Pharmacy Research UK

Pharmacognostic standardization plays a crucial role in identification of a particular plant and also helps to authenticate the plant under study and prevent it from adulteration and substitution. The plant Lantana camara Linn. (Family: Lamiaceae) is native to the tropical regions of the America, Africa and Asia. It is found in Kumaun and Garhwal resign of Uttarakhand, India. It is locally known as shrub Verbenas and Ghaneri. The plant has been used for various ailments in traditional systems of medicines. In the current investigation, pharmacognostic standardization and physico-chemical analysis of Lantana camara flowers has been attempted. All the parameters including, extractive values, ash values, loss on drying and determination of foreign organic matter were determined following the World Health Organization guidelines. Macroscopic characters like shape, size, color, odor, and surface characteristics along with inflorescence characteristics of flower of Lantana camara were noted. Powder microscopy showed useful diagnostic features like fibres, xylem vessels, pitted xylem vessels, glandular trichomes, covering trichomes, calcium oxalate crystals etc. The transverse section of peddicles of flower showed epidermis, covering trichomes, vascular cylinder, central medulla etc. Furthermore, various physico-chemical parameters were also estimated as per WHO guidelines. The data generated from the current study would be employed as supplement information in respect of identification parameters in the way of acceptability and quality control of this plant.

Purpose: To study the effectiveness of phyto-oleic acid nanovesicles (PONVs) developed from Sargassum binderi (an alga) in healing diabetic wound in a rat model, and to establish the associated changes in cytokine network.Methods: Phyto-extract was obtained from the whole plant of Sargassum binderi by Soxhlet extraction using petroleum ether as solvent. The crude extract was subjected to phytochemical analysis and used in the formulation of POVNs. The PONVs were formulated by entrapping petroleum ether extract of Sargassum binderi using the film hydration technique. Wound healing property was determined by measuring both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).Results: Tannins and steroids were the major components of the petroleum ether extract of Sargassum binderi. Serum cytokine levels were increased after inducing diabetes and creating the wound. The serum levels of IL-2, TNF-α and IL-1β were 37.3 ± 3.3, 76.3 ± 5.2 and 3307.6 ± 350 pg/ml, respectively. Treatment with PONVs modulated the serum cytokine levels through significant decreases in serum IL-2, TNF-α, IL-1β levels, and significant elevation of serum IL-4.Conclusion: These results indicate that PONVs have promising potentials for application as topical treatment for diabetic wounds.Keywords: Brown algae, Sargassum binderi, Oleic acid nanovesicles, Diabetic wound, Cytokines

Co-trimoxazole is a sulfonamide-containing antibiotic that is effective in the treatment of several infections and for prophylaxis of Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia. This drug has been reported as a common culprit drug for the Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and for toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). Human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) play a key role in the immunopathogenesis of severe cutaneous reactions induced by several drugs. This study investigated the association between the HLA class I and HLA-DRB1 polymorphisms and co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN in a Thai population. Forty-three patients with co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN and 91 co-trimoxazole-tolerant patients were enrolled in the study. HLA class I and HLA-DRB1 were genotyped using the reverse sequence-specific oligonucleotide probe method. The frequencies of three alleles of HLA, namely HLA-B*15:02, HLA-C*06:02, and HLA-C*08:01, were significantly higher in the co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN group compared with controls. The risks for co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN in patients with the HLA-B*15:02, HLA-C*06:02, or HLA-C*08:01 allele were about 3-11-fold higher when compared with those who did not carry one of these alleles. Individuals who carried the HLA-B*15:02-C*08:01 haplotype had a 14-fold higher risk for co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN. Evidence of associations between co-trimoxazole-induced SJS/TEN and HLA alleles including HLA-B*15:02, HLA-C*06:02, and HLA-C*08:01 were found in the study population. These findings may suggest that apart from the HLA molecules, other molecules involved in the molecular pathogenesis of these severe cutaneous adverse drug reactions may play an important role in the susceptibility of individuals to SJS/TEN caused by co-trimoxazole.

Health care organizations are turning to electronic clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) to increase quality of patient care and promote a safer environment. A CDSS is a promising approach to the aggregation and use of patient data to identify patients who would most benefit from interventions by pharmacy clinicians. However, there are limited published reports describing the impact of CDSS on clinical pharmacy measures. In February 2011, Good Shepherd Medical Center, a 425-bed acute care community hospital in East Texas, implemented a CDSS (TheraDoc clinical surveillance system). Prior to CDSS implementation, clinicians struggled with obtaining and documenting the data needed to support clinical initiatives. The value of having both clinical and staff pharmacists utilizing the CDSS has improved communication and knowledge among staff and improved relationships with medical staff, nursing, and case management. The department of pharmacy increased its clinical interventions from an average of 1,986 per month to 4,065 per month; this represents a 105% increase in the number of interventions. The annual estimated cost savings after CDSS implementation is $2,999,508, representing a 96% increase per year and translating into a $1,469,907 annual return on investment.

Key content Prescription drug use during pregnancy is prevalent, with 44–99% of women being prescribed medication during pregnancy. Pregnant women and their unborn children are considered a vulnerable population; recent public health scares, such as H1N1, have highlighted the need for more detailed research into medication use in pregnancy. The teratogenic risk of more than 80% of 468 drugs released in the USA over the last 20 years remains to be clarified. Maternal physiological changes during pregnancy can alter drug pharmacokinetics, with poorly understood effects, while placental transfer of medications may have unknown fetal consequences. There is an urgent need for further research into the adverse effects of drugs used in pregnancy. Learning objectives To know about the prevalence of prescription medication use during pregnancy. To be aware of the lack of safety data available on fetal adverse effects for commonly prescribed drugs. Ethical issues Drug companies are reluctant to carry out phase III clinical trials in pregnant women and they rely on animal models and post‐marketing surveillance for the identification of adverse effects. Is it unethical to prescribe drugs in pregnancy for which there is little concrete safety data?