Enhancement of Human Cheek Skin Texture by Acacia Nilotica Bark Extract Cream

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of a topical application of a cream formulation containing extract of Acacia nilotica bark extract on human cheek skin texture.Methods: A cream containing 3 % concentrated extract of Acacia nilotica bark was developed by entrapping the extract in the internal aqueous phase of the cream having strong antioxidant activity. A similar cream but without the extract was also prepared. Each of the formulations was applied to the cheeks of 11 human volunteers for a period of three months. Both cream formulations were assessed, using Visioscan VC 98, for various parameters including texture parameters (energy, contrast and variance) as well as for skin roughness (Ser), skin scaliness (SEsc), skin smoothness (SEsm) and skin wrinkles (Sew).Results: Unlike the cream base, the extract cream exhibited steady, significant improvement in skin parameters over the 3-month period of application. Images showed visible improvement of the overall skin appearance and reduction of fine lines by the extract cream. Furthermore, skin texture (variance and contrast) and SELS (SEr, SEsc, SEsm and SEw) parameters showed significant decline (p < 0.05) and the texture parameter of energy showed significant increase (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the cream containing 3 % Acacia nilotica bark extract possesses anti-aging effect and improves skin surface appearance..Keywords: Acacia nilotica, Cream, Visioscan VC 98, Skin texture, Anti-agin

Symptoms-Based Evaluation of Iron Deficiency Anemia in Students of Bahawalpur Correlated with their Eating Habits

Purpose: To conduct a symptoms-based evaluation of iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in university and colleges students of Bahawalpur- Pakistan and correlate the data with their eating habits.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was accomplished using a questionnaire for the assessment of IDA among 500 students enrolled in the Islamia University of Bahawalpur and two affiliated colleges in Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Symptoms-based evaluation was carried out to obtain the results.Results: The results showed that 41.2 % (206 students) of the 500 students were anemic. The proportion of anemic females and males was 65.53 % (135) and 34.46 % (71), respectively. Of the 206 students, 96.11 % (198) were below the age of 25 years, 83.96 % (173) in official hostels, 52.42 % (108) belonged to families of average socioeconomic status, 77.18 % (159) suffer from short-term memory, and 47.08 % (97) were unaware of IDA. The most commonly observed symptoms were flattened brittle nails, dizziness, and fatigue after physical activity, 88.83 % (183); presence or absence of glosittis 87.37% (180); ringing in the ears, 84.46 % (174); headache, 62.62 % (129); frequent minor infections, 46.60 % (96); shortness of breath, 40.29 % (83); taste disturbance, 35.92 % (74); ice cravings, 22.33 % (46); and angular stomatitis 18.97 % (39).Conclusion: An unexpectedly large number of female students exhibit symptoms of IDA due to poor nourishment. Findings from this survey can be used in awareness programs to increase academic performance in young adults and to eliminate IDA.Keywords: Iron deficiency Anemia, Students, Eating habits, Awareness program

Penetration Enhancing Effect of Polysorbate 20 and 80 on the In Vitro Percutaneous Absorption of L-Ascorbic Acid

Purpose: To investigate the penetration enhancing effect of two polysorbates -polyoxyethylene 20 (POE-20) and polyoxyethylene 80 (POE-80) -on the in vitro percutaneous absorption of ascorbic acid (AA). Methods: For the permeation experiments, Franz diffusion cell covered with aluminum foil providing an effective diffusion area of 1.76 cm2 and hairless rabbit skin were used. A range of concentrations (1 - 5 %) of POE-20 and POE-80 was added to the ascorbic acid to determine their optimum enhancement concentration. Results: The cumulative amount of AA that diffused across the skin increased with increase in the concentration of the permeation enhancers. Without the enhancer, AA flux was 0.626 µg/cm2/h while mean permeability coefficient (Kp) was 2.09 × 10-6 cm/h. AA flux was 3.17 and 2.44 µg/cm2/h for POE-20and POE-80, respectively, while mean permeability coefficient was 10.6 × 10-6 and 8.14 × 10-6 Kp, cm/h. Maximum flux (3.16 µg/cm2/h) at POE-20 concentration of 5 % was obtained, with an enhancement ratio (ER) of 5.07 in relation to control (i.e., AA without enhancer). For POE-80 (5 %), maximum flux was 2.44µg/cm2/h with an ER value of 3.89, compared to control. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that POE-20 and POE-80 exerted a penetration enhancing effect on the percutaneous absorption of L-ascorbic acid (AA)