Introduction: Methadone hydrochloride (MDN) is an effective pharmacological substitution treatment for opioids dependence, adopted in different countries as methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) programmes. However, MDN can exacerbate the addiction problem if it is abused and injected intravenously, and the frequent visits to the MMT centres can reduce patient compliance. The overall aim of this study is to develop a novel extended-release capsule of MDN using the sol-gel silica (SGS) technique that has the potential to counteract medication-tampering techniques and associated health risks and reduce the frequent visits to MMT centres. Methods: For MDN recrystallisation, a closed container method (CCM) and hot-stage method (HSM) were conducted, and MDN crystals were characterised using the polarised light microscope (PLM). MDN crystal thickness was determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal microscopy (CM) to establish a relationship between MDN crystals thickness and their birefringence colours using the Michel-Levy Birefringence Colour Chart. The experimental series was continued to produce novel silica-based MDN formulations A and B capsules by adding MDN powder at the end and beginning of the SGS process, respectively. The silica-based MDN formulations were characterised by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), SEM, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), PLM and mean grey value (MGV) analyses. The in vitro release studies (n=3) for the silica-based MDN formulations and pure MDN capsules were conducted in a phosphate buffer solution (pH= 7.2) for 7 days. Stability studies were conducted for 1 month by keeping the silica-based MDN capsules under 25°C and 57% RH. Results: The optimal method to produce large numbers of MDN crystals was the CCM, and MDN crystals were characterised as diamond shaped with an intrinsic angle of 62o. The SEM surpassed the CM in measuring MDN crystal thickness, and Mann-Whitney U Test showed statistically significant differences between SEM and confocal thickness measurements (U= 1283, p < 0.05) as the SEM exhibited thinner diamond crystals (6.62 ± 2.9 µm) than the CM measurements (9.6 ± 4.6µm). According to the Michel-Levey birefringence colour chart (using the SEM mean thickness of MDN crystals and their retardation value of 428 nm), most of MDN crystals demonstrated a yellow colour. The FT-IR, SEM, DSC, MGV and PLM analyses of both silica-based MDN formulations revealed that MDN was successfully incorporated inside the silica network producing amorphous material (with no appearance of the melting peak of pure MDN at 233.4°C) with evidence of no physical or chemical interaction between sol-gel silica and MDN. However, the TGA analysis revealed a significantly greater amount of MDN was loaded inside the silica-based MDN formulation B compared to A (t = 2.80, p = 0.009, n=6), as 28.3 ± 0.6 mg of MDN was loaded in the former while 25.6 ± 0.7 mg in the latter. In addition, the silica-based MDN formulation B released 10% more MDN after 7 days than formulation A, and both formulations were stable when stored for 1 month under 57% RH and 25°C. Conclusion: The novel combined use of SEM and PLM techniques shows a potential for the identification of MDN in forensic science as it established a range of birefringence colours of MDN crystals. Moreover, the new silica-based MDN formulation B can help to deter MDN abuse and increase patient adherence to MMT due to its potential to sustain MDN release and reduce the frequent visits to MDN treatment centres.
Dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis (SD) are common skin disorders affecting the scalp and extending to other body sites in the case of SD. They are associated with pruritus and scaling, causing an esthetical disturbance in the population affected. Treatment of such conditions involves using a variety of drugs for long terms, thus optimizing drug formulation is essential to improve therapeutic efficacy and patient compliance. Conventional topical formulations like shampoos and creams have been widely used but their use is associated with disadvantages. To overcome such effects, novel topical nanotechnology-based formulations are currently under investigation. In the following article, we highlight recently published formulatio
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In the present study a series of some four-,five-and seven-membered heterocyclic compounds have been synthesized by the reaetion of Schiff bases (1a,b) with chloroacetyl chloride, sodium azide, thioglycolic acid or various anhydrides to give azetidinone (2a,b), tetrazole (3a,b), thiazolidinone (4a,b) and 1,3-oxazepine derivatives (5-8a,b) respectively. Schiff bases (1a,b)were prepared from the reaction of p-toluidine with aromatic aldehydes. All synthesized compounds were characterized by physical properties and spectral data.
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Background:The document on hypertension in the elderly promoted by the American college of cardiology and the American heart association (ACCF/AHA) was written with the intent to be a complete reference at the time of publication on the topic of managing hypertension in the elderly. More recently, the European society of hypertension (ESH) and the European society of cardiology (ESC) issued the 2013 ESH/ESC Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension, followed by The 2014 Canadian Hypertension Education Program (CHPE), and the Eighth Report of the Joint National Committee (JNC8), all of which has endorsed specific recommendations for the management of elderly hypertensive patients.
Diyala Governorate was recently exposed to high flood waves discharged from Hemrin Dam. Since the dam was at its full capacity during the flood period, these waves were discharged to the Diyala River. Because of the reduction in Diyala River capacity to 750m3/s, the cities and villages on both sides of the river banks were inundated. Thus, the study's objective is to design a flood escape out of the Diyala River, to discharge the flood wave through it. The flood escape simulation was done by using HEC- RAS software. Two hundred twenty-three cross sections for the escape and 30 cross-sections of the Diyala River were used as geometric data. Depending on the geological formation that the escape passed t
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Several previous investigations and studies utilized silica fume (SF) or (micro silica) particles as supplementary cementitious material added as a substitute to cement-based mortars and their effect on the overall properties, especially on physical properties, strength properties, and mechanical properties. This study investigated the impact of the inclusion of silica fume (SF) particles on the residual compressive strengths and microstructure properties of cement-based mortars exposed to severe conditions of elevated temperatures. The prepared specimens were tested and subjected to 25, 250, 450, 600, and 900 °C. Their residual compressive strengths and microstructure were evaluated and compared with control samples (C
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This research aims were to evaluate management of broiler production projects in Baghdad province via using the criteria of management, included production index and economic figure (PI and EF) that specified to those projects. in addition to criteria of economic efficiency also applied (INME) index number of management efficiency, in order to the research requirements, data were obtained based on a questionnaire prepared for this purpose, which was collected by personal interview of (60) projects of the broiler production projects from (516) projects representing 11.6% of the research community in Baghdad province in 2016. The results show that mean of PI and EF was (338). The increase in these two criteria is generally due to co
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Modern French novel has gained a distinctive status in the history of French literature during the first half of the twentieth century. This is due to many factors including the new literary descriptive objective style adopted by novelists like Alain Robbe – Grillet that has long been regarded as the outstanding writer of the nouveau roman, as well as its major spokesman, a representative writer and a leading theoretician of the new novel that has broken the classical rules of the one hero and evolved, through questioning the relationship of man and the world and reevaluating the limits of contemporary fiction , into creating a new form of narrative.
Résumé:
En vue de résu
... Show MoreMoisture damage is described as a reduction in stiffness and strength durability in asphalt mixtures due to moisture. This study investigated the influence of adding nano silica (NS) to the Asphalt on the moisture susceptibility of hot-mix-asphalt (HMA) mixtures under different aging conditions. NS was mixed with asphalt binder at concentrations of 2%, 4%, and 6% by weight of the binder. To detect the microstructure changes of modified Asphalt and estimate the dispersion of NS within the Asphalt, the field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) was used. To examine the performance of Asphalt mixed with NS at different aging stages (short-term and long-term aging), asphalt mixture tests such as Marshall stability,
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Realistic implementation of nanofluids in subsurface projects including carbon geosequestration and enhanced oil recovery requires full understanding of nanoparticles (NPs) adsorption behaviour in the porous media. The physicochemical interactions between NPs and between the NP and the porous media grain surface control the adsorption behavior of NPs. This study investigates the reversible and irreversible adsorption of silica NPs onto oil-wet and water-wet carbonate surfaces at reservoir conditions. Each carbonate sample was treated with different concentrations of silica nanofluid to investigate NP adsorption in terms of nanoparticles initial size and hydrophobicity at different temperatures, and pressures. Aggregation behaviour and the
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