Development of chitosan lipid nanoparticles to alleviate the pharmacological activity of piperine in the management of cognitive deficit in diabetic rats

The aim of the present study was to prepare and evaluate Piperine (PP) loaded chitosan lipid nanoparticles (PP-CLNPs) to evaluate its biological activity alone or in combination with the antidiabetic drug Metformin (MET) in the management of cognitive deficit in diabetic rats. Piperine was successfully loaded on CLNPs prepared using chitosan, stearic acid, Tween 80 and Tripolyphosphate (TPP) at different concentrations. The developed CLNPs exhibited high entrapment efficiency that ranged from 85.12 to 97.41%, a particle size in the range of 59.56-414 nm and a negatively charged zeta potential values (- 20.1 to - 43.9 mV). In vitro release study revealed enhanced PP release from CLNPs compared to that from free PP suspensions for up to 24 h. In vivo studies revealed that treatment with the optimized PP-CLNPs formulation (F2) exerted a cognitive enhancing effect and ameliorated the oxidative stress associated with diabetes. PP-CLNPs acted as an effective bio-enhancer which increased the potency of metformin in protecting brain tissue from diabetes-induced neuroinflammation and memory deterioration. These results suggested that CLNPs could be a promising drug delivery system for encapsulating PP and thus can be used as an adjuvant therapy in the management of high-risk diabetic cognitive impairment conditions.

Copper-doped magnesium phosphate nanopowders for critical size calvarial bone defect intervention

Calvarial defects of bone present difficult clinical situations, and their restoration using biocompatible materials requires special treatments that enable bone regeneration. Magnesium phosphate (MgP) is known as an osteoinductive biomaterial because it contains Mg2+ ions and P ions that enhance the activity of osteoplast cells and help in bone regeneration. In this study, MgP and CuO-doped MgP were fabricated and characterized for their physicomechanical properties, particle size, morphology, surface area, antibacterial test, and in vitro bioactivity evaluation using the following techniques: X-rays diffraction, Fourier-transformer infrared, TEM, and Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area, X-rays photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Furthermore, these nanopowders were implanted in adult inbred male Wistar rats and studied after two periods (28 and 56 days). The results demonstrated that the obtained semiamorphous powders are in nanoscale (≤ 50 nm). XPS analysis ensured the preparation of MgP as mono MgP and CuO were incorporated in the structure as Cu2+ . The bioactivity was supported by the observation of calcium phosphate layer on the nanopowders' surface. The in vivo study demonstrated success of MgP nanopowders especially those doped with CuO in restoration of calvarial defect bone. Therefore, fabricated biomaterials are of great potential in restoration of bone calvarial defects.

Natural Polyphenols-Resveratrol, Quercetin, Magnolol, and β-Catechin-Block Certain Aspects of Heroin Addiction and Modulate Striatal IL-6 and TNF-α

We have examined the effects of four different polyphenols in attenuating heroin addiction using a conditioned place preference (CPP) paradigm. Adult male Sprague Dawley rats received heroin (alternating with saline) in escalating doses starting from 10 mg/kg, i.p. up to 80 mg/kg/d for 14 consecutive days. The rats were treated with distilled water (1 mL), quercetin (50 mg/kg/d), β-catechin (100 mg/kg/d), resveratrol (30 mg/kg/d), or magnolol (50 mg/kg/d) through oral gavage for 7 consecutive days, 30 min before heroin administration, starting on day 8. Heroin withdrawal manifestations were assessed 24 h post last heroin administration following the administration of naloxone (1 mg/kg i.p). Heroin CPP reinstatement was tested following a single dose of heroin (10 mg/kg i.p.) administration. Striatal interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were quantified (ELISA) after naloxone-precipitated heroin withdrawal. Compared to the vehicle, the heroin-administered rats spent significantly more time in the heroin-paired chamber (p < 0.0001). Concomitant administration of resveratrol and quercetin prevented the acquisition of heroin CPP, while resveratrol, quercetin, and magnolol blocked heroin-triggered reinstatement. Magnolol, quercetin, and β-catechin blocked naloxone-precipitated heroin withdrawal and increased striatal IL-6 concentration (p < 0.01). Resveratrol administration was associated with significantly higher withdrawal scores compared to those of the control animals (p < 0.0001). The results of this study show that different polyphenols target specific behavioral domains of heroin addiction in a CPP model and modulate the increase in striatal inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6 observed during naloxone-precipitated heroin withdrawal. Further research is needed to study the clinical utility of polyphenols and to investigate the intriguing finding that resveratrol enhances, rather than attenuates naloxone-precipitated heroin withdrawal.

Newly developed controlled release subcutaneous formulation for tramadol hydrochloride

This study presents a drug delivery system of poly (Ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) ribbons to optimize the pharmaceutical action of tramadol for the first time according to our knowledge. PCL ribbons were fabricated and loaded with tramadol HCl. Ribbons were prepared by slip casting technique and coated with dipping technique with β-cyclodextrin. The chemical integrity and surface morphology of the ribbons were confirmed using FTIR and SEM coupled with EDX. In addition, thermodynamic behavior of the fabricated ribbons was investigated using DSC/TGA. Tramadol loading into PCL ribbons, biodegradation of ribbons and tramadol release kinetics were studied in PBS.The results revealed that the formulated composition did not affect the chemical integrity of the drug. Furthermore, SEM/EDX confirmed the inclusion of tramadol into the PCL matrix in homogenous distribution pattern without any observation of porous structure. The particle size of loaded tramadol was found to be in the range of (2-4 nm). The formulated composition did not affect the chemical integrity of the drug and should be further investigated for bioavailability. Tramadol exhibited controlled release behavior from PCL ribbons up to 45 days governed mainly by diffusion mechanism. The fabricated ribbons have a great potentiality to be implemented in the long term subcutaneous delivery of tramadol.