Preparation and pre-clinical characterization of sustainedrelease ketoprofen implants for the management of pain and inflammation in osteoarthritis

Purpose: To prepare and evaluate sustained-release ketoprofen implants for prolonged drug release and activity.Methods: Ketoprofen implants were prepared with poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) and chitosan in the form of tablets. The implants were analyzed for drug loading, thickness, hardness, swelling, in vitro drug release, as well as in vivo analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities.Results: The implants were round, smooth in appearance, uniform in thickness and showed no cracks or physical defects on the surface. Their friability was < 1 % while drug content ranged from 89.98 ± 2.06 to 92.95 ± 1.65 %. In vitro drug release ranged from 70.23 to 92.04 % at the end of 5 days. Implants containing higher amounts of PLGA produced the highest swelling (40.24 ± 1.08 %). Implant IKT3 showed maximum analgesic activity (7.75 ± 1.00 s) and shortest time of maximum analgesia (2.5 h) in hot plate method. Inhibition of rat paw edema for IKT1, IKT2 and IKT3 was 79.95, 69.98 and 82.24 %, respectively, after 24 h.Conclusion: Ketoprofen-loaded implant IKT3 (4:4:2 ratio of PLGA, chitosan and ketoprofen) provides relatively quick onset and prolonged duration of analgesic effect. Thus, ketoprofen implants have a potential for development into therapeutic products for prolonged management of pain and inflammation in osteoarthritis.Keywords: Osteoarthritis, Ketoprofen implant, Prolonged analgesia, Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), Chitosa

1,3-Diprop-2-ynyl-1H-imidazol-3-ium bromide

In the title salt, C9H9N2 +·Br−, the ethynyl groups are nearly anti­parallel to each other [the angle between the two ethynyl groups is179.7 (2)°]. No classical hydrogen bonds or π–π inter­actions are observed. The mol­ecules are linked by C—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds. The bromide anions are involved in inter­actions with three H atoms

Discrimination of Coherent States via Atom-Field Interaction without Rotation Wave Approximation

The quantum state discrimination is an important part of quantum information processing. We investigate the discrimination of coherent states through Jaynes-Cummings (JC) model interaction between the field and the ancilla without rotation wave approximation (RWA). We show that the minimum failure probability can be reduced as RWA is eliminated from JC model and the non-RWA terms accompanied by the quantum effects of fields (e.g. the virtual photon process in the JC model without RWA) can enhance the state discrimination. The JC model without RWA for unambiguous state discrimination is superior to ambiguous state discrimination, particularly when the number of sequential measurements increases. Unambiguous state discrimination implemented via the non-RWA JC model is beneficial to saving resource cost.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Communications in Theoretical Physic

Robust and environmentally benign solid acid intercalation catalysts for the aminolysis of epoxides

The catalytic aminolysis of epoxides can lead to a large number of β‐amino alcohols which are of particular interest in industrial applications. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time the use of a polyoxometalate [CoW12O40]5− intercalated layered double hydroxides (Zn3Al‐LDH) material as an efficient solid acid catalyst for the catalytic aminolysis of various epoxides under mild and solvent‐free conditions. The as‐prepared heterogeneous catalyst Zn3Al‐CoW12 was fully characterized by FT‐IR, powder XRD, TG‐DTA, BET, XPS, SEM, HR‐TEM and NH3‐TPD. The catalytic performance of Zn3Al‐CoW12 for the aminolysis of epoxides revealed excellent yields with high regioselectivity and stereoselectivity. Moreover, the solid acid catalyst can be easily recycled and reused without detectable decrease of its catalytic efficiency

Soft Scattering Evaporation of Dark Matter Subhalos by Inner Galactic Gases

The large gap between a galactic dark matter subhalo's velocity and its own gravitational binding velocity creates the situation that dark matter soft-scattering on baryons to evaporate the subhalo, if kinetic energy transfer is efficient by low momentum exchange. Small subhalos can evaporate before dark matter thermalize with baryons due to the low binding velocity. In case dark matter acquires an electromagnetic dipole moment, the survival of low-mass subhalos requires stringent limits on the photon-mediated soft scattering. We calculate the subhalo evaporation rate via soft collision by ionization gas and accelerated cosmic rays, and show the stability of subhalos lighter than $10^{-5}M_{\odot}$ in the gaseous inner galactic region is sensitive to dark matter's effective electric and magnetic dipole moments below current direct detection limits.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure

Leaching and microstructural properties of lead contaminated kaolin stabilized by GGBS-MgO in semi-dynamic leaching tests

Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) is widely used to stabilize soils due to its environmental and economic merits. The strength and durability of reactive MgO activated GGBS (GGBS-MgO) stabilized lead (Pb)-contaminated soils have been explored by previous studies. However, the effects of simulated acid rain (SAR) on the leachability and micro-properties of GGBS-MgO stabilized Pb-contaminated soils are hardly investigated. This research studies the leachability and microstructural properties of GGBS-MgO stabilized Pb-contaminated kaolin clay exposed to SAR with initial pH values of 2.0, 4.0 and 7.0. A series of tests are performed including the semi-dynamic leaching tests using SAR as the extraction liquid, acid neutralization capacity (ANC), mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) tests. The results demonstrate that as the SAR pH decreases from 7.0 to 4.0, the Pb cumulative fraction leached (CFL) and observed diffusion coefficient (Dobs) increases significantly whereas the leachate pH decreases. Meanwhile, increasing the GGBS-MgO content from 12% to 18% results in the decrease of CFL and Dobs. Further decreasing the SAR pH to 2.0 results in the dissolution-controlled leaching mechanism regardless of the binder dosage. The differences in the leaching properties under different pH conditions are interpreted based on the cemented soil acid buffering capacity, hydration products and pore size distributions obtained from the ANC, MIP, and XRD tests, respectively