Nanocrystals of Poorly Soluble Drugs: Drug Bioavailability and Physicochemical Stability

The Effects of Vinegar Processing on the Changes in the Physical Properties of Frankincense Related to the Absorption of the Main Boswellic Acids

Boswellic acids (BAs), as the main components of frankincense, exhibit notable anti-inflammatory properties. However, their pharmaceutical development has been severely limited by their poor oral bioavailability. Traditional Chinese medicinal processing, called Pao Zhi, is believed to improve bioavailability, yet the mechanism is still completely unclear. Previous research suggested that the bioavailability of a drug can be influenced by physical properties. This paper was designed to investigate the physical properties of frankincense and processed frankincense, including the surface morphology, particle size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential (ZP), specific surface area, porosity, and viscosity. The differences in the intestinal absorption characteristics and equilibrium solubilities between frankincense and processed frankincense were determined by an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a triple quadrupole electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-TQ-MS) analysis method. The results showed that vinegar processing can alter the surface morphology, decrease the particle size and PDI, raise the absolute values of the ZP, specific surface area and porosity, and drop the viscosity of frankincense. Meanwhile, the rates of absorption and dissolution of the main BAs were increased after the processing of frankincense. The present study proves that the physical properties were changed after processing, in which case the bioavailability of frankincense was enhanced.

Synthesis of a long acting nanoformulated emtricitabine ProTide

While antiretroviral therapy (ART) has revolutionized treatment and prevention of human immunodeficiency virus type one (HIV-1) infection, regimen adherence, viral mutations, drug toxicities and access stigma and fatigue are treatment limitations. These have led to new opportunities for the development of long acting (LA) ART including implantable devices and chemical drug modifications. Herein, medicinal and formulation chemistry were used to develop LA prodrug nanoformulations of emtricitabine (FTC). A potent lipophilic FTC phosphoramidate prodrug (M2FTC) was synthesized then encapsulated into a poloxamer surfactant (NM2FTC). These modifications extended the biology, apparent drug half-life and antiretroviral activities of the formulations. NM2FTC demonstrated a >30-fold increase in macrophage and CD4+ T cell drug uptake with efficient conversion to triphosphates (FTC-TP). Intracellular FTC-TP protected macrophages against an HIV-1 challenge for 30 days. A single intramuscular injection of NM2FTC, at 45 mg/kg native drug equivalents, into Sprague Dawley rats resulted in sustained prodrug levels in blood, liver, spleen and lymph nodes and FTC-TP in lymph node and spleen cells at one month. In contrast, native FTC-TPs was present for one day. These results are an advance in the transformation of FTC into a LA agent.

How to assess orodispersible film quality? A review of applied methods and their modifications

In recent years, there has been a tendency toward creating innovative, easy to use and patient-friendly drug delivery systems suitable for every consumer profile, which would ensure safety, stability and acceptability of a drug. One of the relatively novel and promising approaches is the manufacture of orodispersible films (ODFs), which is an upcoming area of interest in drug delivery. They are defined as polymer thin films that disintegrate in the oral cavity within seconds, without drinking water or chewing, and eliminate the risk of choking. Gaining special usefulness in therapies of children and the elderly, ODFs seem to fill the gap in the range of preparations available for these groups of patients. As no detailed monography of ODFs including testing methods and uniform requirements has been presented in any of the pharmacopoeias to date, the aim of this article is to give an overview of the applied testing methods, their modifications and innovative approaches related to ODF quality assessment.