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Electrical energy generation from renewable resources has been a quest in the last few decades to meet the energy demand of electrical appliances and gadgets. More importantly, portable gadgets and devices, wireless sensors, etc., which rely on batteries require intermittent charging, and it is difficult to find an omnipresent continuous electrical energy source connected to a power station for these batteries. Alternate to these power stations connected to electrical energy sources is harvesting the energy from omnipresent mechanical and acoustic vibrations and AC magnetic field. Energy harvesting from these waste energy resources is possible using piezoelectric and magnetoelectric materials. This chapter would discuss in detail various mechanisms and stimuli, which may be synergistically used to harvest energy from piezoelectric materials-based energy harvesters.

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is a semi-crystalline ferroelectric polymer which can be stabilized in its distinct electroactive polymorphs α and γ by selective processing techniques. In this article, to study the effect of processing temperature and barium calcium zirconium titanate (BCZT) ceramic-doping on PVDF phase stabilization, the pure PVDF and PVDF/BCZT composite films were fabricated by solution-casting and melt-pressing. The Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction studies showed that the pure PVDF and PVDF/BCZT composite films fabricated by solution-casting possessed the characteristic γ-PVDF peaks while melt-pressing stabilized PVDF mostly in the α-phase. The BCZT ceramic particles were found to have no significant effect on PVDF phase stabilization, but it enhanced the overall crystallinity of polymer matrix. The dielectric studies revealed that the relative permittivity (er) of γ- and α-PVDF phases in pure PVDF film samples was ≈ 10 and 7.5 (at 120 Hz) respectively. The er of PVDF/BCZT composite films having 50 wt.% BCZT content synthesized by solution-casting and melt-pressing were estimated to be ≈ 31 and 20 (at 120 Hz), respectively, which was about three times that of pure PVDF film synthesized by the respective technique. The value of loss tangent (tanδ) for pure PVDF films synthesized by solution-cast and melt-press technique were ≈ 0.07 and 0.35 (at 120 Hz) respectively. In temperature-dependent dielectric studies, γ-PVDF showed distinct α-relaxation peak at ≈ 120°C and polymer melting at temperature > 130°C. For α-PVDF, the increase in er and tanδ was observed during α-relaxation transition at higher temperatures. The dielectric studies indicated that the introduction of BCZT ceramic particles in PVDF matrix increased the er-value by enhancing the dipolar and interfacial polarizations in composites, while the decrease in tanδ-value was observed due to decrease in molecular dipoles with a decrease in wt.% of PVDF content. These phenomena collectively improved the overall electric properties of ceramic/polymer composites which makes them suitable candidates to explore for flexible electroactive material form.

Background: Post traumatic seizures (PTS) are a known sequel of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Incidence of PTS is dependent on many factors including study design and characteristics of the study population. As incidence of TBI increases and death due to TBI decreases, more individuals will be at risk of developing and living with chronic complications. The objective of the present study was to determine the frequency and risk factors for PTS following TBI. Methods: A prospective study was conducted on patients admitted with TBI from April 1, 2019, to May 31, 2020, to determine the frequency, time to event, and risk factors for PTS following TBI. We classified the severity of head injury using a standard criterion, into mild, moderate and severe injury. Follow-up of 3 months was undertaken for all patients. Variables include age, sex, trauma severity, Glasgow coma scale, onset of PTS, and neuroradiological finding. Results: We enrolled 450 post traumatic subjects, out of which 36 (8%) developed seizures. Of the total of 36 patients detected to have hemorrhagic contusion on computerized tomography scan, 12 patients developed seizures. We found that the independent risk factors associated with occurrence of PTS were frontal— temporal lobar contusion and severity of head injury. All these findings were statistically significant. Conclusion: We found that the independent risk factors associated with occurrence of PTS were frontal-temporal lobar contusion and severity of head injury. Type of management (Operative vs. Non operative) does not affect the outcome of PTS.

Domain switching process is a complex process and is not as simple in occurrence as appears from conceptual framework. Fortunately, the theories of nucleation and crystal growth successfully applied to switching domains help in understanding switching kinetics in ferroelectric samples. Direct methods of parameter estimation can provide only the local information of the target region while the ‘universal integrating methods’ provide domain kinetic parameters with their response proportional to the fraction of the phase grown at that time. Besides being statistical, the later is much simpler and popular in delivering more credible results. In this paper, an indirect estimation of significant microscopic parameters of optimized NaNO2-PVA ferroelectric composites is made by fitting their current transients with IGM, FGM and NLS switching models The fitting of these models into the experimental switching transient helps (i) in finding dimensionality n , characteristic time t o , nucleation rate R and domain size L and (ii) to identify whether a thin film can be considered to be an ensemble of a number of independent elementary regions switching their states independently with exponential distribution of their relaxation times. IGM model suggests that polarization switching proceeds through a continuous nucleation process. The results of FGM fitting the transients supports the points that with increase in signal-amplitude, new regions are nucleated leading to reduction of adjacent relative distance between the domains The excellent NLS fit over whole range of switching times suggests that composite film can be considered an ensemble of elementary regions individually characterized by independent relaxation times.

Spent alumina catalyst (SAC) and Eggshell (ES) are the waste material produced from oil refinery industries and food industries respectively. These wastes generate lots of soil pollution along the industrial areas. However, presence of Al2O3 in SAC and CaCO3 in ES showed these wastes as good partial replacement of ceramic particles as reinforcement with the aluminium alloy. In the present study, probability of SAC and ES as reinforcement with the aluminium alloy has been discussed. Exhaust literature review showed that SAC and ES can be utilized in the development of aluminium based composite material.

Finite Grain Model (FGM) introduces the concept of grain boundaries lying adjacent to two or more grains in a given ferroelectric crystal. The grain boundaries obstruct the domain growth and hence domain size that may be expected on the basis of Infinite Grain Model. Under the effect of alternating voltage, domains alter their sizes regularly and polarities after specific time intervals that can be correlated with domain switching time. In domain switching studies, the research interest remains in estimation of microscopic parameters like nucleation rate, characteristic time, dimensionality, domain size etc. and besides that to know how the nucleation process progresses. FGM is a statistical model which is successfully used here for investigation of switching dynamics of PVA based NaNO2-CsNO3 mixed system composites optimized for ferroelectric response. This mixed system was formed with CsNO3 mole percent x = 0.09 in optimized equal wt% NaNO2-PVA ferroelectric composite. FGM assumes that nuclei cannot grow unrestrictedly in those ferroelectric thin films which are constituted by elementary regions containing only a few nucleation centers; the switching in one region does not necessarily lead to the switching in another neighbouring region. This is the underlying sense of Nucleation Limited Switching (NLS) model which assumes that switching is carried independently in different regions and it is accomplished in a time depending on the history of growth of that region. The NLS fit over whole range of switching times suggests that composite film can be considered an ensemble of elementary regions individually characterized by independent relaxation times.

The online food ordering system provides conveniencefor the customers. It overcomes the disadvantages of the traditional queuing system. This system increases the takeaway of foods than visitors. Therefore, this system enhances the speed and standardization of taking the order from the customer. It provides a better communication platform. the user’s details are noted electronically. The online food ordering system set up menu online and the customers easily places the order with a simple mouse click. also with a food menu online you can easily track the orders, maintain customer's database and improve your food delivery service. This system allows the user to select the desired food items from the displayed menu. The user orders the food items. The payment can be made online or pay-ondelivery system. The user’s details are maintainedconfidential because it maintains a separate account for each user. An id and password is provided for each user. Therefore it provides a more secured ordering.

Aspect sentiment classification has a dependency over the aspect term extraction. The majority of the existing studies tackle these two problems independently, i.e., while performing aspect sentiment classification, it is assumed that the aspect terms are pre-identified. However, such assumptions are neither practical nor appropriate. In this paper, we address these impractical limitations and propose a multi-task learning framework for the identification and classification of aspect terms in a unified model. At first, the proposed approach employs a BiLSTM followed by a self-attention mechanism to identify the aspect terms in a given sentence. Subsequently, the architecture utilizes a CNN framework to predict the sentiments of the identified aspect terms. We evaluate our proposed approach for the three benchmark datasets across two languages, i.e., English and Hindi. Experimental results suggest that the proposed multi-task model achieves competitive performance with reduced complexity (i.e., a single model for the two tasks compared to two separate models for each task) for both the languages.

We investigated switching behavior in PVA based NaNO2-CsNO3 mixed system composite films fabricated at moderate elevated temperature. The switching transients in ‘ceramic-polymer mixed syst...

Single phase Bi2Fe4O9 (Mullite BFO) nanoparticles were prepared first time by combustion method without using any solvent. Metal nitrates as oxidants and citric acid as fuel was used to synthesize ...

Ishibashi and Takagi considered ‘ferroelectric domain switching’ just equivalent to ‘phase evolution during crystal growth’. They slightly modified Kolmogorov and Avrami’s classical theory of ‘phase transformations in crystal growth’ and applied it to the switching data in ferroelectrics. Here an effort is made to elucidate mathematical steps in evolution of this new KAI model used to fit experimental switching data to estimate microscopic switching parameters. In mixed composite system Na(1−x)CsxNO2−PVA (x = 0.09), the domain growth dimension (d) is found to expand from 0.1587 to 0.3445 when signal amplitude changed from 10V to 15V. The cesium substitution is supposed to have enabled lone pairs on central nitrogen of nitrite group to orient constituting N−O branches into more ordered state in the matrix of molecular chains of the PVA facilitating control of crystallization process which led to lowering of strain giving rise to the increased change in Imax with change in pulse amplitude.

The remanant polarization in ferroelectric materials appear due to some lattice hindrances which do not allow the domains and their constituting unit cells to relax back to their previous orientati...

The main aim of the current research is to achieve active targeting of antimicrobials in secondary urinary tract infections using the direction of renal blood flow. The objective is further extended to maintain a constant internal environment and to deliver an extended maintenance dose using Poly lactic acid (PLLA) electrospun nanofibers. The medicated nanofibers used to evaluate their physical characteristics and drug release behaviour. Therapeutic efficacy of the developed formulation was achieved by organ distribution, pharmacokinetic and challenge study. A major fraction of drug was recovered from the kidney after 32 hours results in a significant reduction in colony forming unit (CFU) count establish the therapeutic efficacy of developed formulation. Polyanionic nature of PLLA electrospun nanofibers assists as an excellent carrier for intravaginal delivery of antimicrobial in urinary tract infections.

The major goal of the current research was to develop and evaluate the therapeutic potential of anti-tubercular drugs (ATDs) loaded natural polysaccharide comprising of galacto mannan subunit in experimental tuberculosis (TB). Experimental formulations were prepared by ionotropic gelation technique followed by spray drying. Morphological analysis suggested that optimized nanoparticles were found to be discrete and spherical in nature with a particle size distribution range from 230 ± 4.5 nm to 310 ± 6.2 nm. The in-vitro drug release behavior indicated the biphasic pattern comprising of initial burst followed by a sustained release pattern. Guar gum coated chitosan nanoparticles (CGNPs) among the leading formulation exhibited the highest cell uptake potential confirmed by FACS analysis. Challenge study also supports the in-vivo bio-distribution illustrated by the significant reduction in CFU count in experimental TB in mice. Histopathology study demonstrated that none of the treated group shows any evidence of lung tissue abnormality. Hence, the study marked the fact that CGNPs could be a promising carrier for selective delivery of ATDs to alveolar macrophages for efficient management of TB with the interception of minimal side effects.

Systemic antibiotic therapy in post-operative wound care remain controversial leading to escalation in levels of multi-resistant bacteria with unwanted morbidity and mortality. Recently zinc (Zn) because of multiple biophysiological functions, gain considerable interest for wound care. Based on our current understanding, the present study was designed with an intent to produce improve therapeutic approaches for post-operative wound management using composite multi-functional antibiotic carrier. The study involved the fabrication, characterization and pre-clinical evaluation of cefazolin nanofiber mats loaded with zinc oxide (ZnO) and comparing co-formulated mats with individual component, enable a side by side comparison of the benefits of our intervention. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the drug, ZnO nanoparticles (ZnONPs) and drug-ZnONP mixture against Staphylococcus aureus was determined using micro dilution assay. The fabricated nanofibers were then evaluated for in-vitro antimicrobial activity and the mechanism of inhibition was predicted by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Further these nanofiber mats were evaluated in-vivo for wound healing efficacy in Wistar rats. Study revealed that the average diameter of the nanofibers is around 200-900 nm with high entrapment efficiency and display sustained drug release behavior. The combination of ZnO and cefazolin in 1:1 weight ratio showed higher anti-bacterial activity of 1.9 ± 0.2 μg/ml. Transmission electron microscopy of bacterial cells taken from the zone of inhibition revealed the phenomenon of cell lysis in tested combination related to cell wall disruption. Further composite medicated nanofiber mats showed an accelerated wound healing as compared to plain cefazolin and ZnONP loaded mats. Macroscopical and histological evaluations demonstrated that ZnONP hybrid cefazolin nanofiber showed enhanced cell adhesion, epithelial migration, leading to faster and more efficient collagen synthesis. Hence the fabricated composite nanofiber mats have the potential to be used as a postoperative antimicrobial wound dressings.

Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease of gums involving degeneration of periodontal ligaments, creation of periodontal pocket and resorption of alveolar bone, thus disrupting the support structure of teeth causing their loosening and finally removal. Since this disease is mainly confined to the periodontal pocket, so site specific drug delivery of an antibiotic is the best suitable option. This also eradicates the demerits of oral dosing like low drug concentration reaching the target site and the various systemic side effects. In the present work, an efficient and easy technique of electrospinning has been used to develop non-woven drug loaded and biodegradable nanofiber patch with inbuilt property of high surface area to volume ratio. Hyaluronic acid (HA) has been used specifically as the polymer since it possesses remarkable properties like providing an extracellular matrix supporting tissue regeneration, anti-inflammation and mucoadhesion. A blend of this natural polymer with another polymer (Polyvinyl alcohol) has been tried since HA alone cannot be electrospun efficiently as it shows very high viscosity at very low polymer concentration. The developed formulation presented controlled release behavior with good mucoadhesive strength. The in vivo studies confirmed the maintenance of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) over an extended period of time in addition to a significant antiinflammatory effect. All these observations suggested that the above formulation forms a stable intra periodontal pocket drug delivery system.

Currently, one-third of the world's population is infected with tuberculosis (TB) mainly spread by inhalation of the tubercle bacilli, Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Patient non-compliance is the major reason for failure of anti-tubercular drugs (ATDs) chemotherapy due to multidrug administration for longer duration of time period. The main aim of current research study was to develop and characterize inhalable spray-dried particles for pulmonary delivery of ATDs, i.e., rifampicin (RIF) and isoniazid (INH). ATDs-loaded alginate particles were prepared by ionotropic gelation technique followed by spray drying and characterized on the basis of various evaluation parameters. Results showed that the optimized spray-dried particles were found to be spherical in shape with excellent flow properties. The drug release showed the biphasic pattern of release, i.e., initial burst (30-40% up to 4 h) followed by a sustained release pattern (90% up to 60 h). Optimized formulations exhibited lower cytotoxicity and excellent lung uptake up to 8 h. Optimized formulation also showed higher rate and extent of drug uptake by lungs due to preferential phagocytosis be macrophage. In future, alginate particles could be a promising carrier for targeted delivery of ATDs to alveolar macrophages for efficient management of TB.

From the early sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the present day of life, tuberculosis (TB) still is a global health threat with some new emergence of resistance. This type of emergence poses a vital challenge to control TB cases across the world. Mortality and morbidity rates are high due to this new face of TB. The newer nanotechnology-based drug-delivery approaches involving micro-metric and nano-metric carriers are much needed at this stage. These delivery systems would provide more advantages over conventional systems of treatment by producing enhanced therapeutic efficacy, uniform distribution of drug molecule to the target site, sustained and controlled release of drug molecules and lesser side effects. The main aim to develop these novel drug-delivery systems is to improve the patient compliance and reduce therapy time. This article reviews and elaborates the new concepts and drug-delivery approaches for the treatment of TB involving solid-lipid particulate drug-delivery systems (solid-lipid micro- and nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers), vesicular drug-delivery systems (liposomes, niosomes and liposphere), emulsion-based drug-delivery systems (micro and nanoemulsion) and some other novel drug-delivery systems for the effective treatment of tuberculosis and role of immunomodulators as an adjuvant therapy for management of MDR-TB and XDR-TB.

Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis is a life threatening fungal infection mainly caused by Aspergillus species. Available treatment strategy against pulmonary aspergillosis is having very limited applicability, due to its toxicity and low circulation half-life. Pulmonary drug delivery is one of the strategies that can minimize these pitfalls. In the present study, polymeric and lipidic nanoparticles of amphotericin B were prepared by spray drying technique using hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) and stearylamine with oleic acid respectively. Formulations were characterized for particle size, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency, in-vitro release studies, uptake analysis and in-vivo bio distribution studies. Developed polymeric and nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) were found in submicron size (600-700nm) and spherical in shape. Studies suggested that NLCs have better entrapment efficiency (77.1±5.5 %) as compared to HPMC carrier (71.28±5.22 %). Both formulations provided sustained drug release (HPMC, 82.05% releases up to 32 hrs and NLC, 88.2 % up to 40 hrs) and reduced dose dumping that may be helpful to reduce the toxicity and improve patient compliance. In-vitro antifungal studies suggested that stearylamine formulations exhibited better antifungal activity over control and HPMC formulations. Pharmacokinetic and organ distribution studies also support our hypothesis i.e. localized drug delivery for prolong period, improving the therapeutic effectiveness of the encapsulated drug against pulmonary aspergillosis. Studies suggested that drug delivery by pulmonary route is beneficial for local action in lungs.

In the present study, nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) with three different lipid combinations (solid lipid:liquid lipid) were prepared through emulsification and ultrasonication using a Box-Behnken design. From the design, the best lipid combination was glyceryl monostearate and oleic acid, which gives particle of smaller size (223.73 ± 43.39nm) with high drug entrapment efficiency (78.65 ± 2.2%). In vitro release studies show that 84.60 ± 5.66% of drug was released in 24h. In vivo studies revealed that drug absorption occurs through lymphatic pathway as only 5.008 ± 0.011μg/ml of peak plasma concentration was achieved in blood plasma in presence of chylomicron inhibitor. The peak plasma concentration (Cmax) for silymarin loaded NLC was found to be 25.565 ± 0.969μg/ml as compared to silymarin suspension whose Cmax was found to be 14.050 ± 0.552 μg/ml, this confirms 2-fold increase in relative bioavailability. In vivo studies revealed that 19.268 ± 1.29μg of drug reaches to liver in 2h whereas negligible drug concentration reported in other organs. It was concluded that drug loaded NLCs was beneficial for targeting liver or other lymphatic disorders through lymphatic transport pathway. Finally, the main purpose of modifying lymphatic transport system was successfully achieved through NLCs.

Psoriasis is a chronic disorder with erythematous scaly patches, which typically affects the exposed surfaces of the body and scalp. Various factors such as bacterial infection, genetic and environmental factors, and immune disorders play an important role in causing psoriasis. Different types of psoriasis can be observed, such as guttate psoriasis, inverse psoriasis, pustular psoriasis, and psoriatic arthritis. Various ancient, topical, and systemic approaches have been used to control the disease, but have failed to achieve a complete reduction of the disease, besides causing toxic effects. Therefore, our main aim in this review article is to introduce the different advanced nanotechnological approaches for effective treatment of psoriasis.

Brain tumor is one of the most challenging diseases to treat. The major obstacle in the specific drug delivery to brain is blood-brain barrier (BBB). Mostly available anti-cancer drugs are large hydrophobic molecules which have limited permeability via BBB. Therefore, it is clear that the protective barriers confining the passage of the foreign particles into the brain are the main impediment for the brain drug delivery. Hence, the major challenge in drug development and delivery for the neurological diseases is to design non-invasive nanocarrier systems that can assist controlled and targeted drug delivery to the specific regions of the brain. In this review article, our major focus to treat brain tumor by study numerous strategies includes intracerebral implants, BBB disruption, intraventricular infusion, convection-enhanced delivery, intra-arterial drug delivery, intrathecal drug delivery, injection, catheters, pumps, microdialysis, RNA interference, antisense therapy, gene therapy, monoclonal/cationic antibodies conjugate, endogenous transporters, lipophilic analogues, prodrugs, efflux transporters, direct conjugation of antitumor drugs, direct targeting of liposomes, nanoparticles, solid-lipid nanoparticles, polymeric micelles, dendrimers and albumin-based drug carriers.

The purpose of this research is to describe the utility of nanofibers as a gastroretentive dosage form and improve the solubility of diacerein (DIA) by using the above approach. Poly L-(lactic acid) (PLLA) nanofibers loaded with DIA were prepared using the electrospinning technique. The nanofibers developed were characterized for morphology, tensile strength, floating behavior, drug entrapment, drug solubility, mucoadhesive detachment force, and drug release profile. The results demonstrated that the drug-loaded nanofibers were smooth, discrete, & non-woven. Analysis by X-ray crystallography (XRD) revealed that the drug in the nanofiber was present in the amorphous state, which largely contributes to higher drug solubility in the nanofibers developed. The buoyancy study demonstrated that the nanofibers developed exhibited zero lag time. Approximately 61.3% of drug was released in 30 h, thus facilitating the slow release of the drug from the nanofiber system. Finally, we concluded that the electrospun nanofibers developed offer a promising gastroretentive drug delivery system to deliver DIA with improved solubility.

The aim of this study was to prepare and characterize spray dried inhalable chitosan nanoparticles (CNPs) for sustained delivery of anti-tubercular drugs, isoniazid (INH) and rifampicin (RIF), to the lungs. CNPs were prepared by ionic gelation technique followed spray drying. Results showed that the CNPs obtained had a smooth spherical shape with an average size of 230 ± 4.5 nm, with a poly dispersity index of 0.180 ± 0.021. Both drugs, were detected in various organs (lungs, liver, spleen and kidney) until 24 h post nebulization. The chemotherapeutic efficacy of a single dose of drug-loaded CNPs suggested that they are more effective against the mycobacterium than free drugs.

A scaffold is comprised of the polymeric central components, which are used to deliver cells, drugs, and genes into the body. Wounds, which lead to a loss of integrity of the skin and skin mortality, are common challenges encountered in plastic and reconstructive surgery. The primary goals of treatment are rapid closure, restoration of function, and aesthetic satisfaction. A paradigm shift is taking place in medicine from using synthetic implants and tissue grafts to a tissue-engineering approach that uses degradable porous material scaffolds integrated with biological cells or molecules to regenerate tissues. Scaffold structure is a novel carrier for cell and drug delivery that enhances wound healing through differentiation of endothelial and epithelial cells and production of angiogenic growth factors in cutaneous wounds. Currently, scaffolds have application in various fields of tissue engineering in repair of nasal and auricular malformations, in bone formation, in cartilage development, in periodontal regeneration, as artificial corneas, as heart valves, in ligament replacement, in tendon repair, and in tumours. In the present review, we emphasize the role of scaffolds in wound healing, and we outline types of scaffolds, properties, techniques adopted, materials used, and their applications in tissue engineering.

In the present study, nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) along with various surfactants loaded with paclitaxel (PTX) were prepared by an emulsification technique using a Box-Behnken design. The Box-Behnken design indicated that the most effective factors on the size and PDI were at high surfactant concentration (1.5%), low lipids ratio (6:4) and medium homogenization speed (6000 rpm). Among all the formulations, Tween 20-loaded NLCs show least particle size compared to Tween 80 and Tween 60. Entrapment efficiency of Tween 20, Tween 80 and Tween 60-loaded formulations were 82.40, 85.60 and 79.78%, respectively. Drug release of Tween 80, Tween 20 and Tween 60-loaded NLCs is 64.9, 62.3 and 59.7%, respectively (within 72 h). Maximum cellular uptake was observed with Tween 20 formulation on Caco-2 cell lines. Furthermore, spray drying of resultant NLCs was showed good flow properties and was selected for drug delivery to deeper airways. In-vivo studies demonstrated the better localization of drug within the lungs using different surfactant-based pulmonary delivery systems. From this study, we have concluded that delivering drugs through pulmonary route is advantageous for local action in lungs as maximum amount of drug concentration was observed in lungs. The surfactants could prove to be beneficial in treating drug resistance lung cancer by inhibiting P-gp efflux in the form of nano lipidic carriers.

Nanofiber scaffold formulations (diameter less than 1000 nm) were successfully used to deliver the drug/cell/gene into the body organs through different routes for an effective treatment of various diseases. Various fabrication methods like drawing, template synthesis, fiber-mesh, phase separation, fiber-bonding, self-assembly, melt-blown, and electrospinning are successfully used for fabrication of nanofibers. These formulations are widely used in various fields such as tissue engineering, drug delivery, cosmetics, as filter media, protective clothing, wound dressing, homeostatic, sensor devices, etc. The present review gives a detailed account on the need of the nanofiber scaffold formulation development along with the biomaterials and techniques implemented for fabrication of the same against innumerable diseases. At present, there is a huge extent of research being performed worldwide on all aspects of biomolecules delivery. The unique characteristics of nanofibers such as higher loading efficiency, superior mechanical performance (stiffness and tensile strength), controlled release behavior, and excellent stability helps in the delivery of plasmid DNA, large protein drugs, genetic materials, and autologous stem-cell to the target site in the future.

This study was aimed for brain delivery of Tramadol HCl (centrally acting synthetic opioid) following intranasal administration for treatment of depression. Chitosan nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared by ionic gelation method followed by the addition of developed NPs with in the Pluronic and HPMC-based mucoadhesive thermo-reversible gel. Developed formulation optimized based on the various parameters such as particle size, entrapment efficiency, in vitro release study. Depression induction was done by forced swim test and evaluated by various behavioral and biochemical parameters. Furthermore, results showed significantly increased in locomotors activity, body weight as compared to control group. It also showed alteration in biochemical parameters such glutathione level and catalase levels significantly increased other than lipid peroxidation and nitrite level was found to be decreased after intranasal administration of formulation. Thus, intranasal TRM HCl NP-loaded in situ gel was found to be a promising formulation for the treatment of depression.

Tuberculosis (TB) is the second most deadly infectious disease around the world. Chemotherapy of TB is complicated by the need of multidrug regimens that need to be administered over long periods. Most oral antitubercular drugs (ATDs) presently in use fail to achieve high drug concentration in the lung. For administration of ATDs, lungs are an attractive and versatile route used since ancient times for treatment of pulmonary and airway diseases. But there are numerous barriers in the respiratory tract that restrict the pulmonary delivery of drugs to the target site. So, novel carrier systems are used to deliver ATDs, which can overcome these barriers and improve drug effectiveness as well as targetability to alveolar macrophages after pulmonary administration. This chapter includes the importance of pulmonary drug delivery systems, such as liposomes, niosomes, nanoparticles, microparticles, dendrimers, solid lipid nanoparticles, micelles, nanosuspensions, nanoemulsions, and microemulsions for an effective treatment of TB. The advances in delivery devices from conventional metered dose inhalers to dry powder inhalers are also discussed along with their applications.

Food components and neutraceuticals are more prone towards chemical, physical or biological degradation. A comprehensive range of colloidal delivery systems are accessible for consumption in the food industry to capture, protect, and deliver food ingredients as well as nutraceutical components. The present paper aims to overview an extensive range of colloidal systems with special focus on vesicular (liposomes, niosomes, organogels, microemulsions, and multiple-emulsions) and particulates (nanoparticles, microparticles, self-emulsifying drug delivery system, and micelles) systems that are being used in research, or might be potentially useful as carrier systems for nutraceutical delivery in the therapeutic field. The exceptional physical and functional properties of colloidal carriers have trapped the eye of the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. These carriers improve bioavailability, mask off-flavors, protect against chemical degradation, improve product texture, and reduce bitterness, as well as control the release profile of nutraceutical and therapeutic molecules. The main aim of this chapter is to provide an excellent knowledge about the importance of colloidal systems in the field of food as well as the pharmaceutical industry.

The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates, which performs many functions including detoxification, protein synthesis and production of various bio-chemicals which are very important for digestion. A large number of serious liver disorders affect millions of people worldwide which are very difficult to treat properly despite many efforts. There are several factors which are responsible for liver injuries, include plants (Crotalaria Senecio Heliotropium Symphytum officinale), drugs (analgesic and antibiotics), industrial toxins (mercury and lead), water, alcohol and so on. Herbal medicinal preparations can be used for the treatment of a large number of human liver disorders like cirrhosis, hepatitis, carcinomas, etc. Indian Medicinal Practitioner's Co-operative pharmacy and Stores (IMPCPS) approved herbal-based systems (Unani, Siddha and Ayurveda) for the treatment of various chronic liver disorders. Different types of the receptors are found on the surface of hepatocytes, Kupffer cell, hepatic stellate cell and sinusoidal endothelial cells, etc., which can be used for achieving liver targeting. These receptors bind to different types of ligands (galactosylated, lactobionic acid, asialofetuin, etc.) which can be used in the formulation to achieve targeted delivery of the drug. Various novel particulate approaches (liposomes, niosomes, nanoparticles, micelles, nanosuspensions, etc.) can be used to enhance the targeting efficiency of systems to receptors found on the surface of different cells present in the liver. In this review, we focused on the status of liver targeting via herbal and nanotechnology inspired formulation approaches.