Twin screw granulation – review of current progress

Twin screw granulation (TSG) is a new process of interest to the pharmaceutical community that can continuously wet granulate powders, doing so at lower liquid concentrations and with better product consistency than found by a high shear batch mixer. A considerable body of research has evolved over the short time since this process was introduced but generally with little comparison of results. A certain degree of confidence has been developed through these studies related to how process variables and many attributes of machinery configuration will affect granulation but some major challenges still lay ahead related to scalability, variations in the processing regimes related to degree of channel fill and the impact of wetting and granulation of complex powder formulations. This review examines the current literature for wet granulation processes studied in twin screw extrusion machinery, summarizing the influences of operational and system parameters affecting granule properties as well as strives to provide some practical observations to newly interested users of the technique.     

Accuracy of teacher judgments in predicting oral reading fluency.

The relationship between teachers' judgments versus actual performance on curriculum-based measures in reading was examined. A total of 30 regular education teachers were asked to predict the oral reading fluency score of students along with a rating scale of reading subskills. Correlations between teacher judgment measures and student performance found that teachers were accurate reporters of student performance levels in reading. However, some questions were raised whether teachers were accurate at predicting the actual level of student oral reading fluency when effect sizes were used to compare teacher judgment and actual student performance. Recommendations for continued research in understanding the parameters of the accuracy of teacher judgment are made. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Explicit Self-Regulated Strategy Development Versus Reciprocal Questioning: Effects on Expository Reading Comprehension Among Struggling Readers.

The effects of 2 rigorous strategic approaches to reading comprehension for 32 5th-grade students who struggle with reading were investigated. The first approach, TWA (Think before reading, think While reading, think After reading), was taught following explicit self-regulated strategy development instructional procedures (K. R. Harris & S. Graham. 1999). The second approach, reciprocal questioning (RQ), was taught following Cooperative ReQuest procedures developed by A. V. Manzo. U. C. Manzo, and T. H. Estes (2001). Compared with RQ students, TWA students improved significantly (with medium to large effect sizes) on 5 oral reading comprehension measures. There were no significant differences, however, between groups on 3 written comprehension measures, self-efficacy, or motivation. Students were positive about each intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

“微世界”的启发——团体心理行为演练与英语口语训练

近年来,“微世界”模拟技术的学习价值在心理行为训练和技能培养领域受到重视。在介绍“微世界”技术理念与策略内涵的基础上,阐释了该技术在团体心理训练和英语口语训练中的应用价值、设计要点和实施策略。     

Repellency of oral exudate to eastern and western spruce budworm larvae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)

A two-choice feeding bioassay was used to investigate the intra-specific repellency of the larval oral exudate of eastern and western spruce budworms,Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem.) andC. occidentalis Free., respectively. Results of the bioassay indicated that feeding behavior on artificial diet-drop feeding stations was modified in the presence of exudate, with feeding stations treated with conspecific exudate being avoided when an untreated station was available 3 cm away. Feeding was suppressed when a single, exudate-treated station was provided, or when the treated and untreated stations were separated by only 1 cm. The repellent effect functioned both inter- and intraspecifically. When induced to produce exudate,C. occidentalis larvae were not immediately repelled by either their own or other individuals' exudate. However, 24 hr after induction, test larvae were repelled by exudate from either source. In both species, larval oral exudate probably functions to repel conspecific competitors.     

关于英语语境教学的研究

英语口语一直是中国学生的一个老大难的问题。"哑巴英语"在中国学生中是十分普遍的。语言的运用离不开文化背景、生活方式、风俗习惯等语言环境。因此,语境在英语口语学习中占有十分重要的作用。然而,当前的英语口语教学中对语境的重视程度还远远不够。文章首先介绍了语境的含义、划分和功能,接着就如何加强语境来提高英语口语水平提出了看法。     

口腔修复用铸造钴铬合金等离子焊接工艺研究

试验研究了钻铬合金口腔修复材料微束等离子弧焊的可行性。焊接过程电弧稳定，焊接接头熔合良好，未见裂纹、未焊透、夹渣、气孔等缺陷。力学性能与显微组织分析表明：焊缝与母材均为铸态的树枝状晶粒，几乎无焊接热影响区，接头成分均匀，焊缝与母材强度基本一致。微束等离子弧焊在口腔材料修复领域具有很好的应用前景。     

牙科用钴铬合金的微束等离子焊接研究

探讨了以手工方式进行铸造钴铬合金口腔修复材料微束等离子电弧焊的可行性，试验过程电弧燃烧稳定，焊接接头充分熔透，母材与焊接连接良好，未见气孔，裂纹等缺陷。显微组织显示：焊缝与母材均为铸态的树枝状晶粒，几乎无焊接热影响区，焊接接头的电子能谱成分扫描、机械性能、显微硬度测试显示，接头成分均匀，焊缝与母材强度相当，微束等离子焊在口腔修复领域的应用前景明显优于其他熔化焊接方法。     

Mucoadhesive Phenolic Pectin Hydrogels for Saliva Substitute and Oral Patch

Oral disease is one of the most common conditions worldwide, negatively affecting general health, reducing the quality of life, and often developing into systemic illness. However, the design of therapeutic agents for oral diseases is challenging due to various unique features of the oral cavity, including its wet and dynamic environment and curved shape. Herein, the development of highly biocompatible mucoadhesive functional hydrogels for oral applications is reported, generated by introducing bio-inspired phenolic moieties into a pectin polymer. Pyrogallol-functionalized pectin (Pec-PG) can be crosslinked in situ via autoxidation without chemical agents and readily fabricated as various formulations. Sprayable Pec-PG hydrogel exhibits strong mucoadhesion and outstanding hydration ability ex vivo and in vivo, thus displaying significant potential as a novel saliva substitute for dry mouth. The authors further show that topical application of mucoadhesive Pec-PG patches pre-loaded with corticosteroid significantly promotes the repair of diabetic oral ulcer tissue via prolonged drug release, free radical scavenging, and physical barrier effects. Moreover, similar applications for oral ulcer treatment using a pectin hydrogel modified with catechol (Pec-CA), another phenolic moiety are demonstrated. Together, these findings suggest that mucoadhesive phenolic pectin derivatives can provide highly biocompatible, convenient, and effective hydrogel platforms for treating oral diseases.     

Fabrication of novel GMO/Eudragit E100 nanostructures for enhancing oral bioavailability of carvedilol

In the present work, novel nanostructures comprising of glyceryl monooleate (GMO) and Eudragit E100 were prepared using high intensity ultrasonic homogenization. 3² Factorial design approach was used for optimization of nanostructures. Results of regression analysis revealed that the amount of GMO and Eudragit E100 had a drastic effect on particle size and percent entrapment efficiency. Optimized carvedilol-loaded nanostructures (Car-NS) were characterized by FTIR, TEM, DSC, in vitro drug release study. Pharmacokinetic parameters such as C_max, T_max, Ke, Ka, V_d and AUC were estimated for Car-NS upon its oral administration in Sprague-Dawley rats. Particle size of Car-NS was found to be 183?±?2.43?nm with an entrapment efficiency of 81.4?±?0.512%. FTIR studies revealed loading and chemical compatibility of carvedilol with the components of nanostructures. DSC thermograms did not show endothermic peak for melting of carvedilol which could be attributed to solubilization of carvedilol in molten GMO during DSC run. The prepared Car-NS released carvedilol in sustained manner over a period of 10 h as suggested by in vitro drug release study. The pharmacokinetic study of Car-NS showed significant improvement in C_max (two fold, p?p?oral bioavailability can prove to be a promising carrier system for poorly water soluble drugs.