Respiratory manifestations of carbamazepine. Apropos of a case

A 14-year-old girl developed skin rash, fever and dyspnea. The chest roentgenogram showed diffuse reticulonodular infiltration. Pulmonary function tests revealed mild restrictive defect and blood oxygen pressure at 71 mm Hg. BAL showed increased cell counts with lymphocytosis at 15% and neutrophilia at 3%. Outcome was good after carbamazepine withdrawal and without corticosteroid therapy. Relapse was observed after patient-induced rechallenge.     

A method for software reliability analysis and predictionapplication to the TROPICO-R switching system

An evaluation method which allows existing reliability growth models to provide better predictions of software behavior is presented. The method is primarily based on the analysis of the trend exhibited by the data collected on the program (which is determined by reliability growth tests). Reliability data are then partitioned according to the trend, and two types of reliability growth models can be applied: when the data exhibit reliability decrease followed by reliability growth, an S-shaped model can be applied, and in case of reliability growth, most of the other existing reliability growth models can be applied. The hyperexponential model is shown to allow prediction of the software residual failure rate in operation, and this failure rate is used as a qualification index for the software product. The method is illustrated through its application to the Brazilian electronic switching system TROPICO-R     

Rb and Cs doping effects in sodium borohydride: Density functional theory for hydrogen (H2) storage purpose

Fuel cell technology based on stationary and mobile applications is needing new hydrogen storage materials equipped with huge gravimetric and volumetric hydrogen densities. Examining the fundamental properties of hydrides is an important part of such process, mainly to understand the structure change's impact on the hydrogen storage. Herein, we applied ab-initio density functional theory using full potential linear augmented plane method to explore the effect of rubidium and cesium doping in sodium borohydride, NaBH₄. The electronic structure calculations exposed the semiconducting nature of NaBH₄ and derived doped structures NaRbBH₄ and NaCsBH₄. The hydrogen (H₂) storage capacity is found 10.66 wt %, 3.27 wt % and 2.36 wt % within a reasonable free energy of ?28.514 kJ/mol, ?29.709 kJ, ?28.51 kJ/mol for NaBH₄, NaRbBH₄ and NaCsBH₄ respectively from quasi-harmonic approximation. Also, we extracted the heat capacity and Debye temperature from vibrational analysis based on phonon calculation. The discovered features show the potential use of presented sodium borohydrides for practical H₂ storage devices.     

Ibuprofen grafted on poly(2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate): Synthesis,mass transfer,and in vitro drug release investigations

Poly(2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate-graft-ibuprofen) (IpGH) of different ibuprofen (Ibu) contents was prepared by grafting of Ibu groups on poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) in an esterification reaction route. The resulted copolymers were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, differential scanning calorimetry, thermal gravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscope analysis. The cytotoxicity test and the free radical scavenging ability of this material were examined by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide tetrazolium (MTT) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl assay methods, respectively. The in vitro release study of Ibu through a retro-esterification reaction of IpHG material during 3 days reveals that the release dynamic depends on the initial Ibu grafted, pH media, and the swelling degree of PHEMA. It was also revealed that the water solubility of Ibu easily reached a maximum of 0.216?mg?mL^?1. The diffusion of Ibu through the polymer matrix obeys the Fickian model. The estimated distribution of the cumulative drug released in different simulated digestive organs reveals that the IpHG7 containing 6.69?mol% of Ibu content showed the best performance.     

Natural products as a source of environmentally friendly corrosion inhibitors of mild steel in dilute sulphuric acid: Experimental and computational studies

Protection of Metals and Physical Chemistry of Surfaces - The inhibitory effect of Acacia cyanophylla leaves extract (ACLE) on Mild steel corrosion in 1 M H2SO4 solution was investigated using...     

Protectin DX, a Double Lipoxygenase Product of DHA, Inhibits Both ROS Production in Human Neutrophils and Cyclooxygenase Activities

Neutrophils play a major role in inflammation by releasing large amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by NADPH oxidase (NOX) and myeloperoxidase (MPO). This ROS overproduction is mediated by phosphorylation of the NOX subunits in an uncontrolled manner. Therefore, targeting neutrophil subunits would represent a promising strategy to moderate NOX activity, lower ROS, and other inflammatory agents, such as cytokines and leukotrienes, produced by neutrophils. For this purpose, we investigated the effects of protectin DX (PDX)—a docosahexaenoic acid di-hydroxylated product which inhibits blood platelet aggregation—on neutrophil activation in vitro. We found that PDX decreases ROS production, inhibits NOX activation and MPO release from neutrophils. We also confirm, that PDX is an anti-aggregatory and anti-inflammatory agent by inhibiting both cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 (COX-1 and COX-2, E.C. 1.14.99.1) as well as COX-2 in lipopolysaccharides-treated human neutrophils. However, PDX has no effect on the 5-lipoxygenase pathway that produces the chemotactic agent leukotriene B₄ (LTB₄). Taken together, our results suggest that PDX could be a protective agent against neutrophil invasion in chronic inflammatory diseases.     

Antioxidant Activity of Tannin Fractions Isolated from Buckwheat Seeds and Groats

Phenolic compounds were extracted with 80% (v/v) aqueous acetone from buckwheat seeds and groats. Tannin fractions were obtained from the crude extracts by Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography. Total phenolic contents of isolated fractions from buckwheat seeds and groats were 477 and 371 mg catechin equiv/g, respectively. The analyzed samples were characterized by electrophoretic separations using capillary zone electrophoresis. Both fractions exhibited strong antioxidant activity. The tannin fraction of buckwheat seeds reduced 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals (DPPH^·) and [2,2′-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)] diammonium salt radical cations (ABTS^·+) stronger than the fraction of buckwheat groats. The EC₅₀ values amounted to 0.019 and 0.020 mg while Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity values were 4.06 and 3.55 mmol Trolox equiv/g for tannin fractions of buckwheat seeds and groats, respectively. Similarly, antioxidant activity of the tannin fraction of buckwheat seeds measured by photochemiluminescence assay, was higher than antioxidant activity noted for the fraction obtained from groats. However, both fractions inhibited oxidation to the same extent in applied lipid models: β-carotene-linoleic acid emulsion and l-α-lecithin liposomes. In β-carotene-linoleic acid emulsion system, 1 mg of tannin fractions exhibited similar antioxidant activity to 0.5 mg butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA).     

Stabilization of butter with deodorized rosemary extract

 The antioxidative activity of the ethanolic extract of deodorized rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) in butter was tested. The extract was added at two concentrations, 0.05 and 0.1%, to the cream before churning. The samples of isolated fat were stored at 60°C for 38 days and their peroxide values (PVs) determined periodically. The relative changes in the proton absorption patterns of the butter lipids during storage were monitored by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The samples treated with 0.05 and 0.1% extract had much longer induction periods than the control. A significant correlation (r = 0.980) was measured between the ratio of aliphatic to olefinic protons (R _ao) and the PVs of the butter fat. The deodorized ethanolic extract was also subjected to TLC separation on silica gel plates and UV spectral analysis. The UV spectrum of the extract had maxima at 286 and 328 nm. Six spots attributed to phenolic compounds were observed on the TLC plate. The extract also exhibited strong antioxidant activity in a β-carotene-linoleate model system. Received: 11 July 1997     

Inhibition of pancreatic lipase by phenolic acids--examination in vitro

The influence of addition 2,4,6,8, and 10 microM of benzoic and cinnamic acids and selected phenolic acids (salicylic, p-hydroxybenzoic, gentisic, protocatechuic, vanillic, syringic, o-coumaric, p-coumaric, caffeic, ferulic, sinapic) on the activity of pancreatic lipase was examined in vitro. The strongest inhibition activities were observed with caffeic, ferulic and benzoic acid, while sinapic and gentisic acids produced the lowest inhibition.