In-vitro and In-vivo Pharmacokinetic Evaluation of Guar Gum-Eudragit® S100 Based Colon-targeted Spheroids of Sulfasalazine Co-administered with Probiotics.

Background: Polysaccharide based delivery systems have been successfully used to target drugs to colon. In some recent reports, the superiority of concomitant administration of probiotics with such systems has been established. However, the pharmacokinetics of such symbiotic therapy remain unexplored hitherto.

Ethosomes and Transfersomes: Principles, Perspectives and Practices.

Background: The success story of liposomes in the treatment of systemic infectious diseases and various carcinomas lead the scientists to the innovation of elastic vesicles to achieve similar success through transdermal route. In this direction, ethosomes and transfersomes were developed with the objective to design the vesicles that could pass through the skin. However, there is a lack of systematic review outlining the principles, method of preparation, latest advancement and applications of ethosomes and transfersomes.

Nanosuspension: Principles, Perspectives and Practices.

In the last three decades, nano-sizing of hydrophobic drugs has emerged as one of the most commonly used strategies to overcome their solubility and bioavailability related issues. Nanosuspensions offer versatile features and unique advantages over other approaches that have been utilized for this purpose. The unique inherent properties of nanosuspensions have been explored for a wide variety of applications.

Effect of co-administration of probiotics with polysaccharide based colon targeted delivery systems to optimize site specific drug release.

Significant clinical success of colon targeted dosage forms has been limited by their inappropriate release profile at the target site. Their failure to release the drug completely in the colon may be attributed to changes in the colonic milieu because of pathological state, drug effect and psychological stress accompanying the diseased state or, a combination of these. Alteration in normal colonic pH and bacterial picture leads to incomplete release of drug from the designed delivery system.

A novel dissolution method for evaluation of polysaccharide based colon specific delivery systems: A suitable alternative to animal sacrifice.

The most extensively used test for predicting in-vivo release kinetics of a drug from its orally administered dosage forms is dissolution testing. For polysaccharide based, colon targeted oral delivery systems, the entire path of the gut traversed by the dosage form needs to be simulated for assessing its in-vivo dissolution pattern. This includes the dissolution testing sequentially in simulated gastric fluid (SGF), simulated intestinal fluid (SIF) and simulated colonic fluid (SCF).

Application of liposomes in treatment of rheumatoid arthritis: quo vadis.

The most common treatments for rheumatoid arthritis include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and some biological agents. However, none of the treatments available is able to achieve the ultimate goal of treatment, that is, drug-free remission. This limitation has shifted the focus of treatment to delivery strategies with an ability to deliver the drugs into the synovial cavity in the proper dosage while mitigating side effects to other tissues.