Electrospun fibers for vaginal administration of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine in the context of topical pre-exposure prophylaxis.

Women are particularly vulnerable to sexual HIV-1 transmission. Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine (TDF/FTC) is highly effective in avoiding new infections in men, but protection has only been shown to be moderate in women. Such differences have been associated, at least partially, to poor drug penetration of the lower female genital tract and the need for strict adherence to continuous daily oral intake of TDF/FTC.

Polymeric Electrospun Fibrous Dressings for Topical Co-delivery of Acyclovir and Omega-3 Fatty Acids.

Herpetic infections caused by Herpes simplex virus (HSV) are among the most common human infections, affecting more than two quarters of the world's population. The standard treatment for orofacial herpes is the administration of antiviral drugs, mainly acyclovir (ACV). However, current products are mostly based on semisolid formulations that have limited ability to promote drug skin penetration and tend to leak from the application site, thus showing reduced ability to sustain local drug residence.

Rational Development of Liposomal Hydrogels: A Strategy for Topical Vaginal Antiretroviral Drug Delivery in the Context of HIV Prevention.

HIV/AIDS stands as a global burden, and vaginal microbicides constitute a promising strategy for topical pre-exposure prophylaxis. Preceding the development of a microbicide containing tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and emtricitabine (FTC), in silico and in vitro studies were performed to evaluate the physicochemical characteristics of both drugs, and to study their biophysical impact in lipid model systems. Results from these pre-formulation studies defined hydrogels as adequate vehicles to incorporate TDF-loaded liposomes and FTC.

Resonant Raman scattering in ZnO:Mn and ZnO:Mn:Al thin films grown by RF sputtering.

Raman spectroscopy results obtained under visible (non-resonant) and UV (resonant) excitation for nanocrystalline ZnO, ZnO:Mn and ZnO:Mn:Al thin films grown by radio frequency magnetron sputtering are presented and compared. The origin of the multiple longitudinal optical (LO) phonon Raman peaks, strongly enhanced under resonance conditions, and the effects of the dopants on them are discussed in the framework of the 'cascade' model. It is suggested that the observed suppression of the higher-order LO phonon lines for ZnO:Mn:Al is caused by the dissociation of excitons in the heavily n-type doped material.