Desta Tesfay Mezgebo

Skin diseases are a significant global health issue, particularly in developing nations. However, the efficiency of topical antibacterial treatments is diminishing due to the development of resistance. This study is aimed at developing and evaluating topical antibacterial formulations from Achyranthes aspera , a plant traditionally used for wound healing. The Kirby–Bauer method was employed to examine the antibacterial activity of hydroalcoholic extracts obtained from fresh and dried leaves of A. aspera . The fraction, which demonstrated the highest antibacterial activity, underwent further testing to determine its minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and was employed to formulate eight different topical formulations. These formulations were subsequently evaluated for their antibacterial effectiveness, sensory properties, pH, viscosity, spreadability, and acute dermal toxicity and underwent FTIR compatibility analysis and 3‐month accelerated stability studies (40°C/75% RH). The results indicated that the 70% hydroalcoholic extracts of A. aspera were effective against common skin bacteria, particularly Staphylococcus aureus . Among the fractions tested, the chloroform fraction exhibited the largest zones of inhibition (16.50 ± 0.76 mm for S. aureus and 15.33 ± 0.33 mm for Pseudomonas aeruginosa ) and an MIC of 3.125 mg/mL for both bacteria. Among the eight formulations, the basic cream demonstrated the highest antibacterial performance with a ZI of 19 ± 0.577, followed by the emulsifying ointments. FTIR analysis confirmed the absence of chemical interactions between the active fraction and formulation excipients. All formulations displayed favorable pH levels, good spreadability, homogeneity, and stability and did not cause irritation when applied to mice at a dosage of 2000 mg/kg. The accelerated stability study confirmed that the basic cream and emulsifying ointment maintained their physicochemical properties and antibacterial efficacy over 3 months. The findings suggest that A. aspera chloroform fractions are promising for developing effective topical treatments for S . aureus –related skin infections.

Cancer, characterized by abnormal cell proliferation driven by genetic mutations, remains a significant health challenge. Tailoring effective therapies depends on factors like tumor location, grade, and stage, alongside patient condition. Leveraging Nano-carrier encapsulated drugs offers a promising avenue, as they accumulate preferentially at tumor sites, enhancing therapeutic efficacy while mitigating side effects. Polymeric Nano-carriers, with their customizable properties, further optimize drug delivery efficiency and specificity. Incorporating active targeting ligands such as antibodies, carbohydrates, peptides, folates, and aptamers-onto polymeric nanoparticle surfaces through techniques like functionalization, adsorption, and conjugation plays a pivotal role in directing therapeutic agents to tumor cells. Consequently, polymeric nanoparticles emerge as the carrier of choice for delivering drugs to various tumor types, including breast, colon, lung, prostate, liver, and spleen tumors.

Being biocompatible, less toxic, cheap, easily available, and environmentally friendly, there is an increased trust in natural polymers in the drug delivery system. Mucilages, among the natural polymers, are the primary metabolites of plants that have been widely utilized in pharmaceutical manufacturing for different purposes, and mucoadhesive is one among them. The present study was designed to investigate the use of LSM as a mucoadhesive polymer using ibuprofen as a model drug. The mucilage was extracted following an aqueous extraction method and its percentage yield was found to be 13.2 w/w. Besides, three microsphere formulations of ibuprofen were prepared using synthetic polymer hydroxyl propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) K100M and the LSM in polymer to drug ratios of 1:1, 1:5, and 3:5 by applying ionotropic gelation followed by solvent evaporation methods. The microspheres were evaluated for various micromeritic properties and all the formulations exhibited free-flowing properties. Optical microscopic pictures of almost all the microspheres except F3 and F6 (which had more or less spherical shapes) were found to have irregular and discrete shapes. Besides, the surfaces of all the formulations were rough in texture. The drug entrapment efficiency of the microspheres was found to be between 52.08±0.80 and 87.97±0.72. The in-vitrowash-off test evidenced that almost 50 percent (especially F3) of the microspheres were able to adhere up to 18h and showed remarkable bioadhesion properties. The in-vitro drug release profile indicated that all the formulations were able to prolong their drug release up to 12h with a non-fickian release mechanism, except for F4, which followed a fickian release. Therefore, based on the findings of this study, LSM can be used as a potential alternative mucoadhesive excipient for sustained release formulations.

Background. Medicines have become part of our day-to-day life. Due to different reasons, patients may not use all the medications dispensed to them. The storage of drugs at home promotes self-medication, which results in variety of adverse consequences. Global growth in health-seeking awareness and behavior among people has resulted in increment of medicine consumption over years. However, Ethiopians have little awareness about proper disposal of unused and expired pharmaceuticals. Besides, large quantities remain unused or expired since not all medications given to the consumers are consumed. Hence, this study could serve as an indicator for the country policy makers concerning pharmaceutical waste management. Objective. To assess knowledge, attitude, and disposal practice of unused and expired pharmaceuticals in the community of Adigrat city, Tigray, Ethiopia, 2019. Methodology. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 359 respondents from the residents of Adigrat city. Semistructured questionnaires, which focused on knowledge, attitudes, and disposal practices for unused and expired medications, were used to collect data from respondents. Epi-data 3.0 suite and the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20 were used in data entry and analysis. Results. All of the 359 returned questionnaires were valid for data entry and analysis. Of the 359 respondents, 57.7% were men and the majority (93%) were Orthodox Christians. Almost half of the respondents (50.14%) have good knowledge concerning the disposal of unused and expired pharmaceuticals. Most (82.2%) of the respondents have a positive attitude towards the disposal of unused and expired pharmaceuticals. Around fifty-two (52.4) of the respondents had unused medicines stored at home, with analgesics being the most common (41.5%). Around three-quarters (75.2%) and 63% of the respondents discarded unused and expired medicines in the garbage bins, respectively. Conclusion. Although the majority of the respondents had a positive attitude towards the disposal of unused and expired medications, almost half of the sample population were unaware of proper disposal practices. Furthermore, less were inclined to practice proper disposal of unused and expired medications in the city. Therefore, we recommend further studies that focus on how the disposal attitude of the population can influence their knowledge and practice of the disposal of unused and expired medications.

Various species of the genus Grewia have been investigated for different pharmaceutical applications as excipients, yet a study on the potential use of Grewia ferruginea mucilage (GFM) as a suspending agent is lacking. Thus, this study is aimed at evaluating the efficacy of Grewia ferruginea mucilage (GFM) as a suspending agent in metronidazole benzoate suspension. The suspensions were prepared using 0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, and 2% w/v of GFM and compared with suspensions prepared from xanthan gum (XGM) and sodium carboxyl methyl cellulose (SCMC) in similar concentrations. The prepared suspensions were evaluated for visual appearance, pH, rheology, sedimentation volume, redispersibility, degree of flocculation, and in vitro drug release profile. Stability study was done at different storage conditions for three months. The results indicated that all the prepared suspension formulations exhibited pseudoplastic flow characteristics with viscosity imparting ability of the suspending agents in the order of XGM > GFM > SCMC (p < 0.05). The flow rate and redispersibility of the formulations prepared with GFM were significantly lower than those with SCMC and higher than those prepared with XGM. At 0.5% w/v suspending agent concentrations, the sedimentation volume of the formulations was in the order of XGM > GFM > SCMC (p < 0.05). However, at all other concentrations, the sedimentation volume of the formulations prepared with GFM had similar results with XGM but exhibited significantly higher sedimentation volume than SCMC. The formulations with GFM showed a higher degree of flocculation at 0.5% w/v concentration but were comparable at 1.5% w/v with XGM containing formulations. The pH, assay, and in vitro release profile of all assessed formulations were within the pharmacopial limit. Thus, based on the finding of this study, it can be concluded that Grewia ferruginea bark mucilage has the potential to be utilized as a suspending agent in suspension formulations.

Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) cheeseman which belongs to the family of Musaceae is one of the main sources of starch in Ethiopia. This study aimed at evaluating epichlorohydrin cross‐linked enset starch as a drug release sustaining excipient in microsphere formulations of theophylline. Extracted enset starch was cross‐linked using epichlorohydrin as a cross‐linking agent. The effect of cross‐linker concentration, cross‐linking duration, and cross‐linking temperature on the degree of cross‐linking and release rate of microspheres prepared by emulsion solvent evaporation method was investigated using the two‐level full factorial design. Accordingly, the concentration of epichlorohydrin and duration of cross‐linking were the most significant factors affecting both the degree of cross‐linking and drug release rate. Thus, the effects of these two factors were further studied and optimized using the central composite design. As per the numerical method of central composite design, the optimal points were obtained at epichlorohydrin concentration of 13.70% and cross‐linking time of 3.82 h. Under these optimal conditions, the model predicts the degree of cross‐linking of 74.70% and drug release rate of 28.00 h^1/2. The validity of these optimal points was confirmed experimentally. The microspheres of the optimum formulation also exhibited minimum burst release with sustained release for 12 h. Besides, the optimized formulation followed the Higuchi square root kinetic model with non‐Fickian diffusion release mechanism. The finding of this study suggested that cross‐linked enset starch can be used as an alternative drug‐release‐sustaining pharmaceutical excipient in microsphere formulation.