Camila Figueiredo Borgognoni

Freeze-dried snake antivenoms formulated with sorbitol, sucrose or mannitol: Comparison of their stability in an accelerated test

Freeze-drying is used to improve the long term stability of pharmaceutical proteins. Sugars and polyols have been successfully used in the stabilization of proteins. However, their use in the development of freeze-dried antivenoms has not been documented. In this work, whole IgG snake antivenom, purified from equine plasma, was formulated with different concentrations of sorbitol, sucrose or mannitol. The glass transition temperatures of frozen formulations, determined by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), ranged between -13.5 °C and -41 °C. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the different stabilizers, the freeze-dried samples were subjected to an accelerated stability test at 40 ± 2 °C and 75 ± 5% relative humidity. After six months of storage at 40 °C, all the formulations presented the same residual humidity, but significant differences were observed in turbidity, reconstitution time and electrophoretic pattern. Moreover, all formulations, except antivenoms freeze-dried with mannitol, exhibited the same potency for the neutralization of lethal effect of Bothrops asper venom. The 5% (w:v) sucrose formulation exhibited the best stability among the samples tested, while mannitol and sorbitol formulations turned brown. These results suggest that sucrose is a better stabilizer than mannitol and sorbitol in the formulation of freeze-dried antivenoms under the studied conditions.

The influence of freezing rates on bovine pericardium tissue Freeze-drying

The bovine pericardium has been used as biomaterial in developing bioprostheses. Freeze-drying is a drying process that could be used for heart valves preservation. The maintenance of the characteristics of the biomaterial is important for a good heart valve performance. This paper describes the initial step in the development of a bovine pericardium tissue freeze-drying to be used in heart valves. Freeze-drying involves three steps: freezing, primary drying and secondary drying. The freezing step influences the ice crystal size and, consequently, the primary and secondary drying stages. The aim of this work was to investigate the influence of freezing rates on the bovine pericardium tissue freeze-drying parameters. The glass transition temperature and the structural behaviour of the lyophilized tissues were determined as also primary and secondary drying time. The slow freezing with thermal treatment presented better results than the other freeze-drying protocols.

Effect of freeze-drying on the mechanical, physical and morphological properties of glutaraldehyde-treated bovine pericardium: evaluation of freeze-dried treated bovine pericardium properties.

Purpose Biomaterials have been widely used in the field of regenerative medicine. Bovine pericardium tissue has been successfully used as a bioprosthetic material in manufacturing heart valves, but studies concerning the tissue are ongoing in order to improve its storage, preservation and transportation. This article provides an overview of the characteristics of bovine pericardium tissue chemically treated after the freeze-drying process. These characteristics are essential to evaluate the changes or damage to the tissue during the process. Methods The mechanical properties of the tissue were analyzed by three different methods due to its anisotropic characteristics. The physical properties were analyzed by a colorimetric method, while the morphological properties were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results The freeze-dried bovine pericardium showed no significant change in its mechanical properties. There was no significant change in the elasticity of the tissue (p>0.05) and no color change. In addition, SEM analysis showed that the freeze-dried samples did not suffer structural collapse. Conclusions It was concluded that glutaraldehyde-treated bovine pericardium tissue showed no significant change in its properties after the freeze-drying process.

Estabilidade de emulsões de d-limoneno em quitosana modificada

Chitosan is a biopolymer derived from chitin, a component of the shells of crustaceans. Recently, special attention has been given to the study of chitosan properties as a consequence of their wide application in pharmaceutical and food areas. In this study, the chitosan used was chemically modified in order to become water soluble (succinyl chitosan). The stability of succinyl chitosan emulsion with d-limonene was studied so that these results could be useful in a subsequent use of succinyl chitosan as a d-limonene encapsulating agent by lyophilization. The stability of the emulsion was analyzed using a spectrophotometer in different temperatures and by the headspace/gas chromatography technique at room temperature. The emulsion characterization was obtained using an optical microscopy. Maltodextrin emulsions with d-limonene were used for comparison as maltodextrins are widely used as a flavor encapsulating agent. The following was observed: good stability of succinyl chitosan emulsions with d-limonene over time and different characteristics in relation to the maltodextrin emulsions with d-limonene. It can be concluded from this study that succinyl chitosan emulsions with d-limonene present favorable characteristics for flavor encapsulation.

Moisture Sorption Isotherm Characteristics of Freeze-Dried D-Limonene Emulsions in Modified Chitosan and Maltodextrin

This article reports on modified chitosan as an alternative substance for protecting loss of volatile compounds during freeze drying. Moisture sorption isotherms of freeze-dried D-limonene emulsions in modified chitosan were determined at 15, 25, and 35°C. The data were adjusted to the GAB model. Maltodextrin was used in a parallel experiment. Flavor released from microcapsules was measured. The monolayer humidity, the sorption heat, the diffusivity coefficients, and the surface area of freeze-dried D-limonene emulsions were determined.

Freeze-drying microscopy in mathematical modeling of a biomaterial freeze-drying

Transplantation brings hope for many patients. A multidisciplinary approach on this field aims at creating biologically functional tissues to be used as implants and prostheses. The freeze-drying process allows the fundamental properties of these materials to be preserved, making future manipulation and storage easier. Optimizing a freeze-drying cycle is of great importance since it aims at reducing process costs while increasing product quality of this time-and-energy-consuming process. Mathematical modeling comes as a tool to help a better understanding of the process variables behavior and consequently it helps optimization studies. Freeze-drying microscopy is a technique usually applied to determine critical temperatures of liquid formulations. It has been used in this work to determine the sublimation rates of a biological tissue freeze-drying. The sublimation rates were measured from the speed of the moving interface between the dried and the frozen layer under 21.33, 42.66 and 63.99 Pa. The studied variables were used in a theoretical model to simulate various temperature profiles of the freeze-drying process. Good agreement between the experimental and the simulated results was found.

Human macrophage responses to metal-oxide nanoparticles: a review

Abstract Nanomaterials have been widely used in our daily lives in medicine, cosmetics, paints, textiles and food products. Many studies aim to determine their biological effects in different types of cells. The interaction of these materials with the immune system leads to reactions by modifying the susceptibility or resistance of the host body which could induce adverse health effects. Macrophages, as specific cells of the innate immune response, play a crucial role in the human defence system to foreign agents. They can be used as a reliable test object for the investigation of immune responses under nanomaterials exposure displayed by expression of a variety of receptors and active secretion of key signalling substances for these processes. This report covers studies of human macrophage behaviours upon exposure of nanomaterials. We focused on their interaction with metal-oxide nanoparticles as these are largely used in medical and cosmetics applications. The discussion and summary of these studies can guide the development of new nanomaterials, which are, at the same time, safe and useful for new purposes, especially for health applications.

Reaching Biocompatibility with Nanoclays: Eliminating the Cytotoxicity of Ir(III) Complexes

Cyclometalated IrIII complexes are promising candidates for biomedical applications but high cytotoxicity limits their use as imaging and sensing agents. We herein introduce the use of Laponite as carrier for triplet-emitting cyclometalated IrIII complexes. Laponite is a versatile nanoplatform because of its biocompatibility, dispersion stability and large surface area that readily adsorbs functional nonpolar and cationic molecules. These inorganic-organic hybrid nanomaterials mask cytotoxicity, show efficient cell uptake and increase luminescent properties and photostability. By camouflaging intrinsic cytotoxicity, this simple method potentially extends the palette of available imaging and sensing dyes to any metal-organic complexes, especially those that are usually cytotoxic.