BEST PRACTICES IN FORMULATION ANALYSES BY X-RAY DIFFRACTION

As an organization the ICDD has been conducting systematic studies to determine the best practices for analyzing complex tablet formulations common to the pharmaceutical industry. The ability of x-ray diffraction methods to analyze complex formulations is useful for quality control, competitive analyses and law enforcement (analysis of counterfeits). Several studies have been used to determine best practices, including three ICDD global customer surveys (Fawcett et. al. 2006, 2009, 2012), an international pharmaceutical round robin on quantitative Rietveld phase analysis (Fawcett et. al. 2010), and periodic bulk formulation analyses (Fawcett and Hubbard, 2004; Fawcett et al. 2006). The purpose of these studies are to align ICDD database capabilities and educational instructions with best methods and practices to benefit the scientific community. In this presentation we will be specifically discussing two aspects of best practices 1) specimen preparation and 2) method of analysis. Pharmaceutical tablet formulations are typically multicomponent where one or more of the components are asymmetric crystals or extremely granular. The component particle sizes, shapes and distributions profoundly affect the resultant diffraction pattern, especially peak intensities and intensity distributions. This is both an opportunity and

Awareness, attitude, and practice towards cancer cervix prevention among rural women in southern India: A community-based study

Problem considered: Cervical cancer is a major public health problem among women worldwide and it is the second most common cancer among women in India. The present study was conducted to assess awareness, attitudes, and practices towards cervical cancer and its prevention among rural women in southern India. Methods: This community-based study was carried out from January to December 2017 among 1100 married women aged 20–65 years residing in southern Karnataka, India. A household survey was undertaken, and eligible women were interviewed using a pre-designed questionnaire. The socio-demographic details of the women and their awareness, attitude, and practices towards cervical cancer prevention and screening were documented. The association of women's knowledge adequacy with their socio-demographic factors was evaluated and is expressed as odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Results: About 67% of the participants had heard the term “cervical cancer” earlier and 47.9% of them were aware that cervical cancer is preventable. Poor genital hygiene (41.4%) and early age at sexual intercourse (35.4%) were the commonly quoted risk factors for cervical cancer. Only 35.7% of participants had adequate awareness regarding cervical cancer screening and it was significantly associated with their age, education level, employment, and socio-economic status. The majority (99%) of women had a favorable attitude toward cervical cancer screening though it failed to translate into practices. Conclusions: Despite a favorable attitude, awareness and practice towards cervical cancer prevention were suboptimal. Periodic awareness programs and ensuring access to cervical cancer screening are crucial in this context

Blue Light-Induced Retinal Neuronal Injury and Amelioration by Commercially Available Blue Light-Blocking Lenses

Blue light exposure-induced retinal damage has been extensively studied. Although many in vitro studies have shown the benefits of blue light-blocking lenses (BBL) there have been few comprehensive in vivo studies to assess the effects of BBL. We investigated the influence of blue light exposure using light-emitting diodes on retinal histology and visual cortex neurons in rodents. We also considered whether retinal and cortical changes induced by blue light could be ameliorated with blue light-blocking lenses. A total of n = 24 (n = 6 in each group; control, light exposure without lenses, two different BBLs)) male Wistar rats were subjected to blue light exposure (LEDs, 450–500 lux) without or with BBLs (400–490 nm) for 28 days on a 12:12 h light–dark cycle. Histological analysis of retinae revealed apoptosis and necrosis of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), photoreceptors, and inner retina in the light exposure (LE) group, along with increase caspase-3 immunostaining in the ganglion cell layer (p < 0.001). BBL groups showed less caspase-3 immunostaining compared with the LE group (p < 0.001). V1-L5PNs (primary visual cortex layer 5 pyramidal neurons) demonstrated reduced branching and intersections points for apical (p < 0.001) and basal (p < 0.05) dendrites following blue light exposure. Blue light-blocking lenses significantly improved the number of basal branching points compared with the LE group. Our study shows that prolonged exposure to high levels of blue light pose a significant hazard to the visual system resulting in damage to the retina with the associated remodeling of visual cortex neurons. BBL may offer moderate protection against exposure to high levels of blue light

Effect of Light Emitting Diodes (LED) Exposure on Vitreous Metabolites-Rodent Study

The exposure to blue and white Light emitting diodes (LED) light leads to damage in the visual system with short-term LED light exposure. Chronic exposure, adaptive responses to light, and self-protective mechanisms against LED light exposures need to be explored, and it would be essential to understand the repercussions of LED radiation on vitreous metabolites. A total of 24 male Wistar rats were used in this study, divided into four groups (n = 6 in each group). Three experimental groups of rats were exposed to either blue, white, or yellow LED light for 90 days (12:12 light-dark cycle routine) with uniform illumination (450–500 lux). Standard lab settings were used to maintain control rats. Vitreous fluids were subjected to untargeted metabolomics analysis using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS). PLS-DA analysis indicated significant the separation of m metabolites among groups, suggesting that LED exposure induces metabolic reprogramming in the vitreous. Amino acids and their modifications showed significant alterations among groups which included D-alanine, D-serine (p p p = 0.0068), glutathione (p = 0.0263), taurine (p = 0.007), and hypotaurine. In chronic light exposure, the self-protective or reworking system could be depleted, which may decrease the ability to compensate for the defending mechanism. This might fail to maintain the metabolomic structural integrity of the vitreous metabolites