An Automated Electroanalytical Method for the Drug Release Profiling of Liposomal Doxorubicin HCl Formulations.

Liposomes have emerged as a drug delivery system for various chemotherapeutics providing enhanced bioavailability and reduced toxicity. In vitro drug release profiling of liposomal formulations is one of the essential tests for the premarket approval and post market quality control. We developed an automated electroanalytical method for drug release profiling of liposomal doxorubicin formulation. In this electroanalytical method, square wave voltammetry mode was selected to determine the released drug, the only redox-active analyte, by measuring the current at the pulsed potential ranges. Therefore, no separation from liposomal encapsulated doxorubicin is needed. This electroanalytical method provided a continuous drug release measurement for 24 h. The drug release increased as the release media pH and temperature increased. At 37 °C, the drug release increased from 7 % to 40 % when the pH increased from 5.5 to 7.4, In addition, at pH 6.5, as the temperature increased from 37 °C to 52 °C, total drug release increased by more than two-fold. Complete drug release (more than 80 %) was obtained at pH 6.5 and 52 °C in less than 3 h. The brand name and the two generic formulations showed similar drug release profile in all experimental conditions. This method is an alternative to traditional methods which require separation steps such as dialysis or solid phase extraction to quantitate released doxorubicin. This method may be further applied in the in vitro release testing of other liposomal formulations containing redox-active drug substances, e.g., liposomes encapsulating daunorubicin.

[The effects of psychosocial skills training on symptomatology, insight, quality of life, and suicide probability in schizophrenia]. / Sizofrenide psikososyal beceri egitiminin belirti örüntüsü, içgörü, yasam kalitesi ve intihar olasiligi üzerine etkisi.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of psychosocial skills training (PST) on symptomatology, insight, quality of life, and suicide probability in patients with schizophrenia. METHOD: The sample consisted of 22 schizophrenic outpatients diagnosed according to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Three PST groups were formed and each group's training lasted approximately 6 months. Nineteen (86%) patients completed the study. The Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, Calgary Depression Rating Scale for Schizophrenia, Schedule for Assessing the Three Components of Insight, Quality of Life Scale for Patients with Schizophrenia, and Suicide Probability Scale were administered to the patients before and after PST. RESULTS: At the end of the study mean score for the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms score (baseline 8.5+/- +/- 9.9, post-PST 3.4 +/- +/-6.0, P = 0.004), Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (baseline 33.7 +/- +/-19.3, post-PST 22.1 +/- +/-15.7, P = 0.001), Calgary Depression Rating Scale for Schizophrenia (baseline 4.2 +/- +/-4.1, post-PST 0.7 +/- +/-1.0, P = 0.001), Schedule for Assessing the Three Components of Insight (baseline 11.1 +/- +/-3.4, post-PST 16.2 +/- +/-1.1, P < 0.0001), and Quality of Life Scale for Patients with Schizophrenia (baseline 53.5 +/- +/-20.0, post-PST 79.6 +/- +/-20.8, P < 0.0001) changed significantly, whereas the change in mean score for the Suicide Probability Scale (baseline 75.1+/- +/- 11.7, post-PST 71.3+/- +/- 8.0, P = 0.06) did not reach statistical significance. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated the effects of PST on the symptoms and functioning of patients with schizophrenia. It can be concluded that using PST for the treatment of schizophrenia, as an adjuvant to pharmacotherapy, could produce significant positive results.

Effects of second generation antipsychotics on leptin and ghrelin.

BACKGROUND: Weight gain is a major side effect of antipsychotic treatment. Some atypical antipsychotic agents have profound effects on weight. Body weight is regulated by a complex system, including both peripheral and central factors. Two of the hormones that seem to play an important role in the regulation of food intake, energy metabolism, and body weight are leptin and ghrelin. Leptin is a mediator of long-term regulation of energy balance, suppressing food intake and thereby inducing weight loss. Ghrelin on the other hand is a fast-acting hormone, seemingly playing a role in meal initiation. In this present study it is aimed to compare the effects of five different atypical antipsychotic medications on leptin and ghrelin. METHOD: 112 patients who were treated either with clozapine (n=20), olanzapine (n=28), risperidone (n=22), quetiapine (n=20) or amisulpride (n=22) as monotherapy for at least one year and age, gender, and body mass index (BMI) matched control group (n=23) were assessed cross-sectionally. Ghrelin and leptin levels were measured with enzyme-immunoassay. RESULTS: When fasting serum leptin levels were compared between groups, control group had the highest mean value (9.2+/-6.7) and amisulpride group had the lowest mean value (3.7+/-2.1) but still there was no statistically significant difference between six groups (F=1993, p=0.084). In the comparison of the mean values of fasting serum ghrelin levels there was a statistically significant difference between groups (F=11,473, p=0.00). In post-hoc analysis it was seen that the control group had the lowest ghrelin level (194.5+/-86.8). Quetiapine treated group (378.1+/-260.4) had similar fasting serum ghrelin levels to control group. All the other antipsychotic treatment groups had significantly higher levels of fasting serum ghrelin compared to control group, highest in amisulpride treated group (597.0+/-150.0). CONCLUSION: The weight-gain side effect of atypical antipsychotics can be related with the orexigenic effect of elevated serum ghrelin rather than leptin deficit. Among the five widely used atypical antipsychotics quetiapine is the only one which does not elevate the ghrelin level.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder in a dermatology outpatient clinic.

OBJECTIVE: The aims of present study were to (a) to determine the prevalence of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in dermatological patients, (b) to determine the possible relationship between dermatological lesions and OCD and (c) to determine the clinical and phenomenological features of the OCD subgroup. METHOD: The sample consisted of 166 out of 250 consecutively presenting dermatological patients who agreed to participate in the study. The subjects were assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Turkish Version (SCID-I) and also completed the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). RESULTS: Of the whole sample, 41 (24.7%) met DSM-IV criteria for OCD. Only 14.6% of them had previously been diagnosed as OCD. The mean score of Y-BOCS in the OCD group was 17.05 +/- 9.75. The most common obsessions were contamination (61%) and pathologic doubt (53.7%), while washing (61%) and checking (51.2%) were the most frequent compulsions. Those suffering from diseases of sebaceous glands were the only group that showed a significant difference between the OCD and non-OCD group. CONCLUSION: There is a high prevalence of OCD in dermatological patients, although the nature of the relationship between OCD and dermatology has not previously been ascertained. Genetic-based studies and future researches focused on individual anxiety, and sensitivity may provide information that better explains this relationship.