Impact of formulation design and lyophilisation on the physicochemical characteristics of finasteride nanosystems.

The fundamental purpose of this study was to develop a stable lyophilised finasteride nanosystem (FNS-NS) for topical delivery. The FNS-NS was fabricated using an ultrasonication technique. The impact of two different cryoprotectants on the physicochemical characteristics of FNS-NS before and after lyophilisation was thoroughly investigated. The lyophilised FNS-NS had spherical shape with particle size lied between 188.6 nm ± 4.4 and 298.7 nm ± 4.7, low PDI values (0.26 ± 0.02 to 0.32 ± 0.02) and zeta potential ranging from -38.3 to +53.3 mV. The confocal laser microscopy depicted a comparatively higher cellular internalisation achieved for undecorated FNS-NS with respect to its chitosan-decorated counterpart. The lyophilised FNS-NS was stable for 90 days at proper storage conditions. The FNS-NS with 15% trehalose had appropriate physicochemical attributes that could be a promising carrier for topical delivery to treat androgenic alopecia.

Physicochemical Characterization of Chitosan-Decorated Finasteride Solid Lipid Nanoparticles for Skin Drug Delivery.

Finasteride is considered the drug of choice for androgenic alopecia and benign prostate hyperplasia. The aim of the study was to formulate nanodrug carriers of finasteride with enhanced retentive properties in the skin. The finasteride was formulated as solid lipid nanoparticles that were decorated with different concentrations of chitosan for improved retentive properties. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) were synthesized by "high-speed homogenization technique" using stearic acid as a solid lipid while PEG-6000 and Tween-80 were used as surfactants. The SLNs were evaluated for particle size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential, drug entrapment efficiency, and drug release behavior. The mean particle size of SLNs was in the range of 10.10 nm to 144.2 nm. The PDI ranged from 0.244 to 0.412 while zeta potential was in the range of 8.9 mV to 62.6 mV. The drug entrapment efficiency in chitosan undecorated formulations was 48.3% while an increase in drug entrapment was observed in chitosan-decorated formulations (51.1% to 62%). The in vitro drug release studies of SLNs showed an extended drug release for 24 hours after 4 hours of initial burst release. The extended drug release was observed in chitosan-coated SLNs in comparison with uncoated nanoparticles. The permeation and retention study revealed higher retention of drug in the skin and low permeation with chitosan-decorated SLNs that ranged from 39.4 µg/cm2 to 13.2 µg/cm2. TEM images depicted spherical shape of SLNs. The stability study confirmed stable formulations in temperature range of 5°C and 40°C for three months. It is concluded from this study that the SLNs of finasteride were successfully formulated and chitosan decoration enhanced the drug retention in the skin layers. Therefore, these formulations could be used in androgenic alopecia and benign prostate hyperplasia to avoid the side effects, drug degradation, and prolonged use of drug with conventional oral therapy.

Psychological Impact of COVID-19 on Doctors and Medical Students of Punjab, Pakistan: A Logistic Regression Analysis.

Background: This study was carried out to find the awareness level, prevalence of anxiety and depression, and their associated factors among doctors and medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Punjab province, Pakistan. Materials and Methods: An online questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted; data were collected regarding the demographic profile, awareness of COVID-19, anxiety symptoms using a self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and depression symptoms using a self-rating depression scale (SDS). A total of 504 responses were obtained. The Chi-square test was used to compare groups and the logistic regression model for the association of factors with anxiety and depression. Results: A total of 504 medical students and doctors responded to the questionnaire. The mean age of participants was 25.66 ± 6.71 years. The awareness rate of COVID-19 was 97.6%. The prevalence rate of anxiety and depression was 3.4% and 15.1%, respectively. According to the logistic regression model, those with low awareness levels (≤6 points) and spending more time on the news (>3 hours) had higher levels of anxiety, while higher levels of depression symptoms were reported in females, young people, and medical students. Conclusion: Doctors and medical students had a high level of awareness of COVID-19 and a low level of anxiety and depression. However, female gender and younger age group were the most vulnerable groups significantly associated with depression.

Development, characterization and optimization of methotrexate-olive oil nano-emulsion for topical application.

The chronic inflammatory conditions like psoriasis has an increased prevalence and is linked with various associated life threatening disease conditions. The main objective of this project was to developed a methotrexate-olive loaded nano emulsion. The formulation was assessed for various parameters including Thermodynamic Stability, physico-chemically characterization, drug release kinetics and entrapment efficiency and in vitro/ in vivo skin permeation analysis. Final optimized formulation had a particle size 18.27±5.78 nm with a PDI of 0.25±0.01, whereas the average entrapment efficiency of formulation was 74.68±2.1%. The release kinetics suggested 97.72% drug release at pH 5 after 20 hrs. The FTIR data confirmed that the chemical structure of drug is retained with efficient loading into the formulation. Permeation data showed that an average of 79.23±3.6µg/cm2 of methotrexate was permeated from the nano emulsion with an average flux of 2.326±0.45µg/cm2/h after 24 hrs. Finally in vivo studies on rabbit skin confirmed that the structural changes of intercellular lipid layers in the stratum corneum are not responsible for enhanced skin permeation of methotrexate loaded nano emulsion. It was concluded that olive oil based MTX-NE is suitable for topical application and can be used for management of psoriasis.

Physicochemical Characterization of Finasteride Nanosystem for Enhanced Topical Delivery.

INTRODUCTION: The current work aimed to formulate a novel chitosan-based finasteride nanosystem (FNS-NS) for skin delivery to optimize the drug availability in skin for a longer time and enhance ex vivo performance of finasteride against androgenic alopecia. METHODS: Both undecorated and chitosan decorated FNS-NSs were synthesized by a high energy emulsification technique. All the prepared nanosystems were further subjected to physicochemical characterizations like pH, viscosity, encapsulation efficiency, surface morphology and in vitro drug release behavior. The influence of the nanosystem on the drug permeation and retention in rat skin was examined using Franz diffusion cell apparatus. RESULTS: The droplet size of developed nanosystems ranged from 41 to 864 nm with a low polydispersity index. The zeta potential of the nanosystems was between -10 mV and +56 mV. This chitosan decorated nanosystem exhibited controlled drug release, ie about 78-97% in 24 h. Among all the nanosystems, our chitosan decorated formulation (F5) had low drug permeation (16.35 µg/cm2) and higher drug retention (10.81 µg/cm2). CONCLUSION: The abovementioned results demonstrate satisfactory in vitro drug release, skin retention profiles and ex vivo performance with chitosan decorated FNS-NS (F5). This optimized formulation could increase drug availability in skin and could become a promising carrier for topical delivery to treat androgenic alopecia.

Awareness, anxiety, and depression in healthcare professionals, medical students, and general population of Pakistan during COVID-19 Pandemic: A cross sectional online survey.

Background: COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has seriously affected the entire world. This study was aimed to assess prevalence and influencing factors of anxiety and depression during the pandemic in our Pakistani population, including healthcare professionals, undergraduate medical students, and general public. Methods: An online cross sectional survey was conducted; with a questionnaire having demographic profile, COVID-19-related knowledge/awareness, self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and self-rating depression scale (SDS). A total of 1014 people responded to the survey. Chi square test was used to compare different groups, and logistic regression models were used to explore influencing factors for anxiety and depression symptoms. Results: Of the 1014 respondents, 92.6% were aware of COVID-19, and the prevalence rate of anxiety and depression symptoms was 4.6% and 14.3%, respectively. Healthcare professionals had more awareness about COVID-19 as compared to medical students and general public (p<0.001). Logistic regression models showed females, and people who were not aware of COVID-19 (≤ 6 points score) were more likely to have both anxiety and depression symptoms (p<0.05), the general public had more anxiety than healthcare professionals (p<0.05), while undergraduate medical students and young people had only depression (p<0.05). Conclusion: Although major mental health burden is not present in Pakistan, but there is a dire need to pay more attention to vulnerable groups like young people, undergraduate medical students, and women. Psychological interventions are required to reduce the psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic.