity (R2 &gt; 0.999) over the concentration range of 1–16 µg/mL. The limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantification (LOQs) were in the range of 0.189–0.190 and 0.603–0.630 µg/mL, respectively. Inter-day and intra-day accuracy and precision data were recorded in the acceptable limits. The new method has successfully been applied for quantification of all four drugs in their tablet dosage forms with percent recovery within 100 ± 2%