In order to assay the human plasma concentration of nifedipine in patients with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and pulmonary hypertension, a modified high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was applied. The retention times for nifedipine and an internal standard (11-ketoprogesterone) were $10.5\;{\pm}\;0.41$ and $13.1\;{\pm}\;0.63$ min, respectively. Absolute recovery from the plasma was $102.9\;{\pm}\;7.07%$. Reproducibility was excellent and variability between the runs was small. There was a negligible degradation during the assay procedure. The calibration curve shows a good linearity in the range of the desired plasma concentrations of nifedipine. A stability test of nifedipine in the human plasma shows 8 and 13% degradation during the storage of 5 and 9 months, respectively. There were no interferences on the HPLC assay with any possible medications for the BPD. The method has been used to monitor the drug concentrations in a patient. The concentration-time curve of a patient after a single oral dose of 0.3 mg/kg shows a double-peak phenomenon that was quite different from the previous report, suggesting non-bolus administration. However the hemodynamic responses were corresponding to the plasma concentration levels of nifedipine.

We have studied the iron uptake by the purified brush-border membrane vesicles (BBMVs) to determine the effect of fructose on the absorption of iron. BBMVs were prepared by the modified calcium precipitation method, The degree of purification was routinely assessed by the marker enzyme, alkaline phosphatase, and the functional integrity was tested by $D-[1-^3H]glucose$ uptake. The appearance of membrane vesicles was shown by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The uptakes of complexes of labeled iron $[^{59}Fe]$ with fructose and ascorbate were measured with a rapid filtration technique, The uptake rate and pattern of the two iron-complexes, Fe(III)-fructose and Fe(III)-ascorbate, were also observed. A typical overshooting uptake of D-glucose was observed with peak value of $2{\sim}3$ times higher concentration than that at equilibrium. This result was similar to other studies with BBMVs. TEM showed that the size of BBMVs was uniform and we can hardly find any contaminants, Fe(III)-fructose has the higher value of $V_{max}$ and the lower value of Km than those of Fe(III)-ascorbate, respectively. It may be concluded that D-fructose is more effective in promoting the iron absorption than ascorbate.

The single-pass perfusion technique was employed in order to investigate the effect of water flux from the rat jejunum in the normal experimental conditions. Our results suggested that water flux below ${\pm}0.75%/cm$ of jejunal length was considered normal. Water flux was $-0.131\;{\pm}\;0.311%/cm$ of jejunal length in a citrate buffer and should be corrected in order to determine the permeabilities of the compounds. Perfusion rate up to 0.5 ml/min had no effects on the permeability of ampicillin. Neither the effective permeabilities nor the wall permeabilities of aminopenicillins were influenced by water flux during experiments in rats.

In order to reduce systemic side effects following oral administration, flurbiprofen was formulated as transdermal gels consisting of the drug, poloxamer 407 and ethanol in buffer solutions. The effect of formulation variables in the preparation of flurbiprofen gels on skin permeation of the drug was evaluated using Keshary-Chien diffusion cells fitted with excised rat skins. The permeation rate of flurbiprofen through rat skin was directly proportional to initial drug concentration (between 0.1% and 1.0%) in the gel while it was inversely proportional to poloxamer 407 concentration (between 17.5% and 25%). The skin permeation of flurbiprofen was substantially influenced by the gel pH between 3 and 7, exhibiting a maximum at pH 4. The concentration effect of ethanol on the permeation of the drug was negligible in the concentration range of $10{\sim}20%$.

We have studied the effect of loading amount and particle size on the rate of release of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) from ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) matrix. Release rate increased as the loading amount and particle size increase. We also studied the effect of additives (lactose and algin) on the rate of release of 5-FU. Both algin and lactose promoted the rate of release. The ability to increase the rate is in the order of algin>lactose>5-FU. Scanning electron microscope study clearly shows that large cavities and cracks are created. The results imply that, by the proper combinations of the amount of the additive, $EVA_c$ and drug, the rate of drug release can be modulated over a wide range of values.

The effect of Azone and ethanol on the electrical properties of human and hairless mouse skin was studied and the results were compared. The complex electrical impedance was measured as a function of frequency, and resistance and capacitance were determined from Nyquist plot. After the treatment of human-heat separated epidermis with Azone, contrary to the expectation, resistance increased about 60% and it did not change with time. Capacitance also increased; immediately after the treatment, it was about 110% of pretreatment value and it increased further with time. On the other hand, when hairless mouse skin was treated with Azone, marked changes occured; resistance fell almost to the value of bathing medium itself and capacitance increased to about 200% of its pretreatment value. Similar result were obtained when hairless mouse skin was treated with 100% ethanol. The results suggest that there are differences in the strength of barrier properties of stratum corneum (SC) between human and hairless mouse skin. Overall, the results provide further mechanistic insight into ion conduction through the skin and into the role of SC lipids in skin capacitance.

The objective of this study was to determine whether Pz-peptide, an enhancer of hydrophilic solute permeability in the intestine, could elevate the paracellular permeability of the cornea and conjunctiva in the pigmented rabbit. The in vitro penetration of four hydrophilic solutes, mannitol (MW 182), fluorescein (MW 376), FD-4 (FITC-dextran, 4 KDa), and FD-10 (FITC-dextran, 10 KDa) across the pigmented rabbit cornea and conjunctiva was studied either in the presence or absence of 3 mM enhancers. Drug penetration was evaluated using the modified Ussing chamber. The conjunctiva was more permeable than the cornea to all four markers. EDTA and cytochalasin B showed higher effects on marker transport than Pz-peptide, but Pz-peptide elevated the corneal transport of mannitol, fluoresein, and FD-4 by 50%, 26%, and 50%, respectively, without affecting FD-10 transport. Possibly due to the leakier nature of the conjunctiva, 3 mM Pz-peptide elevated the transport of only FD-4 by about 45%, without affecting the transport of other markers. Furthermore, the transport of Pz-peptide itself across the cornea and conjunctiva increased with increasing concentration in the 1-5 mM range, suggesting that Pz-peptide enhanced its own permeability, possibly by elevating paracellular permeability. Effects of ion transport inhibitors on Pz-peptide transport were then investigated. PZ-peptide penetration was not changed by mucosal addition of $10\;{\mu}M$ amiloride or $10\;{\mu}M$ hexamethylene amiloride, inhibiting serosal $Na^{+}$ exit by $100\;{\mu}M$ ouabain, or replacing $Na^{+}$ with choline chloride in the mucosal side buffer. These results seggested that Pz-peptide enhanced the paracellular permeability of rabbit cornea and conjunctiva and further indicate that ion transporters were not involved in the Pz-peptide induced elevation of paracellular marker permeability.

The objective of this study was to determine the influence of drug lipophilicity on the extent of ocular and systemic absorption following topical solution instillation in the pigmented rabbit. ${\beta}-Blockers$ of various lipophilicity were chosen as model drugs, $25\;{\mu}l$ of a 15 mM drug solution in isotonic pH 7.4 buffer was instilled, and ocular tissue and plasma drug concentrations were monitored. Ocular absorption was apparently increased in all eye tissues, but non-corneal absorption ratio was decreased by increasing of drug lipophilicity. Systemic bioavailability was ranged from 61% for atenolol to 100% for timolol, and at least 50% of the systemically absorbed drug reached the blood stream from the nasal mucosa. Occluding the nasolacrimal duct for 5 min reduced the extent of systemic absorption of timolol and levobunolol, but did not do so for atenolol and betaxolol. Taken together, the ocular absorption of topically applied ophthalmic drugs would be modest for lipophilic drugs. By contrast, the systemic bioavailability would be modest for drugs at the extremes of lipophilicity, and the nasal contribution to systemically absorbed drug diminished with increasing of drug lipophilicity.

The RMS statistical approach has demonstrated its potential in developing pharmaceutical dosage forms and in improving tabletting performance. Using an optimized formula, the tabletting performances of vitamin C-90 such as compressibility, disintegration time, lubrication and friability are significantly enhanced when compared with the performance of a traditional test formula. More important, this method also enables us to serve our customers better. Any customized modification of a suggested formula or any technical problem related performance etc. can be readily resolved by simple examination of the models.