Dry Dosage Forms of Add-Value Bioactive Phenolic Compounds by Supercritical CO2-Assisted Spray-Drying.

Every year, grapevine pruning produces huge amounts of residue, 90% of which are from vine shoots. These are a rich source of natural antioxidants, mostly phenolic compounds, which, when properly extracted, can give rise to added-value products. However, their lack of solubility in aqueous media and high susceptibility to thermal and oxidative degradation highly limit their bioavailability. Encapsulation in suitable carriers may have a positive impact on their bioavailability and bioactivity. Previous data on vine-shoot extraction have identified gallic acid (GA) and resveratrol (RSV) as the main phenolic compounds. In this work, model dry powder formulations (DPFs) of GA and RSV using hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) as carriers were developed using Supercritical CO2-Assisted Spray Drying (SASD). A 32 full factorial Design of Experiments investigated the solid and ethanol contents to ascertain process yield, particle size, span, and encapsulation efficiency. Amorphous powder yields above 60%, and encapsulation efficiencies up to 100% were achieved, representing excellent performances. SASD has proven to be an efficient encapsulation technique for these phenolic compounds, preserving their antioxidation potential after three months in storage with average EC50 values of 30.6 µg/mL for GA-DPFs and 149.4 µg/mL for RSV-DPF as assessed by the scavenging capacity of the DPPH radical.

Synthesis of Bis(3-indolyl)methanes Mediated by Potassium tert-Butoxide.

The indole moiety is an important N-heterocycle found in natural products, and a key structural component of many value-added chemicals including pharmaceuticals. In particular, bis(3-indolyl)methanes (BIMs) are an important subgroup of indoles, composed of two indole units. Herein, we report the development of a simple method to access BIMs derivatives in yields of up to 77 % by exploiting a tBuOK-mediated coupling reaction of indoles and benzyl alcohols.

Lúpus eritematoso sistêmico associado à moléstia de Hansen: relato de três casos / Systemic lupus erythematosus associated to Hansen's disease: report of 3 cases

Os autores descrevem três casos de lúpus eritematoso sistêmico (LES) associado à moléstia de Hansen (MH). Em dois casos, as manifestaçöes clínicas da MH precederam em média 13 anos o diagnóstico de LES. No outro, a paciente desenvolveu MH após oito anos de diagnóstico de LES, evoluindo com vasculite necrosante cutânea de dificil diferenciaçäo da verificada no LES, exceto pela presença do bacilo. Há relatos na literatura de casos de MH mimetizando clínica e laboratorialmente o LES. Entre as alteraçöes laboratoriais, säo descritas a presença de FAN, células LE, fator reumatóide e até mesmo anti-DNA. Dadas a raridade e dificuldade diagnóstica pela sobreposiçäo clínico-laboratorial, os autores relatam três casos dessa associaçäo e discutem o papel da imunidade celular na etipatogenia dessas patologias