• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.516-521
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• 2005

Drug delivery to the lymphatic system may be important in terms of the treatment with lymphatic involvement, such as tumor metastases and immunization. Especially, drug transport via the intestinal lymphatics after oral administration has been attracted lots of interests. The purpose of this study was to prepare cyclosporin A (CSA)-loaded liposomes, with different characteristics, and evaluate their mucoadhesivity. Three liposome preparations were formulated: cationic stearylamine liposomes (SA-Lip), anionic phosphatidylserine liposomes (PS-Lip), Polymer (chitosan)-coated liposomes (CS-Lip), and characterized. The liposome preparations were found to be spherical in shape, with PS-Lip being the smallest. The liposome preparations exhibited entrapment efficiencies in the order: PS-Lip $(52.5{\pm}2.9%)$ > SA-Lip $(48.8{\pm}3.3%)$ > CS-Lip $(41.7{\pm}4.2%)$. Finally, mucoadhesive tests were carried out using rat intestine, with SA-Lip (67%) showing the best adhesive rate of the three preparations (PS-Lip: 56%, CS-Lip: 61%). These results suggest that a positive charge on the surface of drug carriers may be an important factor for the intestinal drug delivery.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.55-62
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• 1995

W/O and O/W emulsions of tegafur (50 mg/5 ml/kg) were orally administered to rats to compare with their mesenteric lymphatic delivery effects. And also in order to demonstrate the lymph targeting associated to the oral route, it was deemed necessary to investigate the fate of solution after oral administration as a control. Lymph and plasma samples were periodically taken from each subject of mesenteric lymphatic duct cannulated rats. Then, lymph and plasma levels of tegafur and its active metabolite, 5-FU, were simultaneously observed. Also pharmacokinetic parameters were compared with each others. On the other hand, most previous studies of lymphatic transport have not addressed the question of whether an increase in mesenteric or thoracic lymph transport by the manipulation of a suspected variable was due to a selective delivery to the intestinal lymphatics or an overall increase availability. Therefore, based on a physiologically based pharmacokinetic model which represents the characteristics of lymphatic systems, we are also going to determine the contributions of mesenteric lymph transport versus thoracic lymph transport of tegafur reported in reference(13). In comparison with tegafur solution, AUC and mean residence time of plasma tegafur were significantly increased in W/O emulsion but significantly decreased in O/W emulsion. Lymph flow rates were similar in both solution and W/O emulsion but half in O/W emulsion. AUC of tegafur in mesenteric lymph and in plasma for W/O emulsion were 3.7 times and 2.9 times more than those for O/W emulsion, respectively. And AUC of 5-FU in thoracic lymph for W/O emulsion was 3.7 times more than that for O/W emulsion. These results suggested that lymphatic delivery or tegafur by W/O emulsion was more effective than that by on emulsion due to its differences or formation ability of chylomicrons.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.59 no.3
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• pp.189-225
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• 2021

The use of albendazole and mebendazole, i.e., benzimidazole broad-spectrum anthelmintics, in treatment of parasitic infections, as well as cancers, is briefly reviewed. These drugs are known to block the microtubule systems of parasites and mammalian cells leading to inhibition of glucose uptake and transport and finally cell death. Eventually they exhibit ovicidal, larvicidal, and vermicidal effects on parasites, and tumoricidal effects on hosts. Albendazole and mebendazole are most frequently prescribed for treatment of intestinal nematode infections (ascariasis, hookworm infections, trichuriasis, strongyloidiasis, and enterobiasis) and can also be used for intestinal tapeworm infections (taeniases and hymenolepiasis). However, these drugs also exhibit considerable therapeutic effects against tissue nematode/cestode infections (visceral, ocular, neural, and cutaneous larva migrans, anisakiasis, trichinosis, hepatic and intestinal capillariasis, angiostrongyliasis, gnathostomiasis, gongylonemiasis, thelaziasis, dracunculiasis, cerebral and subcutaneous cysticercosis, and echinococcosis). Albendazole is also used for treatment of filarial infections (lymphatic filariasis, onchocerciasis, loiasis, mansonellosis, and dirofilariasis) alone or in combination with other drugs, such as ivermectin or diethylcarbamazine. Albendazole was tried even for treatment of trematode (fascioliasis, clonorchiasis, opisthorchiasis, and intestinal fluke infections) and protozoan infections (giardiasis, vaginal trichomoniasis, cryptosporidiosis, and microsporidiosis). These drugs are generally safe with few side effects; however, when they are used for prolonged time (>14-28 days) or even only 1 time, liver toxicity and other side reactions may occur. In hookworms, Trichuris trichiura, possibly Ascaris lumbricoides, Wuchereria bancrofti, and Giardia sp., there are emerging issues of drug resistance. It is of particular note that albendazole and mebendazole have been repositioned as promising anti-cancer drugs. These drugs have been shown to be active in vitro and in vivo (animals) against liver, lung, ovary, prostate, colorectal, breast, head and neck cancers, and melanoma. Two clinical reports for albendazole and 2 case reports for mebendazole have revealed promising effects of these drugs in human patients having variable types of cancers. However, because of the toxicity of albendazole, for example, neutropenia due to myelosuppression, if high doses are used for a prolonged time, mebendazole is currently more popularly used than albendazole in anti-cancer clinical trials.