Creating Acceptable Tablets 3D (CAT 3D): A Feasibility Study to Evaluate the Acceptability of 3D Printed Tablets in Children and Young People

3D printing (3DP) has been proposed as a novel approach for personalising dosage forms for children and young people (CYP). Owing to its low cost and the lack of need for finishing steps, fused deposing modelling (FDM) 3DP has been heavily researched in solid dosage forms (SDFs) manufacturing. However, the swallowability and overall acceptability of 3D printed dosage forms are yet to be established. This work is the first to evaluate the acceptability of different sized 3D printed placebo SDFs in CYP (aged 4–12 years). All participants had previously participated in a feasibility study (CAT study) that assessed the swallowability and acceptability of different sized GMP manufactured placebo conventional film-coated tablets, and therefore only attempted to swallow one 3D printed tablet. The participants assessed the swallowability, acceptability, mouthfeel, volume of water consumed, and taste of the sample using a 5-point hedonic facial scale on a participant questionnaire. A total of 30 participants were recruited, 87% of whom successfully swallowed the 3D printed tablet that they attempted to take. Attributes of the 3D printed tablets were scored as acceptable by the following percentage of participants—swallowability (80%), mouthfeel/texture (87%), the volume of water consumed (80%), taste (93%), and overall acceptability (83%). Overall, 77% of children reported they would be happy to take the tablet every day if it was a medicine. Participants were also asked which tablets felt better in the mouth—the film-coated tablets or the 3D printed tablets, and the most popular response (43%) was that both were acceptable. This study shows that FDM-based 3D printed SDFs may be a suitable dosage form for children aged 4–12 years. The results from this feasibility study will be used to inform a larger, definitive study looking at the acceptability of 3D printed tablets in children

Eliminació de contaminants orgànics en aigües

El projecte es durà a terme de forma experimental, en la que s'assajarà policíclics (HAP's), en aigües, per adsorció en leonardites o altres carbons de diferents grau de maduresa. Com a tècnica de determinació del HAP's s'utilitzarà bàsicament CG/EM.La realització d'aquest projecte es troba en la idea de poder demostrar la capacitat d'adsorció que presenten els carbons de diferents graus de maduresa, en l'eliminació de contaminants orgànics hidrofòbics en l'aigua. Fins ara, per eliminar els contaminants orgànics apolars s'han utilitzat diversos adsorbents com ara el carbó actiu, les zeolites o els àcids húmics. Un dels adsorbents proposats és la leonardita, aquest és un carbó altament oxidat amb un alt grau d'humificació. Per això se li reconeixen propietats adsorbents, gràcies a l'alt contingut d'àcids húmics i fúlvics. El projecte es durà a terme de forma experimental, en el que s'assajarà l'eliminació d'aquests microcontaminants orgànics, principalment els hidrocarburs aromàtics policíclics (HAPs), per l'adsorció en leonardites i altres carbons de diferents graus de maduresa, concretament el carbó de Mequinensa. Com a tècnica de determinació dels HAPs s'utilitzarà bàsicament CG/E

Eliminació de contaminants orgànics en aigües

El projecte es durà a terme de forma experimental, en la que s'assajarà policíclics (HAP's), en aigües, per adsorció en leonardites o altres carbons de diferents grau de maduresa. Com a tècnica de determinació del HAP's s'utilitzarà bàsicament CG/EM.La realització d'aquest projecte es troba en la idea de poder demostrar la capacitat d'adsorció que presenten els carbons de diferents graus de maduresa, en l'eliminació de contaminants orgànics hidrofòbics en l'aigua. Fins ara, per eliminar els contaminants orgànics apolars s'han utilitzat diversos adsorbents com ara el carbó actiu, les zeolites o els àcids húmics. Un dels adsorbents proposats és la leonardita, aquest és un carbó altament oxidat amb un alt grau d'humificació. Per això se li reconeixen propietats adsorbents, gràcies a l'alt contingut d'àcids húmics i fúlvics. El projecte es durà a terme de forma experimental, en el que s'assajarà l'eliminació d'aquests microcontaminants orgànics, principalment els hidrocarburs aromàtics policíclics (HAPs), per l'adsorció en leonardites i altres carbons de diferents graus de maduresa, concretament el carbó de Mequinensa. Com a tècnica de determinació dels HAPs s'utilitzarà bàsicament CG/E

Lipid nanostructures in butter oil: Structural and physicochemical characterization

Butter oil is derived from butter and constitutes of triglycerides along with small amounts of other lipids and fat-soluble components. Food grade lipids can be easily sourced from butter oil which finds a great potential in various ancient, modern as well as emerging applications. Due to almost “all fat” content, butter oil is not soluble in water, but it can be emulsified or combined with other components to enhance its applicability. In order to develop and optimize various applications, it is vital to identify self-assembled nanostructures formed within the butter oil. This report involves nanostructural studies by small (SAXS) and wide (WAXS) angle X-ray scattering and microstructural analysis of butter and butter oil using microscopic techniques. Both butter and butter oil display various polymorphs, detected by WAXS, but in general, the self-assembled nanostructure was identified to be a lamellar phase with the lattice parameter of about 41.8 Å. Physicochemical properties of butter oil, namely solubility, density, thermal behavior, functional groups and molecular structure elucidation also contribute to this report

Elemental and molecular profiling of licit, illicit, and niche tobacco

The recognition of differences between regulated large-scale mass manufactured products and the uncontrolled cultivation of tobaccos for illicit purposes plays a significant role within identification of provenance. This research highlights X-ray fluorescence and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy as useful analytical techniques for the rapid identification of tobacco samples of unknown provenance. Identification of key discriminative features within each technique allowed for the development of typical characteristic profiles for each type of tobacco. Analysis using X-ray fluorescence highlights chlorine, potassium, calcium and iron as key elemental indicators of tobacco provenance. Significant levels of chlorine seen within Snüs samples prompted attempts to visualise chlorine containing regions and structures within the sample. Scanning electron microscopy images showed crystalline structures visible within the Snüs tobacco, structures which Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy qualitatively confirmed to contain chlorine. Chloride levels within Snüs samples were quantified using ion chromatography with levels found to range between 0.87 mg mL⿿1 and 1.28 mg. Additionally, FTIR indicated that absorbances attributed to carbonyl stretching at 1050⿿1150 cm⿿1, alkane bending at 1350⿿1480 cm⿿1 and amide I stretching at 1600⿿1700 cm⿿1 highlighting a spectral fingerprint region that allowed for the clear differentiation between different types of tobaccos using PCA analysis, but was limited by differentiation between provenance of cigarettes and hand rolled tobacco. X-ray fluorescence and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy yielded different information with regards tobacco discrimination and provenance, however both methods overall analysis time and cost reduced indicating usefulness as potential handheld analytical techniques in the field