Optimal User Scheduling in Multi Antenna System Using Multi Agent Reinforcement Learning.

Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) systems have been gaining significant attention from the research community due to their potential to improve data rates. However, a suitable scheduling mechanism is required to efficiently distribute available spectrum resources and enhance system capacity. This paper investigates the user selection problem in Multi-User MIMO (MU-MIMO) environment using the multi-agent Reinforcement learning (RL) methodology. Adopting multiple antennas' spatial degrees of freedom, devices can serve to transmit simultaneously in every time slot. We aim to develop an optimal scheduling policy by optimally selecting a group of users to be scheduled for transmission, given the channel condition and resource blocks at the beginning of each time slot. We first formulate the MU-MIMO scheduling problem as a single-state Markov Decision Process (MDP). We achieve the optimal policy by solving the formulated MDP problem using RL. We use aggregated sum-rate of the group of users selected for transmission, and a 20% higher sum-rate performance over the conventional methods is reported.

Optimization and validation of an analytical method for the estimation of methotrexate in rabbit plasma.

Methotrexate (MTX) is an anticancer drug used for the treatment of various cancers and autoimmune diseases. In this study, High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) method was developed and validated for the estimation of MTX in rabbit plasma with high estimation rate and recovery. Various validation parameters like, sensitivity, sample recovery, accuracy and precision analysis were studied. The pre-saturated reversed C18 end capped HPLC column was used to separate MTX present in rabbit plasma. A solvent mixture of 100mM phosphate buffer pH 7.4 and acetonitrile (92:8 percent v/v) was employed as the mobile phase. Analysis was carried out at ʎ max 303 nm and retention time of MTX was found 5.32 min. During the method development and validation ICHQ2 (R1) guidelines were strictly followed. Developed method was found excellent in terms of recovery of MTX from plasma samples (98.6%). It is obvious from the current study that the developed HPLC method can be utilized to analyze the level of MTX in patients. Furthermore, the cost of the developed method for the determination of MTX would be very low as compared to the previously reported methods.

Electrocatalysts for direct methanol fuel cells to demonstrate China's renewable energy renewable portfolio standards within the framework of the 13th five-year plan.

A unified treatment of the renewable portfolio standards is given concerning direct methanol fuel. The current mechanism of electrocatalysis of methanol oxidation on platinum and non-platinum-containing alloys is summarized for the systematic improvement of the rate of electro-oxidation of methanol are discussed. Policy realignment under the five-year plan is discussed in length to demonstrate how policy, markets, and engineering designs contribute towards the development of model direct methanol fuel cells operational enhancement, and factors that affect critical performance parameters for commercial exploitation are summarized for catalytic formulations and cell design within the context of why this investment in technology, education, and finances is required within the global context of sustainable energy and energy independence as exposed by thirteenth the five-year plan. The prolog focuses on the way, whereas the section on methanol fuel cells on the how and the post log on what is expected post-COVID-19 era in science and technology as China pivots to a post-fossil fuel economy. China's industrial growth has been through internal market reforms and supplies side economics from the Chinese markets for fossil fuels except for petroleum. The latest renewable portfolio standards adopted have common elements as adopted from North American and the United Kingdom in terms of adaptation of obligation in terms of renewable portfolio standards as well as a realization that the necessity for renewables standards for the thirteen five year plan (from 2016 to 2020) need to less rigorously implemented due to performance targets that were met during the eleventh (06-10) and twelfth five-year plans (11-15) in terms of utilization of small coal-ire power plants, development of newer standards, led to an improvement of energy efficiency of 15 %, reduction of SOx/NOx by an average of 90 % and PM2.5 by 96 % over the last two five-year plans. The current phase of the plan has a focus on energy generation from coal and a slowing down of renewables or Renewable energy curtailment of approximately 400 T Wh renewables including 300 T Wh of non-hydro power, principally from Guangdong, and Jiangsu for transfer of hydropower and Zhejiang, Tianjin, Henan for non-hydro power transfer with Beijing and Shanghai playing important roles in renewables energy curtailment and realignment using an integrated approach to optimize each provinces energy portfolio. The realignment of the renewable energy portfolio indicates that the newly installed capacity in Sichuan, Yunnan, Inner Mongolia, and Zhejiang will account for less than 20 % of the current renewable energy portfolio but with the NOx SOx and PM2.5 savings already accrued. The catalytic reduction of carbon dioxide to methanol (70 / 110 million metric tons from all sources in 2019 for China/world) is one technological approach to reduce global carbon dioxide emissions and suggests that catalytic methanol synthesis by CO2 hydrogenation may be a plausible approach, even if it is more expensive economically than methanol synthesis by the syngas approach. This is because the CO2 emissions of the synthesis are lower than other synthesis methodologies. The Chinese government has placed a premium on cleaner air and water and may view such an approach as solving the dual issues of fuel substitution and reduction of CO2. Thus, the coupling of hydrogen generation from sustainable energies sources (Solar 175 / 509 GW) or wind (211/591.5 GW in 2019) may be an attractive approach, as this requires slightly less water than coal gasification. Due to the thermodynamic requirement of lower operating pressure and higher operating pressure, currently, there is no single operational approach, although some practice approaches (220 °C at 48 atm using copper) and zinc oxide/alumina are suggested for optimal performance.

Diabetes-related Knowledge, Medication Adherence, and Health-related Quality of Life: A Correlation Analysis.

CONTEXT: Even though positive treatment outcomes for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are linked to disease knowledge and adherence to medications, inadequate knowledge, poor adherence, and resistance to lifestyle modifications are still common among patients. This situation has been a continuing dilemma for patients and healthcare providers, and these factors negatively affect the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients. OBJECTIVE: The current study intended to evaluate the correlations between diabetes-related knowledge, medication adherence, and HRQoL among T2DM patients in Pakistan. DESIGN: The study was designed as a questionnaire-based, cross-sectional descriptive analysis, with participants being selected using a prevalence-based sampling method. SETTING: The study was conducted at four different healthcare institutes namely Sandeman Provincial Hospital, Bolan Medical Complex Hospital, Al-Khair Hospital and Sajid Hospital, Quetta city, Pakistan. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 300 patients with T2DM who were receiving treatment at public and private healthcare institutes in Quetta, Pakistan. OUTCOME MEASURES: In addition to collection of demographics, the Urdu version of Michigan Diabetes Knowledge Test (MDKT-U), the Drug Attitude Inventory (DAI-10), and the EuroQol EQ-5D were used to assess diabetes-related knowledge, medication adherence and HRQoL, respectively. The relationships among the 3 variables were determined using the Spearmen rho correlation coefficient, and the results were interpreted using Cohen' criteria. SPSS v.20 was used for data analysis, and P < .05 was considered significant for all analysis. RESULTS: The mean diabetes-related knowledge score was 5.83 ± 1.92, indicating participants' lack of knowledge of T2DM. Moderate adherence was reported, with a mean adherence score of 4.94 ± 2.72. Additionally, the mean EQ-5D score was 0.48±0.36, and the mean Visual Analogue Score (VAS) was 54.58 ± 20.28, highlighting poor HRQoL. The Spearman's rho correlation coefficient indicated significant, moderate correlations among all variables (P < .05; r = 0.053-0.231). CONCLUSIONS: The study found limited diabetes-related knowledge, moderate medication adherence, and poor HRQoL among patients with T2DM in Pakistan. Nevertheless, a positive significant correlation revealed that a directly proportional change in one study variable can improve the others.

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.

Therapeutic appraisal of ephedrine against rheumatoid arthritis: A new indication.

Ephedra, natural flora has been used traditionally to treat rheumatism since decades. The scientific evidence of anti-rheumatic effect of this plant has also been reported. But the anti-rheumatic activity of major constituent of this plant (ephedrine) has not been evaluated. Based on this, the current study was aimed to assess anti-arthritic activity of ephedrine by using in vitro and in vivo approaches. Correspondingly, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay was performed for the estimation of prostaglandins E2 (PGE2) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in serum of formaldehyde-induced arthritic animals. The results elaborated significant reduction in albumin denaturation and remarkable progress on stabilization of red blood cells outer membrane at higher concentration during in vitro experiments. The ephedrine (40mg/kg) revealed noteworthy (p<0.001) inhibition in paw swelling in animals intoxicated with albumin as well as formaldehyde as compared to animals of control group by in vivo results. In this assay, ephedrine (20 & 40 mg/kg orally) significantly suppressed the level of these inflammatory markers (PGE2 & TNF-α). Ephedrine exhibited anti-arthritic effect by decreasing pro-inflammatory cytokines (PGE2 & TNF-α). This experimental work pharmacologically supports the use of ephedrine as anti-rheumatic drug but limited to evaluate in immunological arthritic model.

Development and validation of single analytical HPLC method for determination of flavoxate HCl in bulk, tablets and biological fluids.

A simple, sensitive and precise high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed and validated for determination of flavoxate HCI in raw material, tablets and biological fluids. The method followed by using the Zorbax XDB-C18 column containing Di-isobutyl n-octadeceylsilane (4.6mm×150mm, 5µm). The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile: methanol: 0.15M sodium perchlorate (17:35:48 v/v) having pH 3. UV detection was carried out at 229nm at 40°C. Results indicated that the method has successfully established and validated in accordance with ICH guidelines acceptance criteria for linearity (0.03-7.5µg), accuracy (101.18-101.28%), robustness of column age and column lot (peak area %CV<0.04, purity %CV< 0.006) and robustness of HPLC condition (%CV<0.02), precision (intra and inter day precision assay, %CV values for peak area and percent purity of flavoxate HCl<2%) and system suitability parameters. The average noise, theoretical LOD and LOQ were found to be 0.01 mAU, 0.03 mAU and 0.6ng, respectively. The Coefficient of determination (r2) ranging from 0.03µg to 7.5µg, 0.99 which was within acceptable criteria of r2 & gt 0.99. The spiked recoveries of samples were 101.28, 101.18 and 101.18% respectively. All data revealed that this method can be used for in-vitro & in-vivo determination of flavoxate HCI in various pharmaceutical preparations.

Conversion of extracted titanium tailing and waste glass to value-added porous glass ceramic with improved performances.

One of the major advances of this research is to produce porous glass ceramics (PGCs) via a feasible and cost-effective powder forming chemistry to convert solid wastes, extracted titanium tailing (ETT) and waste glass (WG) into the value-added PGCs. The maximum handling amount of ETT (30%) is determined from systematic experiments, based on the end use of these PGCs, which are manifested as controlled-crystalline porous structures of hybrid matrices. These multiscale porous networks are composed of a tunable pore size, high surface area and accessibility. The synthetic PGCs are found to display enhanced physical properties, as a result, the stewardship of their intrinsic chemical behaviors can be secured. To elucidate, the PGC shows an apparent density of 0.60 ± 0.01 g cm-3, a porosity of 76.0 ± 0.4%, a high compressive strength of 3.8 ± 0.2 MPa, an available water adsorption ratio of 4.4 ± 0.1%, a heat conductivity of 0.103 ± 0.003 W m-1 °C-1 and an applicable coefficient of thermal expansion ((5.43 ± 0.05) × 10-6 m m-1 °C -1). This study indicates that indeed the powder forming chemistry provide a simple method to advance the conversion of industry and municipal solid waste (ETT & WG) into value-added PGCs with improved physical and chemical properties.

Smart nanocrystal of indomethacin: Nanonization and characterization through top down method of media milling.

Indomethacin is potent and effective drug belongs to NSAID group having low bioavailability. To address this issue the novel method is Nanosuspensions which can be achieved through bottom up and top down methods. The drug concentration, batch size and crystallinity retention are the problems associated with bottom up method consequently top down method was applied. In current project batch size of 350 ml was prepared by mixing 3.5% of Indomethacin with polymer solution. Then it was introduced into Dena⌖ having 0.2µm yttrium reinforced zirconium beads. The effect of milling time was observed for sixty minutes. Stable nanocrystals with particle size of 161nm ±1.90 with PDI of 0.229 ±0.06 were produced. The DSC and PXRD confirmed the crystallinity of created nanocrystals. The pattern of particle size reduction was initially abrupt and then gradual. The two months Stability studies at 4°C and at 25°C revealed that polymers combination (PVP-K30, HPMC-6cps, SDS) were effective in marinating the stability. The SEM and TEM studies unfastened that nanocrystals were homogenously distributed with discrete crystalline morphology. The fabricated nanocrystals demonstrated marked dissolution rate compared to the raw and marketed formulations. It is demonstrated that it is useful for industry due to high drug concentration, large batch size and retention of distinct characteristics.

Comparative hepatoprotective effect of Nigella sativa pre- and post-treatment to rabbits.

Synthetic drugs are associated with adverse side-effects and rapid increase in resistance to most of them inspires to evaluate plants for their therapeutic values. We have been aimed to suggest the medicinal use of Nigella sativa seed aqueous extract to minimize the severity of liver damage via its antioxidant properties and its role in maintenance of cell ion-homeostasis. Annoyances in serum levels of some antioxidants and trace metals in human hepatitis C infected patients were compared with that from acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxic rabbits. Serum analysis of human patients and that of hepatotoxic rabbits have exhibited the same trend of incidence of liver marker enzymes, antioxidant levels, and trace metal concentrations, except for the serum levels of cobalt. Significance of pre-/ or post-treatment of Nigella sativa to acetaminophen induced-hepatotoxic rabbit has also evaluated. NS post-treatment to rabbits has been found effective in normalizing the levels (P<0.001) of serum liver markers; especially the ALP levels, and the antioxidants; with significant effect on the serum catalase levels. However, NS pre-treatment has shown its role (P<0.001) in maintaining the serum nickel and cobalt concentrations. Therefore, we suggest the use of Nigella sativa seeds as pre-/ or post-treatment therapy, and also as supplement to the normal medications of liver infection to normalize the status of cell antioxidants and trace metal concentrations.

Enhanced dissolution rate of Ketoprofen by fabricating into smart nanocrystals.

The low bioavailability of Ketoprofen is associated with its hydrophobic nature that can be solved by nanonization. For this purpose, a polymeric solution with drug concentration of 3.5% w/w was formulated. The produced solution was milled for 60 minutes in DENA® mill which contains 0.2µ m yttrium reinforced zirconium beads. The Physicochemical properties, characterization including stability studies of the prepared nanoparticles were carried out using pharmacopeial techniques of zeta potential, PXRD, DSC, SEM and TEM. Results suggest that stable crystalline nanocrystals with a size of 169±1.98nm with PDI of 0.194±0.04 and zeta potential of -22.0±2.25mV were produced. Moreover, enhances in-vitro release rate of 78.6% for the processed Ketoprofen was achieved in first 5 min as compared to raw form and marketed drug which released only 22.9% and 33.1% of drug respectively. The 60 days stability studies at 4oC & 25°C revealed that polymers PVP-K30-HPMC-6cps-SDS were effective in stabilizing the nanocrystals. Comparatively stable ketoprofen nanocrystals were successfully produced by DENA® mill with marked enhanced dissolution rate. It proved a useful for commercialization technique due to high drug concentration and retention of distinct characteristics at large scale.

Development of a rapid resolution HPLC method for the quantitative determination of sitagliptin in Human plasma.

A new high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the quantitative determination of sitagliptin in human plasma was developed and validated for pharmacokinetics study. The plasma was spiked with the internal standard (Salbutamol, IS), extracted with trichloro acetic acid. The extracted analyte was injected into a Symmetry® ODS C18 column (250mm×4.5mm, 5m) and the flourometric detector was operated at 267nm for excitation and 575nm for emission. The mobile phase consisting of Potassium dihydrogen phosphate buffer pH (4.9)-Acetonitrile-Methanol (30:50:20 v/v) at flow rate of 1.0mL/min. The method showed high specificity. Calibration curves of the peak area ratio of each analyte/IS versus sitagliptin concentration were linear in the range of 0.122-31.25µg/mL (r>0.989) for plasma and 0.012-25ug/ml for QC solution(r>0.995). The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.122µg/mL in plasma and 0.012 in QC solution. The intraday and interday coefficient of variation was lower than 10%. The accuracy (relative recovery) at three levels was 100.95%, 101.03% and 97.79% respectively. The extraction recovery was 97.6%, 92.2% and 91.96% at the concentrations of 6.25, 25 and 100µg/mL, respectively. Short term and long term, freeze thaw stability of standard solutions and plasma samples were satisfactory. The optimized HPLC method was validated and proved to be specific, robust and accurate for determination of Sitagliptin in human plasma.

Phytochemical analysis and antimicrobial activity of aqueous and methanolic extracts of the flowers of Nelumbium speciosum.

In present investigation aqueous and methanolic extracts of Nelumbium speciosum flowers were screened for phytochemical constituents and antibacterial activity to ascertain their traditional use. Antimicrobial activity of both extracts was tested by Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method against four Gram positive strains, viz. Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC25923), Streptococcus agalactiae (13813), Bacillus subtilis (ATCC 6633), Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC 12228) and four Gram negative bacterial strains Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), Proteus mirabilis (12453) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (10031). Phytochemical analysis showed the presence of tannins, saponins and alkaloids in both extracts while flavonoids and steroids were present only in methanolic extract. Methanolic extract of Nelumbium speciosum flower showed concentration dependent antibacterial activity against all tested strains with maximum zone of inhibition (17.3±0.3mm) against P. aeruginosa. Aqueous extract showed concentration dependent activity against S. aureus, E. coli, B. subtilis and S. epidermidis with maximum antibacterial activity against E. coli (14.3±0.3mm). MIC of methanolic and aqueous extracts was in the range of 0.015-0.251 and 0.0625-0.251 mg/mL, respectively. Results showed that methanolic extract of Nelumbium speciosum exhibits superior antibacterial activity than aqueous extract.

Profile and predictors of health related quality of life among type II diabetes mellitus patients in Quetta city, Pakistan.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to assess the profile and predictors of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in Type II Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients in Quetta, Pakistan. METHODS: The study was designed as a questionnaire based, cross sectional analysis. 300 Type II diabetic patients attending public and private hospitals were targeted for data collection. In addition to demographic and disease related information, Euroqol Quality of Life was used to measure HRQoL. Moreover, Drug Attitude Inventory and Michigan Diabetes Knowledge Test were used to assess medication adherence and diabetes related knowledge respectively. Treatment satisfaction was assessed by patient's experience towards health care professionals and available facilities. Descriptive statistics were used to elaborate patients' demographic and disease related characteristics. Binary logistic regression was used to predict factors independently associated with HRQoL. SPSS v. 20 was used for data analysis and p < 0.05 was taken as significant. RESULTS: Patients in the current study reported poor HRQoL with a mean score of 0.48 ± 0.36. Age, duration of disease, number of prescribed drugs, medication adherence and treatment satisfaction were significantly associated (p < 0.05) with HRQoL in the cross tabulation analysis. The significant variables were entered into the model that showed significant goodness of fit with highly significant Omnibus Test of Model Coefficient (Chi-square = 12.983, p = 0.030, df = 4). Medication adherence was reported as a significant predictor of HRQoL with an increase of one adherence score was associated with improvement of HRQoL by a factor of 1.75 provided other variables remain constant. CONCLUSION: The study presents a model that is associated with HRQoL with patient with T2DM, where medication adherence shaped as a predictor of HRQoL. Healthcare professionals should pay special attention on patients' medication taking behavior and should put their efforts in explaining the benefits of the medication adherence to the patients.

Frequency and predictors of anxiety and depression among pregnant women attending tertiary healthcare institutes of Quetta City, Pakistan.

BACKGROUND: Anxiety and depression (A&D) are commonly reported among pregnant women from all over the world; however, there is a paucity of workable data from the developing countries including Pakistan. The current study, therefore, aims to find out the frequency and predictors of A&D among pregnant women attending a tertiary healthcare institutes in the city of Quetta, in the Balochistan province, Pakistan. METHODS: A questionnaire based, cross-sectional survey was conducted. The pre-validated Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to assess the frequency of A&D among study respondents. Anxiety and depression scores were calculated via standard scoring procedures while logistic regression was used to identify the predictors of A&D. SPSS v. 20 was used for data analysis and p < 0.05 was taken as significant. RESULTS: Seven hundred and fifty pregnant women responded to the survey. The majority of the respondents belonged to age group of 26-35 year (424, 56.4%) and had no formal education (283, 37.6%). Furthermore, 612 (81.4%) of the respondents were unemployed and had urban residencies (651, 86.6%). The mean anxiety score was 10.08 ± 2.52; the mean depression score was 9.51 ± 2.55 and the total HADS score was 19.23 ± 3.91 indicating moderate A&D among the current cohort. Logistic regression analysis reported significant goodness of fit (Chi square = 17.63, p = 0.030, DF = 3), indicating that the model was advisable. Among all variables, age had a significant association when compared with HADS scores [adjusted OR (odds ratios) = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.13-1.62, p < 0.001]. CONCLUSION: Moderate A&D was reported among the study respondents. Furthermore, age was highlighted as a predictor of A&D. The evidence from this study provides a motion of support programs for anxious and depressed pregnant women. The benefits of implementing good mental health in antenatal care have long-lasting benefits for both mother and infant. Therefore, there is a need to incorporate A&D screening in the existing antenatal programs.

Effect of metal surfaces on matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization analyte peak intensities.

Different metal surfaces in the form of transmission electron microscope grids were examined as support surfaces in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry with a view towards enhancement of peptide signal intensity. The observed enhancement between 5-fold and 20-fold relative to the normal stainless steel slide was investigated by applying the thermal desorption model for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization. A simple model evaluates the impact that the thermal properties of the metals have on the ion yield of the analyte. It was observed that there was not a direct, or strong, correlation between the thermal properties of the metals and the corresponding ion yield of the peptides. The effects of both fixed and variable laser irradiances versus ion yield were also examined for the respective metals studied. In all cases the use of transmission electron microscope grids required much lower laser irradiances in order to generate similar peak intensities as those observed with a stainless steel surface.

Evaluation of superabsorbent linseed-polysaccharides as a novel stimuli-responsive oral sustained release drug delivery system.

CONTEXT: Advancement in technology has transformed the conventional dosage forms to intelligent drug delivery systems. Such systems are helpful for targeted and efficient drug delivery with minimum side effects. Drug release from these systems is governed and controlled by external stimuli (pH, enzymes, ions, glucose, etc.). Polymeric biomaterial having stimuli-responsive properties has opened a new area in drug delivery approach. OBJECTIVE: Potential of a polysaccharide (rhamnogalacturonan)-based hydrogel from Linseeds (Linum usitatissimum L.) was investigated as an intelligent drug delivery material. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Different concentrations of Linseed hydrogel (LSH) were used to prepare caffeine and diacerein tablets and further investigated for pH and salt solution-responsive swelling, pH-dependent drug release, and release kinetics. Morphology of tablets was observed using SEM. RESULTS: LSH tablets exhibited dynamic swelling-deswelling behavior with tendency to swell at pH 7.4 and in deionized water while deswell at pH 1.2, in normal saline and ethanol. Consequently, pH controlled release of the drugs was observed from tablets with lower release (<10%) at pH 1.2 and higher release at pH 6.8 and 7.4. SEM showed elongated channels in swollen then freeze-dried tablets. DISCUSSION: The drug release was greatly influenced by the amount of LSH in the tablets. Drug release from LSH tablets was governed by the non-Fickian diffusion. CONCLUSIONS: These finding indicates that LSH holds potential to be developed as sustained release material for tablet.

COLOCASIA ESCULENTA CORMS MUCILAGE-ALGINATE MICROSPHERES OF OXCARBAZEPINE: DESIGN, OPTIMIZATION AND EVALUATION.

The present investigation was undertaken with an objective of formulating sustained release microspheres of oxcarbazepine (OXC), an anti-epileptic drug, to overcome poor patient compliance and exposure to high doses associated with currently marketed OXC dosage forms. Ionic gelation technique was used to prepare OXC microspheres by using sodium alginate along with rate controlling polymer Colocasia esculenta mucilage (CEM) matrix as well coated form. The microspheres have been characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for understanding thermal stability and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy to investigate the chemical interaction as well as to assess the structure of drug-loaded formulation. Surface morphology of the microspheres was investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The size distribution of OXC microspheres as studied by optical microscopy was in the range of 394-575 pm. The microspheres exhibited encapsulating efficiency from 75 to 92%. The release of drug from the microspheres at pH 1.2 is negligible. Under neutral conditions, the microspheres were swell and release was attributed mainly to polymer relaxation. The release pattern from microspheres followed Korsmeyer-Peppas model and the value of n > 1 showed that drug released by anomalous (non-Fickian) diffusion. The data obtained thus suggest that a microparticulate system can be successfully designed by using CEM with alginate for sustained delivery of OXC.

APPLICATION OF VARIOUS POLYMERS AND POLYMERS BASED TECHNIQUES USED TO IMPROVE SOLUBILITY OF POORLY WATER SOLUBLE DRUGS: A REVIEW.

Solubility is concerned with solute and solvent to form a homogenous mixture. If solubility of a drug is low, then usually it is difficult to achieve desired therapeutic level of drug. Most of the newly developed entities have solubility problems and encounter difficulty in dissolution. Basic aim of solubility enhancement is to achieve desired therapeutic'level of drug to produce required pharmacological response. Different techniques are being used to enhance the solubility of water insoluble drugs. These techniques include particle size reduction, spray drying, kneading method, solvent evaporation method, salt formation, microemulsions, co-solven- cy, hydrosols, prodrug approach, supercritical fluid process, hydrogel micro particles etc. Selection of solubility improving method depends on drug properties, site of absorption, and required dosage form characteristics. Variety of polymers are also used to enhance solubility of these drugs like polyethylene glycol 300, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, chitosan, ß-cyclodextrins etc.

Does adherence to the therapeutic regimen associate with health related quality of life: Findings from an observational study of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients in Pakistan.

Patient adherence with a therapeutic regimen predicts successful treatment and reduces the severity of negative complications. The purpose of this work was to find the relationship between general Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) and compliance to the treatment among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients (T2DM) in Sargodha, Pakistan. The research was planned as a cross-sectional survey. T2DM patients attending a tertiary care institute in Sargodha, Pakistan were targeted for the study. The Urdu version of the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-Urdu) and EuroQol Quality of Life Scale were employed to evaluate adherence to treatment regimen and HRQoL correspondingly. Descriptive statistics were used for the elaboration of socio-demographic characteristics. The Spearman rank order test was employed to determine the relationship between medicine adherence and HRQoL. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. A total of 392 patients were selected for the survey. Most participants were males (n=222, 56.6%) with 5.58±4.09 years of history of T2DM. Majority of respondents (n=137, 34.9%) were categorized in age group of 51 to 60 years with mean age of 50.77±9.671 years. The present study highlighted that individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus had decreased HRQoL (0.4715±0.3360) and poor medication adherence (4.44±1.8). Significant, yet weak positive correlations were observed between medication adherence and HRQoL (r=0.217 and 0.136 for EQ-5D and EQVAS respectively). Although the association between adherence to therapeutic regimen and HRQoL in the present study cohort was significant, it was rated as weak, hence failed in producing an overall impression on quality of life. The study highlights the need of identifying other individual factors affecting HRQoL among T2DM patients in Pakistan.