Efficacy of UV and UV-LEDs Irradiation Models for Microbial Inactivation Applicable to Automated Sterile Drug Compounding.

LEDs development has attracted attention over conventional mercury lamps for the tiny size, high efficiency, long lifetime, low operating temperature. The antimicrobial effectiveness of traditional UV-lamps radiation (wavelength of 254 nm) compared to UV-C LEDs (LED1 wavelength range 275-286 nm and LED2 range 260-270 nm) was carried out, for possible applications to automated sterile drug compounding. The UV lamp and the tested UV-LED devices remarkably reduced microbial load, following a time-dose response, but the best performance was evidenced by LED1, which guaranteed the complete inactivation of high concentrations of bacteria, yeasts, and spores at doses between 200 and 2000 J/m.

Microbiological validation of a robot for the sterile compounding of injectable non-hazardous medications in a hospital environment.

Objectives: To design and execute a comprehensive microbiological validation protocol to assess a brand-new sterile compounding robot in a hospital pharmacy environment, according to ISO and EU GMP standards.

Methods: Qualification of the Class-A inner environment of the robot was performed through microbial air and surface quality assessment utilising contact plates, swabs and particulate matter monitoring. To evaluate the effectiveness of the microbial decontamination process (UV rays) challenge test against , , spores and was used.

Efficacy of four cleaning solutions for the decontamination of selected cytotoxic drugs on the different surfaces of an automated compounding system.

The automated aseptic preparation of ready-to-administer antineoplastic drug solutions with robotic systems reduces the risk of occupational exposure. However, the surfaces in the preparation area of the robot are to be cleaned by wiping with an appropriate cleaning solution. The aim of the study was to evaluate the cleaning efficacy of four cleaning solutions on four surface materials installed in the APOTECAchemo robot.

Performance evaluation of the compounding robot, APOTECAchemo, for injectable anticancer drugs in a Japanese hospital.

Background: The accuracy, safety and feasibility of, the compounding robot APOTECAchemo were evaluated in the clinical practice of Japan.

Methods: Accuracy and precision of robotic preparations by APOTECAchemo was evaluated in 20 preparations of fluorouracil (FU) and cyclophosphamide (CPA) infusions by four pharmacists. Environmental and product contaminations with FU and CPA were evaluated by wipe testing.

Robotic i.v. medication compounding: Recommendations from the international community of APOTECAchemo users.

Purpose: The development of recommendations for advancing automated i.v. medication compounding is described.

Evaluation of ultraviolet irradiation efficacy in an automated system for the aseptic compounding using challenge test.

Objective: Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation efficacy in the intravenous compounding robot APOTECAchemo was evaluated to define the best operative conditions in terms of sterility and time optimization.

Design: The challenge test was used against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis spores and Candida albicans. Inoculated plates were placed inside the robot and irradiated for different times.

Environmental contamination by cyclophosphamide preparation: Comparison of conventional manual production in biological safety cabinet and robot-assisted production by APOTECAchemo.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare environmental contamination of cyclophosphamide (CP) during 1 week of drug compounding by conventional manual procedure in a biological safety cabinet (BSC) with laminar airflow and a new robotic drug preparation system (APOTECAchemo).

Methods: During four consecutive days, similar numbers of infusion bags with cyclophosphamide were prepared with both techniques in a cross-over design. Wipe samples (49 for BSC, 50 for APOTECAchemo) were taken at several locations (gloves, infusion bags, trays, BSC-benches, floor) in the pharmacy and analyzed for CP concentrations by GC-MSMS (LOD 0.

Automated preparation of chemotherapy: quality improvement and economic sustainability.

Purpose: The quality and economic implications of manual versus automated preparation of antineoplastic drugs were compared.

Methods: This four-week study evaluated 10 routinely used antineoplastic drugs (fluorouracil, cyclophosphamide, gemcitabine, trastuzumab, bevacizumab, oxaliplatin, cisplatin, paclitaxel, irinotecan, and etoposide) prepared by manual and automated procedures. The accuracy of the dose of the active ingredient was calculated in terms of percent relative error for the difference between the nominal value indicated on the prescription and the actual value of the drug in the finished product.

Electron transfer in pristine and functionalised single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Since their very first days, electron transfer has always played a special role in carbon nanotubes' life. In view of their structural and electronic uniqueness, carbon nanotubes have been proposed either as bulk electrode materials for sensing and biosensing in advanced electrochemical devices, or as molecular-sized electrodes for very fast electrode kinetics investigations. Alternatively, electron transfer has been used to probe the electronic properties of carbon nanotubes by either direct voltammetric inspection or coupling with spectroscopic techniques, ultimately allowing, in the case of true solutions of individual uncut single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), to single-out their redox potentials as a function of diameter.

Singling out the electrochemistry of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes in solution.

Bandgap fluorescence spectroscopy of aqueous, micelle-like suspensions of SWNTs has given access to the electronic energies of individual semiconducting SWNTs, while substantially lower is the success achieved in the determination of the redox properties of SWNTs as individual entities. Here we report an extensive voltammetric and vis-NIR spectroelectrochemical investigation of true solutions of unfunctionalized SWNTs and determine the standard electrochemical potentials of reduction and oxidation as a function of the tube diameter of a large number of semiconducting SWNTs. We also establish the Fermi energy and the exciton binding energy for individual tubes in solution.

Growth of p- and n-dopable films from electrochemically generated C60 cations.

The formidable electron-acceptor properties of C60 contrast with its difficult oxidations. Only recently it has become possible to achieve reversibility of more than one electrochemical anodic process versus the six reversible cathodic reductions. Here we exploit the reactivity of electrochemical oxidations of pure C60 to grow a film of high thermal and mechanical stability on the anode.

Solution and solid-state preparation of 18-crown[6] complexes with M[HSO4]n salts (M = NH4+, K+, Sr2+ and n = 1, 2) and an investigation of solvation/desolvation processes and crystal polymorphism.

18-Crown[6] ether has been used to prepare a new class of organic-inorganic complexes of general formula 18-crown[6]M[HSO(4)](n) (where M = NH(4) (+), K(+), Sr(2+) and n = 1, 2) by reacting directly in solution or in the solid state the crown ether 18-crown[6] with inorganic salts such as [NH(4)][HSO(4)], K[HSO(4)], and Sr[HSO(4)](2). The structures of 18-crown[6][NH(4)][HSO(4)]2 H(2)O (12 H(2)O), 18-crown[6][NH(4)][HSO(4)] (1), 18-crown[6]K[HSO(4)]2 H(2)O (22 H(2)O), 18-crown[6]K[HSO(4)] (2), and 18-crown[6]Sr[HSO(4)](2) (3) have been characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The reversible water loss in compounds 12 H(2)O and 22 H(2)O leads to formation of the corresponding anhydrous phases 18-crown[6][NH(4)][HSO(4)] (1), and 18-crown[6]K[HSO(4)] (2), which undergo, on further heating, enantiotropic solid-solid transitions very likely associated with the on-set of a solid state dynamical process.

Synthesis, characterization, and photoinduced electron transfer in functionalized single wall carbon nanohorns.

Single-wall carbon nanohorns (SWNHs) are a new class of material that is closely related to single-wall carbon nanotubes. Here, we describe the synthesis and characterization of a series of SWNHs functionalized with ethylene glycol chains and porphyrins. Functionalization of carbon nanohorns has been achieved using two different synthetic protocols: (1) direct attack of a free amino group on the nanohorn sidewalls (nucleophilic addition) and (2) amidation reaction of the carboxylic functions in oxidized nanohorns.

Interactions in single wall carbon nanotubes/pyrene/porphyrin nanohybrids.

This work provides an in-depth look at a range of physicochemical aspects of (i) single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT), (ii) pyrene derivatives (pyrene(+)), (iii) porphyrin derivatives (ZnP(8)()(-)() and H(2)()P(8)()(-)()), (iv) poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate), and (v) their combinations. Implicit in their supramolecular combinations is the hierarchical integration of SWNT (as electron acceptors), together with ZnP(8)()(-)() or H(2)()P(8)()(-)() (as electron donors), in an aqueous environment mediated through pyrene(+). This supramolecular approach yields novel electron donor-acceptor nanohybrids (SWNT/pyrene(+)/ZnP(8)()(-)() or SWNT/pyrene(+)/H(2)()P(8)()(-)()).

Fluorinated fullerenes: sources of donor-acceptor dyads with [18]trannulene acceptors for energy- and electron-transfer reactions.

Fine-tuned control over the donor strength in a series of trannulenes-based donor-acceptor ensembles is used to alter the deactivation path of the photoexcited-state chromophore and to modulate the rates of intramolecular electron transfer. For the first time, a detailed analysis of emission spectra, time-dependent spectroscopic measurements, and electrochemistry prove spectroscopically and kinetically that trannulenes can serve, in a manner similar to C(60) and C(60) monoadducts, as both electron and also as energy acceptor in donor-acceptor ensembles, producing widely different electron-transfer regimes. This investigation also shows that the integration of trannulenes, as a versatile electron-acceptor building block, consistently produces charge recombination in the inverted Marcus region.

Supramolecular hybrids of [60]fullerene and single-wall carbon nanotubes.

Noncovalent interactions between purified HiPCO single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) and a [60]fullerene-pyrene dyad, synthesized through a regioselective double-cyclopropanation process, produce stable suspensions in which the tubes are very well dispersed, as evidenced by microscopy characterization. Cyclic voltammetry experiments and photophysical characterization of the suspensions in organic solvents are all indicative of sizeable interactions of the pyrene moiety with the SWNT and, therefore, of the prevalence in solution of [60]fullerene-pyreneSWNT hybrids.

Versatile coordination chemistry towards multifunctional carbon nanotube nanohybrids.

Dispersible single-walled carbon nanotubes grafted with poly(4-vinylpyridine), SWNT-PVP, were tested in coordination assays with zinc tetraphenylporphyrin (ZnP). Kinetic and spectroscopic evidence corroborates the successful formation of a SWNT-PVPZnP nanohybrid. Within this SWNT-PVPZnP nanohybrid, static electron-transfer quenching (2.

Electron transfer between cytochrome c and p66Shc generates reactive oxygen species that trigger mitochondrial apoptosis.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are potent inducers of oxidative damage and have been implicated in the regulation of specific cellular functions, including apoptosis. Mitochondrial ROS increase markedly after proapoptotic signals, though the biological significance and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain undetermined. P66Shc is a genetic determinant of life span in mammals, which regulates ROS metabolism and apoptosis.

Donor-acceptor nanoensembles of soluble carbon nanotubes.

Donor-acceptor nanoensembles, prepared via electrostatic interactions of single wall carbon nanotubes and porphyrin salts, give rise to photoinduced intra-complex charge separation that lasts tens of microseconds.

Cyclic voltammetry and bulk electronic properties of soluble carbon nanotubes.

The bulk electronic properties of pyrrolidine-functionalized nanotubes are obtained from cyclic voltammetry measurements and discussed in the light of quantum chemical calculations. The functionalization is found to preserve the metallic character and to hardly affect the average density of electronic states.

Design and synthesis of multi-component 18 pi annulenic fluorofullerene ensembles suitable for donor-acceptor applications.

A series of trannulene (all-trans annulene) derivatives of [60]fullerene have been prepared by reacting C(60)F(18) with methanetricarboxylate esters that incorporate a range of photoactive functions. All the compounds have the intense emerald-green colour of fullerene trannulenes, characterised by strong bands at ca. 612 and 667 nm.

Electrochemical generation of c 60 2+ and c 60 3+.

The adoption of suitable experimental conditions, which comprise ultra-dry solvents and electrolytes with very high oxidation resistance and low nucleophilicity, has allowed observation, for the first time, of the cyclic voltammetric reversible generation of C602+ and C603+. The present study adds valuable information on the still relatively unknown properties of these important all-carbon carbocations and, in view of their very high reactivity, offers new possible routes for fullerene functionalization.

Anion recognition by functionalized single wall carbon nanotubes.

Amidoferrocenyl-functionalised single wall carbon nanotubes (Fc-SWNT) are efficient exoreceptors for the redox recognition of H2PO4-.