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Iodine deficiency was commonly reported in infants and partly attributable to low breast milk iodine content. The role of iodine is crucial in preventing brain damage and hypothyroidism in infants. It is important to monitor the concentration of iodine in breast milk of postpartum mothers. This study aimed to validate an analytical method to determine iodine concentration in human breast milk for biomonitoring purposes. Expressed breast milk samples were collected several times a day throughout six months postpartum from a healthy lactating mother. Samples were prepared with nitric acid digestion and analysed by inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry. Data analysis was conducted using Microsoft Excel 2016 for assessment of validation parameters and longitudinal concentration of iodine. The method validation parameters showed that linearity of calibration graph was 0.9987, limit of detection and limit of quantification were 0.218 µg/L and 0.661 µg/L, respectively. A recovery of 100.3% showed good accuracy, whereas inter-day and intra-day repeatability were 5.91% and 3.60%, respectively. The median iodine concentration was the highest in the first month (160.0 µg/L), then dropped to lower than recommended level (110 µg/L) from the second until six months postpartum (range: 31.9 - 98.7 µg/L). Fluctuation in median iodine concentration occurred over six months postpartum but circadian rhythm was observed to be consistent with “V” shaped curve pattern indicating higher concentration was exhibited in the morning and at night compared to evening. The analytical method was robust, accurate and reliable for measuring iodine concentration in human milk and applicable for biomonitoring. Deficiency in breast milk iodine content was observed in the second until six months postpartum. Iodine concentration in breast milk exhibited consistent circadian variation over six months postpartum.

Abstract Diabetic retinopathy (DR), one of the leading causes of visual impairment and blindness worldwide, is one of the major microvascular complications in diabetes mellitus (DM). Globally, DR prevalence among DM patients is 25%, and 6% have vision-threatening problems among them. With the higher incidence of DM globally, more DR cases are expected to be seen in the future. In order to comprehend the pathophysiological mechanism of DR in humans and discover potential novel substances for the treatment of DR, investigations are typically conducted using various experimental models. Among the experimental models, in vivo models have contributed significantly to understanding DR pathogenesis. There are several types of in vivo models for DR research, which include chemical-induced, surgical-induced, diet-induced, and genetic models. Similarly, for the in vitro models, there are several cell types that are utilised in DR research, such as retinal endothelial cells, Müller cells, and glial cells. With the advancement of DR research, it is essential to have a comprehensive update on the various experimental models utilised to mimic DR environment. This review provides the update on the in vitro, in vivo, and ex vivo models used in DR research, focusing on their features, advantages, and limitations.

Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate the sensory attributes of alginate-encapsulated black seed oil in 12 healthy volunteers. Black seed oil, derived from Nigella sativa seeds, is known for its therapeutic properties but is characterized by a pungent taste. Alginate, a hydrophilic polysaccharide polymer derived from brown seaweeds, forms water-insoluble gels in the presence of divalent metal ions such as calcium ions. Alginate finds applications in various fields, including food, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology engineering. Method: The ionic gelation method was employed to encapsulate black seed oil within alginate beads for taste-masking and to enhance its sensory characteristics. Sensory analysis was conducted to assess the smell, taste, taste masking, aftertaste, and texture acceptability of different formulations, including blank beads (negative control), black seed oil (positive control), black seed oil-alginate beads with and without added flavours (vanilla, chocolate, orange, and sugar), in both dried and wet forms, and a commercial black seed oil soft-gelatine capsule. Results: The results showed that encapsulating black seed oil within alginate beads significantly improved its taste and aftertaste, and the addition of flavours further enhanced the smell. Vanilla and orange flavours were found to be the most effective in improving palatability and taste masking ability of the beads in both wet and dried forms, surpassing sugar and chocolate flavours. However, sugar is preferred in the dried form alone. Conclusion: Overall, the study demonstrated the potential of alginate encapsulation to mask the taste of black seed oil and improve its sensory attributes, offering broad applications for enhancing the palatability of other unpleasant bio-compounds.

Introduction: Bromine has been newly discovered in human milk but its importance in the growth and development of infants is unclear. Only a few studies have reported the concentration of bromine in human milk and considered it as an essential element, whereas others highlighted its toxicity of bromism in humans. This study aimed to determine the concentration of bromine as an essential trace element in human milk using a validated acid digestion method and discuss its variation over lactation stages. Method: Human milk samples were collected from three postpartum mothers and analysed using inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry (ICP-MS). The concentration of bromine was determined over a certain postpartum period, analysed using Microsoft Excel 2016, and reported descriptively. Results: Method validation parameters for bromine showed good linearity (R² > 0.999), limit of detection (0.003 µg/L), limit of quantification (0.01 µg/L), accuracy (96%), inter-day (3.76%RSD) and intra-day (3.35%RSD) repeatability. The median concentration of bromine in human milk decreased over six months of lactation, in µg/L: 1210, 674, 722, 671, 511 and 538. At later lactation months which were 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 21st, the median bromine concentration was in µg/L: 780, 815, 645, 846, 910, respectively. Conclusion: The acid digestion method by ICP-MS was robust and accurate in determining bromine concentration in human milk. The consistent variation of bromine in human milk over lactation stages may indicate its importance in supporting infant development in the first two years of age. Future research should explore the role of bromine in infants’ development, its chronobiological importance, and the risk of deficiency or toxicity.

Introduction: Human milk contains essential trace elements which support healthy development of infants. Previous studies have reported various analytical methods using different instruments to measure trace elements in human milk. This study aimed to determine the trace element concentration in human milk using a validated acid digestion method and its application in biomonitoring. Methods: Human milk samples were collected from three postpartum mothers and prepared using acid digestion method. All samples were analysed using ICP-MS and all validation parameters were measured. Results: Four trace elements which were zinc, copper, manganese and selenium were found to have good linearity (r² > 0.99), limit of detection in µg/L (0.06, 0.0001, 0.005, 0.00003, respectively) and limit of quantification in µg/L (0.18,0.0003, 0.02, 0.0001, respectively). The accuracy (83.4 – 112.7%), inter-day, and intra-day repeatability were within the acceptable limit. The method application on one case study showed the median levels of zinc, copper and selenium in human milk gradually decreased during the early six months, whereas manganese remained stable. Positive significant correlations were observed for most of the elements (r > 0.40, p < 0.001) except for copper-manganese. Conclusion: Acid digestion method is sensitive, accurate and precise to analyse and quantify zinc, copper, manganese and selenium concentrations in human milk simultaneously by ICP-MS. It can be applied in future studies to monitor trace elements concentration in human milk in future studies with larger sample size.

One of the major concerns in any pharmacological treatment is the patients’ adherence to medication. However, different types of ocular dosage forms might result in different response and compliance from the patients. This study investigated and compared public willingness on different types of dosage forms available for ocular treatment. The study also evaluated their willingness on new approach for the treatment based on their knowledge, attitude, and perception. This study was conducted between October and December 2017 through a set of questionnaires applied to 90 respondents between the age of 18 and 60 years who lived in Muar and Kuantan, Malaysia. The results were analyzed using SPSS software version 22.0 including inferential and descriptive statistics. There was no significant difference in the knowledge level between all age groups towards different types of dosage forms available; eye drops (P = 0.09), eye ointment (P = 0.252), medicated contact lens (P = 0.05), ocular mini-tablets (P = 0.06), and ocular inserts (P = 0.075). There is a variation of results among the public towards different types of dosage forms with their willingness to try conventional and novel approach. Eye drops show the highest willingness followed by eye ointment (less willingness). However, most of them showed no willingness towards medicated contact lens, ocular mini-tablets, and ocular insert. This research hopes to provide an overview on the development process of new formulation and dosage forms based on the patients’ willingness level in an attempt to increase patient compliance.

Background: Oral drug delivery is the most preferred route for drug administration in the world, with tablets being one of the most common dosage forms. However, some people, particularly children and the elderly, have difficulty swallowing the tablets. Chewable tablets are the dosage form that can address the issue while also providing a valuable masking effect on drug taste, allowing patients to swallow the drugs more easily. Materials and Methods: In this study, the chewable tablets were manufactured using the melt granulation method, which resulted in tablets with a chewy texture. The tablets contained paracetamol as well as Arabic gum, starch, agar, and mannitol. Results: The drug release profiles for the fragmented form showed that 50% of the drug was released within 4 min and 100% was released within 30 min of the dissolution process. The intact form released nearly 90% of the drug within 2 h. Conclusion: Formulation 2 was determined as the best formulation. This tablets' formulation had passed all characterization tests and displayed a moderate hardness and chewy texture.

Flavonoids are a group of naturally occurring polyphenolic secondary metabolites which have been reported to demonstrate a wide range of pharmacological properties, most importantly, antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory effects. The relationship between hyperglycaemia and inflammation and vascular complications in diabetes is now well established. Flavonoids possessing antidiabetic properties may alleviate inflammation by reducing hyperglycaemia through different mechanisms of action. It has been suggested that the flavonoids’ biochemical properties are structure-dependent; however, they are yet to be thoroughly grasped. Hence, the main aim of this review is to understand the antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory properties of various structurally diverse flavonoids and to identify key positions responsible for the effects, their correlation, and the effect of different substitutions on both antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory properties. The general requirement of flavonoids for exerting both anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic effects is found to be the presence of a C2–C3 double bond (C-ring) and hydroxyl groups at the C3’, C4’, C5, and C7 positions of both rings A and B of a flavonoid skeleton. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that substitution at the C3 position of a C-ring decreases the anti-inflammatory action of flavonoids while enhancing their antidiabetic activity. Correlation is discussed at length to support flavonoids possessing essential pharmacophores to demonstrate equipotent effects. The consideration of these structural features may play an important role in synthesizing better flavonoid-based drugs possessing dual antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory effects. A meta-analysis further established the role of flavonoids as antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory agents.

Ocular drug delivery is a very challenging area for ophthalmologists and drug delivery scientists due to the structural and barrier complexity of the eye. Barriers such as different layers of cornea, sclera, conjunctival blood flow, and tear dilution limit the efficacy of drug delivery to the anterior part of the eye in addition to more barriers present to the posterior part. Due to these, scientists have designed and studied various delivery systems to increase drug delivery and treatment efficacy to the eye. Among conventional ocular drug delivery systems, ophthalmic solution or eye drop is widely used and preferred by consumers. Conventional dosage forms available in the market are emulsion, suspension, ointment and polymeric gels. Several ocular formulations such as nano-formulations, liposomes, ocular inserts, and ocular mini-tablets are also being widely studied as future treatments to improve ocular drug delivery and as an alternative to conventional drug delivery. This review intends to summarise several conventional and novel topical formulations for ocular drug delivery.

Scaffolds support and promote the formation of new functional tissues through cellular interactions with living cells. Various types of scaffolds have found their way into biomedical science, particularly in tissue engineering. Scaffolds with a superior tissue regenerative capacity must be biocompatible and biodegradable, and must possess excellent functionality and bioactivity. The different polymers that are used in fabricating scaffolds can influence these parameters. Polysaccharide-based polymers, such as collagen and chitosan, exhibit exceptional biocompatibility and biodegradability, while the degradability of synthetic polymers can be improved using chemical modifications. However, these modifications require multiple steps of chemical reactions to be carried out, which could potentially compromise the end product’s biosafety. At present, conducting polymers, such as poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(4-styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT: PSS), polyaniline, and polypyrrole, are often incorporated into matrix scaffolds to produce electrically conductive scaffold composites. However, this will reduce the biodegradability rate of scaffolds and, therefore, agitate their biocompatibility. This article discusses the current trends in fabricating electrically conductive scaffolds, and provides some insight regarding how their immunogenicity performance can be interlinked with their physical and biodegradability properties.