This study aimed to formulate black seed oil () loaded liposomes using the ethanol injection method to enhance oral bioavailability and improve therapeutic activity in small animal studies of analgesia. The impact of formulation attributes and process parameters on the liposomal system was evaluated with key quality attributes being particle size, morphology, and entrapment efficiency. The particle size and entrapment efficiency of the liposome preparation were found to be between the range of 50-900 nm and 34-87% respectively. Particle size distribution data suggested that increasing the percentage of oil, up to a certain concentration, reduced the size of the liposomes significantly from 520 ± 81.2 nm to 51.48 ± 1.31 nm. Stirring and injection rate were shown to have marked impact on the average particle size of liposome. It was observed that entrapment efficiency of liposomes was greatly influenced by the amount of cholesterol and type of cryoprotectant used during formulation. The stability study indicated that the liposomal preparation was stable at ambient conditions for one month. studies showed that the liposomal preparation demonstrated significant analgesic activity in mice.

Jute fabrics were treated, with different formulations, using various proportions of bitumen emulsion and polyester (PE) resin in combined solutions. Styrene monomer was used as solvent, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide as cross-linking agent and cobalt naphtha as curing agent. The fabric specimens were immersed in the solution for 10-15 min, then pressed by a roller and dried at room temperature for 24 h. According to the percentage of bitumen emulsion and PE resin, the jute samples were obtained as J0 (untreated or raw jute), J1 (20% bitumen emulsion +10% PE), and J2 (10% bitumen emulsion +20% PE). It was revealed that tensile strength (TS) increased with bitumen emulsion and PE resin mixture treatment on both directions of jute fabrics where J2 showed the highest improvement of TS which were 61.4% and 44.7% for warp and weft direction respectively. Tensile strength (TS) decreased for all the samples in both directions after soil degradation. After 90 days, the untreated sample was totally degraded. Treated samples exhibited better stability than untreated ones in soil medium. Weight loss by soil degradation, moisture regain, moisture content and water uptake tests of the treated and untreated jute samples were also performed. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis was conducted to analyze the fiber surfaces of raw and treated jute fibers, finding significant differences as a result of treatment. Finally, the strategy of combining bitumen emulsion and PE resin for treatment, rather than using only PE resin, was found to produce a jute fabric which was not only better in all the above respects but also would be cheaper to produce.

No abstract

This study aimed to investigate the effect of extensibility on cotton blended polyester-spandex core-spun yarn in the weft direction of 3/1 right-handed Z-twill denim. For the preparation of samples, 100% ring spun cotton yarn of 42 tex (14 s /1 Ne) was used as warp, and 70:30, 30:70, 60:40, and 40:60 cotton-polyester core-spun yarn of 30 tex (20 s /1) was used in the weft direction. Four categories of denim fabric were fabricated by using the air-jet weaving machine. Spandex yarn was used as a core material of weft with a percentage of 2%, 2.5%, 1.9%, and 1.8% respectively. Different physio-mechanical characteristics namely tensile and tearing strength, GSM, growth and recovery percentage, initial modulus, bending length, drape co-efficiency, abrasion resistance, flexural rigidity were evaluated to justify the quality of fabricated pieces of denim. Water wicking and breathability were taken into consideration when determining comfort. Higher cotton containing specimens exhibited lower tensile and tearing strength. Additionally, the produced denim fabrics showed balanced drapability and good breathability.

Objectives:The main objective of this study is to substantiate the effects of spandex on the properties of plain jersey fabric as compared to the commercial knit sports wear. Method: Three single jersey plain knitted fabric samples were produced with full feeder spandex (4.45%), half feeder spandex (2.22%), and without spandex. 34/1 Ne cotton yarn and 20D spandex were used. Standard test methods were followed to analyze the fabric properties.

Polymeric microcapsules (MCs) are biocompatible agents used in biomedical applications such as drug delivery and in vivo imaging. We have discovered a method of remotely loading air into polylactic acid (PLA)-based MCs with an aqueous core. When the microcapsules are suspended in high content glycerol and propylene glycol solutions, changes in gas solubility cause bubbles to nucleate within the core through an “Ouzo-like” effect. The resulting bubble displaces the internal fluid of the MCs, but small molecules are retained in their interior. The residual content does not homogeneously distribute; rather, it localizes to one specific location, creating gas-filled Janus particles.

Jute fibers can be an alternative solution to replace synthetic fibers for temporary sustainable geotextiles applications. To produce sustainable geotextiles, jute fabrics were treated first by bitumen emulsion (BE) and unsaturated polyester (UPE) resin then γ-radiation (2.5, 5, and 10 kGy doses) applied to increase its durability and performance. The resulting samples were J0 (raw jute), J1 (20% BE + 10% UPE), and J2 (30% BE + 10% UPE). It was revealed that γ-irradiation significantly decreased the moisture sensitivity and water absorbency. Tensile strength (TS) improved at 2.5 and 5 kGy doses of irradiation and then decreased at 10 kGy in both directions. The highest increase of TS found for 5 kGy dose in both directions of J1 (27.1% in warp and 27.7% in weft) and J2 (16.0% in warp and 23.8% in weft). After 120 days of soil burial test, biodegradation occurred for all the specimens except 2.5 kGy irradiated sample which retained its TS, however, TS dropped remarkably such as 71.9% and 85.1% in warp and weft directions, respectively for J1 sample, and 90.7% and 94.1% in warp and weft directions, respectively for J2 sample. Antimicrobial resistance of jute fabrics was assessed against gram-positive S. aureus and gram-negative E. coli bacteria. Further, FTIR, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were also investigated in this study.

Microbubbles are gas-filled, micron-sized particles stabilized by lipid, protein, or polymer shells. They scatter ultrasound energy efficiently due to their compressible gas cores, making them excellent blood pool contrast agents in ultrasound imaging. In this project, we have developed a novel oxygen-sensitive hemoglobin-shell microbubble designed to acoustically detect blood oxygen levels in vivo. We hypothesized that structural changes in the hemoglobin in response to varying oxygen levels will alter the mechanical properties of the bubble shell, resulting in detectable changes in the bubble acoustic signature. In this project, we have (1) optimized the hemoglobin bubble formulation for in vivo circulation, (2) demonstrated that the hemoglobin shell is still responsive to oxygen after formulation, and (3) characterized the acoustic response of the microbubbles at varying oxygen levels. Our preliminary results show a strong correlation between the oxygen concentration in the solution and the acoustic response of bubbles, suggesting that they would serve as excellent oxygen sensors. If successful, in vivo sensing of oxygen levels would have numerous benefits, including evaluating the hypoxic regions in tumors and in the brain, among other blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) imaging applications.