Solid dispersions (SDs) of ibuprofen (IBU) were prepared with four carriers: Kollidon 25, Kollidon 30, Kollidon VA64, and Kollidon CL, using a newly developed pulse combustion dryer system, HYPULCON. Physicochemical properties of the SDs obtained were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and Fourier transformation IR spectroscopy (FT-IR). Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) showed that the crystal diffraction peaks of IBU in SDs disappeared completely, and in differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) curves, the endothermic peaks of IBU in SDs were not observed. Fourier transformation IR spectroscopy (FT-IR) proved that interactions between the drug and carrier existed. These findings demonstrated that IBU changed to an amorphous form in the SDs with the four carriers using the pulse combustion dryer system. The dissolution property of IBU in the SDs was markedly enhanced. The dissolution test showed that after 5 min of dissolution, the concentrations of IBU in the SDs with Kollidon CL as the carrier was 43.81 μg/ml, corresponding to 13.0 times that of pure IBU. So, it is demonstrated that the pulse combustion dryer system is very useful for preparing SDs of IBU with Kollidon of different grades as carriers.

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Analytical studies were carried out, for the first time, to evaluate the use of N-bromosuccinimide (NBS) as an analytical reagent for the spectrophotometric determination of eleven therapeutically important fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQA). The procedures involved the reaction of the FQA with NBS and subsequent measurement of the excess NBS by its reaction with p-phenylenediamine (PDA) to give a violet colored product that was measured at 530 nm. Different variables affecting the reaction (concentration of NBS, concentration of PDA, pH of reaction medium, reaction time, and the diluting solvents) were carefully studied and optimized. The molar ratio and mechanism of the reaction between each of the studied FQA with NBS were proposed using UV–vis, IR, and NMR techniques. Under the optimum reaction conditions, the analytical method was developed and validated. Beer's law was obeyed in the general concentration range of 3—25 μg/ml. The assay limits of detection and quantitation were 0.33—1.29 and 1.10—4.31 μg/ml, respectively. The precision of the method was satisfactory; the values of relative standard deviations did not exceed 2%. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of the investigated FQA in their pure and pharmaceutical dosage forms without interference from the common excipients (label claim values were 99.85—100.17±0.13—0.59%). Interference from ascorbic acid, that is co-formulated as a stabilizer for the ampoule form, was avoided by its pre-oxidation with potassium bromate before applying the analytical procedure. The results obtained by the proposed method were comparable with those obtained by the official and reported methods.

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The disintegratability of tablets prepared from two types of solid dispersions containing the water-soluble polymer TC-5 and the enteric polymer HP-55 as an excipient were compared. The disintegratability was better in the tablets of solid dispersions containing non-water-soluble HP-55 than those containing TC-5. In consideration of the dissolubility of solid dispersions containing HP-55, the mean diameter of the solid dispersion (coating powder) must be controlled to 120 μm or less, but as this markedly increases the adhesion/aggregation tendency of the particles (angle of repose: 47°), control of the adhesion/aggregation tendency emerged as another problem. Therefore, surface-modification was performed in a high-speed agitating granulator using 0.1% light anhydrous silicic acid as a surface modifier, and marked improvement in the flowability was observed. This made continuous tableting using a rotary tablet machine possible even with the poorly flowable solid dispersions. Also, in tableting of the solid dispersions, no recrystallization of amorphous itraconazole by the tableting pressure was observed, and the tablets maintained satisfactory dissolubility. Moreover, it was possible to obtain the rapidly disintegrating tablets with very satisfactory properties, i.e., a tablet hardness of 30 N or higher and a disintegration time of 30 s or less, by the addition of croscarmellose as a disintegrant at 2% to the surface-modified solid dispersion and selection of the tableting pressure at 4.5 kN.

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To decrease the hemolysis side effect of puerarin, a novel approach of Complex-Phase Inversion-Homogenization (CPIH) Technology was established to prepare intravenous puerarin emulsions. Preparation of puerarin submicron emulsion were optimized by central composite design, and the physicochemical properties were evaluated. Puerarin phospholipid complexs prepared by puerarin and phospholipids at a ratio of 1 : 1.2. In order to improve the product quality, a central composite design was applied to optimize the critical process variables, such as emulsification time, stirring velocity and homogenization press, and the results were modeled statistically. Puerarin phospholipid complexs prepared were identified by fourier transform infrared spectrophotometry. The datas showed that the parameters had great effect on the response values. The particle size, span of dispersity and entrapment efficiency of puerarin emulsions prepared using the optimal parameters settings were 218.23 nm, 0.6284 and 87.32%, respectively. These meant that over 87% of the drug was located at the surfactant interface and oil droplet, the concentration of puerarin in aqueous was rarely. And the puerarin emulsion prepared by CPIH technology were sufficient stable for 90 d. The CPIH technology can be used as a general formulation principle for drugs which are slightly soluble in water and poorly soluble in oils.

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In the pharmaceutical preparation of a controlled release drug, it is very important and necessary to understand the release properties. The dissolution test is a very important and useful method for understanding and predicting drug-release properties. It was readily confirmed in the previous paper that the release process could be assessed quantitatively by a combination of the square-root time law and cube-root law equations for ethylcellulose (EC) matrix granules of phenylpropanolamine hydrochloride (PPA). In this paper EC layered granules were used in addition to EC matrix. The relationship between release property and the concentration of PPA in plasma after administration using beagle dogs were examined. Then it was confirmed that the correlativity for EC layered granules and EC matrix were similar each other. Therefore, it was considered that the dissolution test is useful for prediction of changes in concentration of PPA in the blood with time. And it was suggested that EC layered granules were suitable as a controlled release system as well as EC matrix.

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A controlled porosity osmotic pump system with biphasic release of theophylline was developed for the nocturnal therapy of asthma. The developed system was composed of a tablet-in-tablet (TNT) core and a controlled porosity coating membrane. Release pattern of the developed system was influenced by amount of pore former (18.2—45.5%, w/w of polymer), weight gain (16—26 mg per tablet) of the coating membrane and osmotic agents used in inner layer of the TNT core. When sodium phosphate and sodium chloride were selected as the osmotic agents in inner and outer layer of the TNT core respectively, target release profile was obtained with coating solution cellulose acetate–polyethylene glycol 400–diethyl phthalate (54.5–36.4–9.1%, w/w) at a weight gain of 16—22 mg per tablet. To examine the mechanism of drug release, release profiles of osmotic agents, micro-environmental osmotic pressure and micro-environmental pH of the formulation during dissolution were studied. Micro-environmental osmotic pressure decreased and micro-environmental pH increased continuously during the whole dissolution process, theophylline release was dominated by the successive dissolution of sodium chloride and sodium phosphate. Theophylline solubility increased as environmental pH exceeded 10.8. At the last stage of the biphasic release, micro-environmental pH in the developed formulation reached 10.9, and theophylline release was promoted by its elevated solubility despite of the decrease of micro-environmental osmotic pressure in the developed formulaiton.

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Nutritional products for patients with liver failure available on the Japanese market contain many branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) such as L-leucine, L-isoleucine, and L-valine, which not only have a bitter taste but also strong, unpleasant odours, leading to low palatability. The palatability of these nutritional products can be significantly improved by the addition of flavoured powders containing various kinds of tastants (sucrose, citric acid, etc.) and odourants (fruit, coffee aromas, etc.). The specific effects of the aroma of flavoured powders have not yet been clearly evaluated. In the present article, the inhibitory effect of aroma on the bitterness of BCAA solutions was examined. The bitterness intensity of a BCAA solution at the same concentration as Aminoleban^® EN was defined as 3.5 (measured by a previously described gustatory sensation method). The bitterness threshold of a BCAA standard solution without added aroma was estimated to be 1.87, while those of BCAA solutions containing green-tea, coffee, apple, vanilla, or strawberry aromas were 2.02, 1.98, 2.35, 2.40 and 2.87, respectively, when evaluated by the probit method. This shows that the addition of an aroma can elevate the bitterness threshold in human volunteers. The green-tea and coffee aromas predominantly evoked bitterness, while the vanilla aroma predominantly evoked sweetness. Apple and strawberry aromas evoked both sweetness and sourness, with the apple aroma having stronger sourness and the strawberry aroma stronger sweetness. Thus, a ‘sweet’ aroma suppresses the bitterness of BCAA, with coexisting sourness also participating in the bitterness inhibition.

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The interaction between growth inhibition and chirality, especially of diastereomers, has an important modifying effect on cancer cell proliferation. Previously, we have reported on the design, synthesis, and chemical properties of a series of novel, double-stranded peptides, (y-AA–x-AA)₂-(CH₂)₁₂, with –y-AA–x-AA– and –z-AA–y-AA–x-AA– sequences conjugated to the spacer. Here, we extend those results by showing that (D-, L-) and (L-, D-) diastereomers are more potent inhibitors of tyrosine phosphorylation than (L-, L-). Although the replacement of the L-Phe–L-Phe sequence with L-Tyr–L-Phe produces a less active inhibitor, the double-stranded peptide conjugated with L-Tyr–D-Phe is more active than that conjugated with L-Tyr–L-Phe. In addition, we show that SDS-PAGE gel profiles of tyrosine phosphorylation following treatment with bis(y-Tyr–x-Phe)-N,N-dodecane-1,12-diamine appear very similar to profiles of tyrosine phosphorylation following treatment with an analog of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, erbstatin. Moreover, the level of autophosphorylation of the epidermal growth factor receptor kinase domain (EGFRKD) treated with bis(L-Tyr–D-Phe)-N,N-dodecane-1,12-diamine was lower than that seen following treatment with bis(L-Phe–D-Phe)-N,N-dodecane-1,12-diamine. These data provide new insights for the control of cancer cell proliferation through drug designs which replace the less active –L-Phe–L-Phe– (and –D-Phe–L-Phe–) with the more active –L-Tyr–L-Phe- (and –L-Tyr–D-Phe–) sequence.

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Synthesis of compounds with quaternary carbons is one of the most attractive reactions in the synthetic chemistry. However, there are only a few reports on synthesis of the compounds with a fluoroalkyl group at a quaternary carbon center. Recently, we reported the synthesis of α-trifluoromethylated ketones by the reaction of α,β-unsaturated ketones with CF₃-I using a Rh catalyst. When the α-trifluoromethylated ketones and allyl carbonates were treated with a Pd catalyst, the allylation reaction proceeded smoothly at the trifluoromethylated carbon to give the desired compounds with a trifluoromethylated quaternary carbon center in good to excellent yields.

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Two new compounds, 4,5-dioxoartacinatine (1) and 24-methylenelanosta-7,9(11)-diene-3-one (2), together with thirty known compounds were isolated and characterized from the stems of Artabotrys uncinatus. Structures of the new compounds were determined by spectral analysis.

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Further extensive isolation work on the 1-BuOH-soluble fraction of a MeOH extract of Tricalysia dubia afforded five new ent-kaurane glucosides (4—8) and one new labdane glucoside (9), together with a known megastigmane glucoside, sammangaoside B (1), and monoterpene glucosides (2, 3). The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by analyses of one- and two-dimensional NMR spectroscopic data. The absolute configuration of the 9-position of sammangaoside B was revised to S and its total stereochemistry was established by the modified Mosher's method.

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Total synthesis of the biologically important axane sesquiterpenes, gleenol (1) and axenol (2), was accomplished through a readily available spiro[4.5]decane. The key features of the synthesis of 1 and 2 include Claisen rearrangement to afford the multi-functionalized spiro[4.5]decane 4 as a single diastereomer in excellent yield, installation of the C7 isopropyl group via ketene dithioacetal instead of direct alkylation and a diastereoselective reduction of ketone under the Birch conditions.

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A convergent synthesis of cystothiazoles C 1 and D 3 was achieved based on Julia coupling between the functionalized aldehyde 5b, corresponding to left half of the final molecule, and aryl sulfone 6 or 7, bearing a bithiazole moiety, corresponding to right half. Methylation of 1 and 3 gave cystothiazole A 2 and melithiazol B 4, respectively. The overall yield (5 steps from (2R,3S)-3-methylpent-4-yne-1,2-diol 10; 57%) of 5b via the present route was improved in comparison to that of the previously reported functionalized aldehyde 5a (7 steps from 10; 13%). By applying the modified Julia coupling method, selectivity (6E/6Z=20 : 1—26 : 1) toward the (6E)-form of the coupled products (15 or 19) against the corresponding (6Z)-form was improved in comparison to the Wittig method (6E/6Z=4 : 1—6.9 : 1).

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Several substituted-quinazolin-3(4H)-ones 8—11ad were synthesized by condensation of 2-chloro-N-(4-oxo-substituted-quinazolin-3(4H)-yl)-acetamides with various substituted imidazoles through one pot reaction. Elemental analysis, IR, ¹H-NMR and mass spectral data confirmed the structure of the newly synthesized compounds. Synthesized quinazolin-4-one derivatives were investigated for their antitubercular, antibacterial and antifungal activities. Some of the tested compounds showed good antitubercular activity. None of the synthesized compounds showed significant antibacterial and antifungal activity.

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Surfactants are usually used for the preparation of emulsions; however, some have an adverse effect on the human body such as skin irritation, hemolysis, and protein denaturation, etc. In this study, we examined the preparation and formation mechanism of n-alkanol/water emulsions using α-cyclodextrin (α-CD) as an emulsifier. Emulsions were prepared by mixing oil and water phases for 4 min at 2500 rpm using a vortex mixer. The mechanism of emulsification was investigated with some physico-chemical techniques. From phase diagrams of n-alkanol/α-CD/water systems, the emulsion phase extended as the chain length of n-alkanols and the amount of α-CD added increased. Furthermore, the emulsion was not formed in the region where the n-alkanol/α-CD complex didn't precipitate; however, the emulsion was formed in the region where the complex precipitated. In addition, it was clear that the emulsions have a yield stress value and correspond to the Maxwell model from rheological measurement. Our experiments clearly showed that the stable emulsions are formed because the precipitated complexes form a dense film at the oil–water interface and prevent aggregation among dispersed phases. Furthermore, it is suggested that the creation of a three-dimensional network structure formed by precipitated complexes in the continuous phase contributes to the stabilization of the emulsion. Thus, we concluded that the n-alkanol/water emulsions using α-cyclodextrin were a kind of the Pickering emulsion.

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Isodonis Herba is used as a Japanese dietary supplement and folk medicine. The extract of the herb (Isodonis extract) is also used as a food additive whose major compound is enmein (1). Here we compared internal transcribed spacer sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA from Isodonis Herba available on the Japanese and Chinese crude drug markets, and found that the former derived from Isodon japonicus and Isodon trichocarpus, while the latter derived from distinct species such as Isodon eriocalyx. The liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry profiles of Isodonis Herba were classified into four chemotypes (A to D) according to the ratio of the major constituents. Types B and C contained 1 and oridonin (2) as major components, respectively. An intermediate (or mixed) form of types B and C in various ratios was designed type A. Type D contained eriocalyxin B (3) as its major component. Japanese herba were types A—C, while Chinese herba were types C and D. The commercial Isodonis extract products tested were classified as type D, suggesting that they originated from Chinese Herba. Understanding the relationship between extract constituents and DNA profiles is important for the official specification of dietary supplements and food additives of plant origin.

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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of sodium alginate on the physical and dissolution properties of Surelease^®-matrix pellets prepared by a novel pelletizer-equipped piston extruder and double-arm counter-rotating rollers. The mean values of the shape factor (e_R) and the aspect ratio of Surelease^®-matrix pellets were 0.615—0.625 and 1.06—1.070, respectively, indicating good sphericity of the pellets. The drug release rate increased as the amount of sodium alginate increased due to hydration, swelling, and erosion within the Surelease^®-matrix pellets. In addition, the porosity of pellets also increased with increasing sodium alginate content. The results of this study show that sodium alginate has a greater effect on the drug release rate than the drug release mechanism within the Surelease^®-matrix for sparingly water-soluble drug, such as tamsulosin hydrochloride.

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A new acylated flavonoid, 6,4′-dimethoxyquercetin-3-O-β-D-6″[3,4,5-trihydroxy (E)-cinnamoyl]glucopyranoside, and a naphthopyranone dimer, named eriocauline, together with 2 other known flavonoids, 6-methoxyapigenin-7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside and 6-methoxyapigenin-7-O-β-D-allopyranoside, have been isolated from the capitulae of Eriocaulon ligulatum. The compounds were identified using spectroscopic methods (HR-ESI-MS, and 1-D and 2-D NMR). The methanol extract exhibited mutagenic activity in the Salmonella/microsome assay, in strains TA100, TA97a and TA102 and for dichloromethane extract tested in strain TA98.

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Two new prenylated anthraquinones, laurenquinone A (1) and B (2) were isolated from the seeds of Vismia laurentii together with four known compounds; xanthone V₁ (3), physcion (4), 3-geranyloxyemodin anthrone (5) and friedelin (6). The structures of the new metabolites were determined with the help of spectroscopic data including extensive 2D-NMR spectroscopy. The known compounds were identified by comparison of their physical and spectroscopic data with those reported in the literature. Compounds 1, 4 and 5 exhibited moderate algicidal activity against Chlorella fusca and 3 showed moderate activity against the gram-positive bacterium Bacillus megaterium.

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A novel crocetin glycosyl ester, neocrocin A (2), was isolated from gardenia yellow. The structure of 2 was elucidated as that of an all-trans-crocetin β-D-gentiobiosyl β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→6)-D-2-deoxy-glucopyranos-2-yl diester based on chemical and spectral data. The findings provide evidence that the binding system of crocetin glycosides is not limited to the anomeric position.

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Chemical investigation of the wood-decayed fungus Xylaria sp. BCC 9653 has led to the isolation of a new methyl aminobenzoate (1) together with eleven known compounds. The structures were established by analysis of spectroscopic data. Cytochalasin D (2), one of the known metabolites, exhibited potent cytotoxicity against African green monkey kidney fibroblast (Vero) cells with an IC₅₀ value of 0.19 μM.

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A new glycosyl inositolphosphoceramide-type ganglioside, CSP2, was obtained from the polar lipid fraction of the chloroform/methanol extract of the feather star Comanthina schlegeli together with a known same type of ganglioside CJP2. The structure of this ganglioside has been determined on the basis of chemical and spectroscopic evidence to be 9-O-methyl-(N-acetyl-α-D-neuraminosyl)-(2→3)-inositolphosphoceramide, which contains C₁₆-sphingosine and C_22:0-, C_24:0-fatty acid as major component. This is the first report on the isolation and structural elucidation of a glycosyl inositolphosphoceramide-type ganglioside possessing N-acetyl-neuraminic acid (NeuAc) residue.

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Versatile electrophiles N-acylhydrazones are synthesized via diazotization, reduction, and acylation of α-amino acid esters. Reduction of diazo esters with L-selectride^® or tributylphosphine affords the corresponding hydrazones in good yields. Both reducing agents give anti-hydrazones as the major product although the reactivity of each reductant is slightly different. The resulting hydrazones are acylated to give N-acylhydrazones, which are subjected to further reactions to give 1,3,4-oxadiazin-6-ones that serve as useful synthetic intermediates for the Diels–Alder reaction.

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