Efficacy and safety of eltrombopag in Chinese patients with refractory or relapsed severe aplastic anemia.

For patients with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) in China who have had an insufficient response to the first-line treatment with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation or immunosuppressive therapy, there is no established standard of care other than transfusion support and treatment of infections. This non-randomized, open-label, Phase II multicenter trial investigated the efficacy and safety of eltrombopag in 20 adult Chinese patients with refractory or relapsed (r/r) SAA. The primary endpoint of hematologic response rate at Week 26, defined as the proportion of patients who met any of the International Working Group criteria, was observed in 70% (14/20) of patients, with more than 50% of these having at least bi-lineage response. Reduced red blood cell and platelet transfusion at Week 26 were observed in 57% (8/14) and 80% (8/10) of patients, respectively. Safety findings were consistent with the established safety profile of eltrombopag and no new safety signals were reported. None of the patients discontinued eltrombopag because of safety concerns. Although the sample size was small, this is the first prospective study to show that eltrombopag is efficacious and has a favorable safety profile in a Chinese patient population with r/r SAA.Trial registration: This trial is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03988608); registered 17 June 2019.

Advances in the role of natural gums-based hydrogels in water purification, desalination and atmospheric-water harvesting.

Freshwater scarcity is one of the world's foremost environmental stress concerns. In the last few years, with sustainable industrial growth and rapidly growing population, the problem of freshwater shortage has encouraged researchers to conduct comprehensive research for the development of advanced water harvesting and wastewater treatment techniques. Natural gums-based hydrogels have been widely used in different water purification and harvesting applications because of their environment friendly nature, high water absorption, adsorption and retention capacities. In this article, we presented an entirely conceptual and critical review of literature mainly focused on the potential of different natural gums-based hydrogel in water harvesting and wastewater treatment applications. First, different categories of natural gums-based hydrogels including stimuli responsive hydrogels, physically and chemically crosslinked hydrogels, were introduced. Then, the emphasis was given on the role of natural gums-based hydrogels in different wastewater treatment applications like adsorption, photocatalysis and flocculation. After that, the latest research progress on the use of natural gums-based hydrogels in atmospheric water harvesting and seawater desalination was discussed. Finally, different challenges and main limitations associated with the use of natural gums-hydrogels in water purification and harvesting applications were discussed to understand the research gaps and drawbacks which need improvements.

Capturing water vapors from atmospheric air using superporous gels.

Dehumidification performance of most polymer desiccant materials is unsatisfactory because of the complex adsorption mechanism on polymer surface and non-porous structure. A viable alternative of solid desiccants, especially existing polymer desiccants, for capturing water vapors from moist air is the super-porous gels (SPGs). The presence of interconnected channels of pores in its structure facilitates the transfer of water molecules to the internal structure of SPGs. Therefore, in this research work, we are proposing N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) and acrylamide (AM) based thermoresponsive SPGs as a potential alternative to the existing conventional solid desiccants. To ensure the formation of interconnected capillary channels, the SPGs were synthesized via gas blowing and foaming technique. Surface morphology of the SPGs was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and the other physio-chemical characteristics were studied using different techniques like fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). Water vapors adsorption properties of the SPGs were explored via adsorption isotherm and kinetics. The adsorption isotherm was found to be of type-III isotherm with a maximum adsorption capacity of 0.75 gw/gads at 25 °C and 90% relative humidity. Experimental isotherm data correlated well with BET, FHH and GAB isotherm models. Adsorption kinetics suggested that the water vapors diffusion followed intraparticle diffusion and liquid field driving mechanisms collectively. SPGs exhibited very good regeneration and reusability for ten continuous adsorption/desorption cycles. Therefore, the dehumidification efficiency of synthesized SPGs shows that they have potential to replace most of the conventional solid desiccant materials in use.

Therapeutic equivalence of vildagliptin 100 mg once daily modified release to 50 mg twice daily immediate release formulation: An open-label, randomized, two-period, single- and multiple-dose, 6-day crossover study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Vildagliptin, a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus, is available as immediate release (IR) tablets administered at 50 mg twice daily (BID). A 100 mg modified release (MR) formulation was developed for once daily (QD) dosing. This study aimed to compare the therapeutic equivalence of vildagliptin 100 mg MR QD (test) and 50 mg IR BID (reference) formulations at steady state under fasting conditions. METHODS: This was an open-label, randomized, two-period, single- and multiple-dose, two-way crossover, steady state study conducted in healthy adult subjects. Both vildagliptin formulations were administered for six days. Endpoints included pharmacodynamic equivalence, pharmacokinetic parameters, and tolerability of both formulations. RESULTS: Thirty subjects were enrolled and 26 completed both treatments. Maximum plasma concentration and exposure achieved with test was lower than reference formulation on day 1 and 6. The DPP-4 enzyme inhibition over time (DPP-4-AUEC0-24) was comparable between the formulations. Both formulations were well tolerated. CONCLUSION: This study confirms the therapeutic equivalence of vildagliptin IR and MR formulations for DPP-4 enzyme inhibition over time. The study supports vildagliptin 100 mg MR QD as a useful therapeutic alternative to 50 mg IR BID formulation to possibly improve treatment adherence and patient compliance. Long-term safety of the vildagliptin 100 mg MR QD formulation is not evaluated in this study.

GO crosslinked hydrogel nanocomposites of chitosan/carboxymethyl cellulose - A versatile adsorbent for the treatment of dyes contaminated wastewater.

Graphene oxide (GO) crosslinked nanocomposites hydrogels (NCH) of chitosan (CS) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) were synthesized and the feasibility of its application as a versatile adsorbent for the remediation of cationic (methylene blue, MB) as well as anionic (methyl orange, MO) dyes contaminated wastewater was explored. Initially, GO was functionalized with vinyltriethoxysilane which was subsequently used as a chemical crosslinker to synthesize the NCH of CS and CMC (CS/CMC-NCH) with the polymeric mixture of diallyldimethylammonium chloride and 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid. About 99% dye was adsorbed from 50 mg/L dye solution of MB dye with 0.4 g/L of CS/CMC-NCH at pH 7, whereas, for MO about 82% dye was adsorbed with 0.6 g/L of CS/CMC-NCH at pH 3. The Adsorption of both dyes is well explained using pseudo-second-order and Langmuir models with the maximum adsorption capacities of 655.98 mgdye/gads for MB and 404.52 mgdye/gads for MO. Thermodynamics studies suggested spontaneous and exothermic nature of the adsorption process with values of ΔS < 0 and ΔH > 0. Furthermore, CS/CMC-NCH showed excellent regeneration capacity for continuous twenty cycles of adsorption-desorption. Therefore, the synthesized CS/CMC-NCH is a versatile adsorbent that can treat both anionic and cationic dyes contaminated wastewater.

Low-Temperature Synthesis of Magnetic Carbonaceous Materials Coated with Nanosilica for Rapid Adsorption of Methylene Blue.

This work reports the synthesis of nanosilica-coated magnetic carbonaceous adsorbents (MCA@SiO2) using low-temperature hydrothermal carbonization technique (HCT) and the feasibility to utilize it for methylene blue (MB) adsorption. Initially, a carbon precursor (CP) was synthesized from corn starch under saline conditions at 453 K via HCT followed by the magnetization of CP again via HCT at 453 K. Subsequently, MCA was coated with silica nanoparticles. MCA and MCA@SiO2 were characterized using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms. The BET surface area of MCA and MCA@SiO2 were found to be 118 and 276 m2 g-1, respectively. Adsorption of MB onto MCA@SiO2 was performed using batch adsorption studies and in the optimum condition, MCA@SiO2 showed 99% adsorption efficiency with 0.5 g L-1 of MCA@SiO2 at pH 7. Adsorption isotherm studies predicted that MB adsorption onto MCA@SiO2 was homogeneous monolayer adsorption, which was best described using a Langmuir model with the maximum adsorption capacity of 516.9 mg g-1 at 25 °C. During adsorption kinetics, a rapid dye removal was observed which followed pseudo-first- as well as pseudo-second-order models, which suggested that MB dye molecules were adsorbed onto MCA@SiO2 via both ion exchange as well as the chemisorption process. The endothermic and spontaneous nature of the adsorption of MB onto MCA@SiO2 was established by thermodynamics studies. Mechanism of dye diffusion was collectively governed by intraparticle diffusion and film diffusion processes. Furthermore, MB was also selectively adsorbed from its mixture with an anionic dye, that is, methyl orange. Column adsorption studies showed that approximately 500 mL of MB having 50 mg L-1 concentration can be treated with 0.5 g L-1 of MCA@SiO2. Furthermore, MCA@SiO2 was repeatedly used for 20 cycles of adsorption-desorption of MB. Therefore, MCA@SiO2 can be effectively utilized in cationic dye-contaminated wastewater remediation applications.

Super porous TiO2 photocatalyst: Tailoring the agglomerate porosity into robust structural mesoporosity with enhanced surface area for efficient remediation of azo dye polluted waste water.

The low surface area of TiO2 (50 m2g-1 - Degussa P25) due to randomly oriented, agglomerated nanostructures and charge carrier recombination tendency, has till date been its major limitation for photocatalytic remediation of polluted wastewater. This study presents an innovative process to design super porous TiO2 nanostructures with high effective surface area (238 m2g-1), robust, structurally ordered mesoporosity via a simple sol-gel assisted reflux method. Detailed material characterization studies suggest that the higher degree of intermolecular ligation in novel templates such as butanetetracarboxylic or tricarballylic acid modified titanium hydroxide gels resulted in retainment of the porous structure during the urea assisted combustion synthesis. The induction of robust structural porosity is accompanied by a reduction in pore size distribution, an increase in pore volume leading to significantly higher total surface area of the synthesized TiO2. Detailed investigation of dye adsorption kinetics and photocatalytic degradation kinetics, complemented by kinetic modeling analysis confirmed that the super porous TiO2 with robust mesoporous structure outperforms the rest of synthesized TiO2 catalyst (having only agglomerate porosity) in terms of its superior adsorption capacity, faster diffusion kinetics and photocatalytic activity for degradation of Amaranth dye. Thus, the super porous TiO2 shows promising potential for application in sustainable photocatalytic technology for remediation of wastewater contaminated with azo dyes.

Utilization of gum xanthan based superporous hydrogels for the effective removal of methyl violet from aqueous solution.

In this research work the superporous hydrogels (SPHs) of acrylic acid (AA) and acrylamide (AM) with gum xanthan (GX) were synthesized using glass blowing and foaming technique and tested the feasibility of synthesized SPHs to remove removal of methyl violet dye (MV) by the process of adsorption from aqueous solution. Swelling properties of synthesized SPHs with different concentrations of GX were studied in deionized water and the swelling kinetics followed first-order model. The adsorption of MV using SPHs was highly influenced by the solution pH. Adsorption kinetics followed non-linear pseudo-second-order rate equation, whereas, isotherm of adsorption followed monolayer Langmuir model. Diffusion mechanism of dye molecules was controlled by the combination of two mechanisms i.e. intraparticle and liquid film diffusion mechanisms. Furthermore, during desorption studies, SPHs were efficiently used for the five continuous adsorption-desorption cycles. Hence, the removal of cationic dyes could be done using SPHs of GX as effective adsorbents.

Advanced TiO2-SiO2-Sulfur (Ti-Si-S) Nanohybrid Materials: Potential Adsorbent for the Remediation of Contaminated Wastewater.

In this present work, TiO2-SiO2-sulfur (Ti-Si-S) nanohybrid material was successfully prepared using TiO2 nano powder, TEOS sol-gel precursor, and elemental sulfur as raw material by sol-gel process and hydrothermal method at 120 °C temperature. Raman spectroscopy, XRD, SEM, TEM, and N2 absorption-desorption characterized the synthesized nanohybrid material. The characterization results confirmed the homogeneous distribution of sulfur in the nanohybrid material. The size of the Ti-Si-S nanohybrid material is vary between 20 and 40 nm and the surface areas of the nanohybrid material was measured using N2 absorption-desorption, which showed value of 57.2 m2 g-1. The potential of Ti-Si-S nanohybrid material as an adsorbent was further tested to adsorb methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution. Adsorption performance of hybrid material was highly influenced by the solution pH and mass of adsorbent. The adsorption of MB using Ti-Si-S nanohybrid material was homogeneous monolayer adsorption, which followed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm with a qe,max value of 804.80 mg g-1 and pseudo-second-order rate equation. The dye diffusion mechanism partially followed both intraparticle and liquid film diffusion mechanisms. Thermodynamics studies predicted the spontaneous and endothermic nature of the whole adsorption process. The Ti-Si-S nanohybrid material was used for six repeated cycles of MB dye adsorption-desorption.

Biodegradable hydrogels of tragacanth gum polysaccharide to improve water retention capacity of soil and environment-friendly controlled release of agrochemicals.

This work reports the synthesis of lipase enzyme catalyzed biodegradable hydrogel interpenetrating polymer network (hydrogel-IPN) of natural gum polysaccharide i.e. gum tragacanth (GT) with acrylamide (AAm) and methacrylic acid (MAA) and their potential application in the delivery of agrochemicals. Biodegradation experiments were performed using composting and soil burial methods of biodegradation. Complete degradation of synthesized hydrogel-IPN occurred within 77 days using composting method, while using soil burial method 81.26% degradation occurred after 77 days. Furthermore, effect hydrogel-IPN degradation on the fertility of soil was also studied through macro-analysis of soil. Water retention capacity of clay soil and sandy loam soil was improved after mixing swelled sample of hydrogel-IPN with these soil samples. The potential of hydrogel-IPN was also tested for sustained and slow release of two agrochemicals i.e. urea and calcium nitrate. Kinetics of agrochemicals release revealed that the release rate of both the fertilizers was initially higher which kept on decreasing with time. Diffusion mechanism of agrochemicals followed Case-II diffusion type behavior. Therefore, synthesized hydrogel-IPN is important from agriculture view point and can be used for sustained and controlled release of agrochemicals.

Modification of gum ghatti via grafting with acrylamide and analysis of its flocculation, adsorption, and biodegradation properties.

In this work, an environmentally friendly gum ghatti-crosslinked-polyacrylamide (Gg-cl-PAAM) hydrogel was synthesized from gum ghatti (Gg) and acrylamide (AAM) using a microwave-assisted grafting technique, and tested for use in water purification applications as an adsorbent and flocculent. The Gg-cl-PAAM was characterized using SEM, FTIR, and TGA, and displayed pH responsive swelling behavior, with maximum swelling (2117%) observed in solution with neutral pH. The flocculation characteristics of Gg-cl-PAAM were tested in clay solutions as a function of pH, temperature, and the polymer mass loading, showing that the best performance is obtained at neutral pH at 40°C. The adsorption capacities of Gg-cl-PAAM for the removal different dyes such as brilliant green (BG), rhodamine B (RhB), congo red (CR), and methyl orange (MO) were tested, revealing that the adsorption of all dyes followed the Langmuir isotherm model, with qm values of 523.62mgg-1 for BG, 421.60mgg-1 for RhB, 179.09mgg-1 for CR, and 173.69mgg-1 for MO. Finally, the environmentally friendly nature of Gg-cl-PAAM was examined using the soil-burial composting method, which demonstrated 93% degradation of the Gg-cl-PAAM hydrogel within 60days.

A study on the adsorption of methylene blue onto gum ghatti/TiO2 nanoparticles-based hydrogel nanocomposite.

The objective of this work was to study the isotherm and kinetic models for the adsorption of methylene blue (MB) onto a TiO2 nanoparticle (TiO2NP)-containing hydrogel nanocomposite (HNC) of polyacrylamide-grafted gum ghatti (PAAm-g-Gg). The grafting of PAAm onto Gg was conducted using N,N'-methylene-bis-acrylamide (MBA) as a crosslinker, and different weight percentages of TiO2NPs were incorporated into the hydrogel matrix during the grafting reaction. The graft co-polymerization and the formation of the HNC were confirmed using FTIR, XRD, BET, SEM, TEM and EDS analyses. The adsorption of MB was studied in batch mode and it was found to be highly dependent on solution pH, ionic strength temperature and adsorbent loading. The MB-adsorption process followed the pseudo-second-order rate model and Langmuir adsorption isotherm with a maximum adsorption capacity of 1305.5mgg(-1). Thermodynamic studies revealed that the adsorption of MB onto the HNC surface was spontaneous, endothermic and through a process of physisorption. The results also showed that the HNC was much more effective for the adsorption of cationic dyes than anionic dyes, and it retained its original adsorption capacity for five successive cycles of adsorption-desorption. In conclusion, the hydrogel nanocomposite showed huge potential for remediating industrial wastewater polluted by toxic cationic dyes.

Effective removal of cationic dyes from aqueous solution using gum ghatti-based biodegradable hydrogel.

Biodegradable hydrogels of gum ghatti (Gg) with a co-polymer mixture of acrylamide (AAm) and methacrylic acid (MAA) (termed as Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-MAA)) were synthesised by microwave-assisted free radical graft co-polymerisation technique. The hydrogel polymer was characterized by FTIR, SEM, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller techniques. The Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-MAA) hydrogel was studied as an adsorbent for the removal of methylene blue (MB) and methyl violet (MV) from aqueous solutions. Adsorption of both the dyes followed pseudo-second-order kinetics and Langmuir adsorption isotherm models. The hydrogel polymer adsorbed 98% of MB and 95% of MV from aqueous solution. The Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-MAA) maintained its original sorption capacity for three cycles of adsorption-desorption. Furthermore, the hydrogel polymer degraded fully within 50 days in soil compost. In summary, the Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-MAA) hydrogel could be a potential adsorbent for the remediation of dyes from industrial wastewater.

The adsorption of Pb2+ and Cu2+ onto gum ghatti-grafted poly(acrylamide-co-acrylonitrile) biodegradable hydrogel: isotherms and kinetic models.

A biodegradable hydrogel polymer of gum ghatti (Gg) with a copolymer mixture of acrylamide (AAm) and acrylonitrile (AN) was synthesized using the free-radical graft copolymerization technique. The effect of graft copolymerization on the surface area of Gg was studied using BET analyses. The graft copolymerization of Gg with poly(AAm-co-AN) was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, CHN analysis, thermogravimetric analysis, atomic force microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The adsorption of Pb(2+) and Cu(2+) from aqueous solution using the Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-AN) hydrogel polymer was studied in batch mode. The adsorption process was found to be highly pH dependent, and the maximum adsorption efficiency was observed at pH 5.0 for both metal ions. The adsorption isotherm data were analyzed by applying five different isotherm models, namely, the Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Flory-Huggins, and Dubinin-Kaganer-Radushkevich isothermal models. The Langmuir model was found to fit well with the experimental isotherm data, with a maximum adsorption capacity of 384.6 and 203.7 mg/g for Pb(2+) and Cu(2+), respectively. The metal ion-adsorption process was found to be controlled by the pseudo-second-order rate model. The Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-AN) hydrogel polymer retained its original adsorption capacity for three successive cycles of adsorption-desorption. In summary, the potential for remediating industrial wastewater polluted by metal ions using the biodegradable Gg-cl-P(AAm-co-AN) hydrogel polymer has been demonstrated.

Synthesis and flocculation properties of gum ghatti and poly(acrylamide-co-acrylonitrile) based biodegradable hydrogels.

This article reports the development of biodegradable flocculants based on graft co-polymers of gum ghatti (Gg) and a mixture of acrylamide and acrylonitrile co-monomers (AAm-co-AN). The hydrogel polymer exhibited an excellent swelling capacity of 921% in neutral medium at 60°C. The polymer was used to remove saline water from various petroleum fraction-saline water emulsions. The flocculation characteristics of the hydrogel polymer were studied in turbid kaolin solution as a function of the amount of polymer and the solution temperature and pH. Biodegradation studies of hydrogel polymer were conducted using the soil composting method, and the degradation process was constantly monitored using scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy techniques. The results demonstrated an 89.47% degradation of the polymer after 60 days. Finally, the hydrogel polymer adsorbed 98% of cationic dyes from the aqueous solutions.

Effect of functionalization on the adsorption capacity of cellulose for the removal of methyl violet.

In this research paper a comparative study has been carried out for the removal of methyl violet dye using unfunctionalized and functionalized cellulose. The functionalization was achieved through esterification of cellulose with furan-2,5-dione. The functionalization of the cellulose was evidenced using BET, FT-IR, SEM and TGA. The adsorption isotherm data was fitted using different isotherm models like Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Flory-Huggins and Dubinin-Kaganer-Radushkevich models and found to follow Langmuir and Temkin isotherm models with high value of correlation coefficients. Functionalized cellulose (106.38 mg g(-1)) showed higher dye removal capability than unfunctionalized cellulose (43.668 mg g(-1)). The kinetics of adsorption was investigated using pseudo first order, second order, Elovich, liquid film diffusion and intra-particle diffusion models. The mechanism of adsorption was found to follow pseudo second order rate equation. Thermodynamic studies showed that the adsorption process was endothermic and spontaneous.