Physicochemical stimuli as tuning parameters to modulate the structure and stability of nanostructured lipid carriers and release kinetics of encapsulated antileprosy drugs.

To unveil the effect of electrolyte concentration, pH and polymer addition on Tween 80 stabilized nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs, based on dialkyldimethylammonium bromides DxDAB and Na oleate), an in-depth scattering analysis was performed. Dynamic and static light scattering (DLS/SLS) and small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) techniques along with zeta potential studies were exploited to understand the structural evolution and physical stability of NLCs. In these experiments, we varied the salt concentration, pH, and the admixture of Pluronic F127 in order to elucidate their effect on NLC morphologies. In most cases, two populations of different sizes are present which differ by one order of magnitude. The antileprosy drugs (ALD) Rifampicin and Dapsone were encapsulated in NLCs and the vector properties were assessed for a series of DxDAB (where x = 12, 14, 16 and 18) NLCs. The influence of composition on the entrapment and release behavior of NLCs was investigated: The size of NLCs correlates with the release rate of the incorporated drug. The interaction of drug-loaded NLCs with bovine serum albumin was studied to understand the release of ALD in the plasma.

Experimental validation of biocompatible nanostructured lipid carriers of sophorolipid: Optimization, characterization and in-vitro evaluation.

To date, the potential of sophorolipids (an important class of glycolipids) has been exploited solely as amphipathic molecules but their ability to formulate lipid nanoparticles has never been explored. In this report, for the first time, lipid nanostructures coated with polysorbates (Tweens) were formulated by a hot dispersion method. By varying the amount of lipid, type of surfactant, and alcohol, dilution ratio etc., the formulation was optimized with respect to its stability, which is a central aspect of their potential applications. Their comprehensive physicochemical characterization was done using static and dynamic light scattering (SLS, DLS), small angle neutron scattering (SANS), zeta-potential, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques. Further hemolysis study was conducted to understand the in-vitro cytotoxicity levels of the lipidic nanoparticles prior to its application as a potent drug delivery device for countermanding the problems associated with challenging tuberculosis and leprosy drug-Rifampicin. Attaining high entrapment efficiency and sustained release from the developed carrier, further interaction with bovine serum albumin was investigated, to understand the in-vivo behavior of the nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs).

Maxillary antrum involvement in multibacillary leprosy: a radiologic, sinuscopic, and histologic assessment.

Thirty patients having lepromatous leprosy (22 males, 8 females) and showing radiological involvement of the maxillary antrum were subjected to sinuscopy, biopsy, and histopathological examination. Radiological observations showed diffuse opacity in 33.3% of the sinuses, localized mucosal thickening in 28.6%, and generalized thickened mucosa in 38.1%. Sinuscopy revealed inflamed mucosa as the most common finding (40%), followed by ulcerative (26.7%) and granulomatous (10%) lesions of the mucosal lining. The mucosal thickening (localized or generalized) evident on radiology was always associated with granuloma formation and acid-fast bacilli in the histology. The presence of an external nasal deformity indicated a statistically significant chance of encountering mucosal involvement on sinuscopy and histopathology (p < 0.05). There was more chance of finding positive sinuscopic lesions in those patients with a bacterial index above 3+.

Cardiovascular dysautonomia in patients with lepromatous leprosy.

Autonomic functions were studied by six standard tests in 65 patients with lepromatous leprosy and 25 healthy controls. Dysautonomia was observed in 22 patients, all having the disease for more than five years. Associated peripheral neuropathy, judged clinically, was present in all, except one patient. Of the 22 dysautonomic patients, 9 each had mild or moderate dysantonomia and 4 had severe dysautonomia as per the scoring schedule devised by us. Syncope, gustatory sweating and impotence were the symptoms suggestive of dysautonomia. But not all affected patients reported these symptoms. Involvement of the sympathetic system was more frequent than that of the parasympathetic system. Statistically significant abnormality was seen with Atropine ratio, standing 30:15 beat ratio, postural hypotension and sustained hand grip test. Sustained hand grip test was the one which consistently gave abnormal results in all the 22 dysautonomic patients.

Cardiovascular system in leprosy.

Involvement of cardiovascular system (CVS) in 50 multibacillary (MB) and 20 paucibacillary (PB) cases of leprosy was evaluated. 20 age and sex matched controls were also studied. In addition to detailed clinical examination and resting electro-cardiogram, Master's two step exercise test (DMT) was also carried out to find out the occult and asymptomatic cardiac involvement. We have not found any significant symptomatic or electrocardiographic evidence of CVS involvement in various groups of leprosy.