Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Recent publications

• Large-Scale Freeze-Thaw of Protein Solutions: Study of the Relative Contributions of Freeze-Concentration and Ice Surface Area on Stability of Lactate Dehydrogenase September 26, 2022
  Although bulk biotherapeutics are often frozen during fill finish and shipping to improve their stability, they can undergo degradation leading to losses in biological activity during sub-optimal freeze-thaw (F/T) process. Except for a few small-scale studies, the relative contribution of various F/T stresses to the instability of proteins has not been addressed. Thus, the objective […]
  Bruna Minatovicz
• Evaluation of a Raman Chemometric Method for Detecting Protein Structural Conformational Changes in Solution September 24, 2022
  Raman scattering shows promise as a powerful routine tool, to determine both secondary and the smaller tertiary structural changes that precede aggregation in both solutions and solids. A method was developed utilizing principal component analysis (PCA) of Raman spectra for detection of small, but meaningful, pH induced changes in tertiary protein structure linked to aggregate […]
  Lauren Fontana
• Technology development to evaluate the effectiveness of viscosity reducing excipients September 18, 2022
  Addition of pharmaceutical excipients is a commonly used approach to decrease the viscosity of highly concentrated protein formulations, which otherwise could not be subcutaneously injected or processed. The variety of protein-protein interactions, which are responsible for increased viscosities, makes a portfolio approach necessary. Screening of several excipients to develop such a portfolio is time and […]
  Niels Banik
• Simultaneous Targeting of Multiple oncomiRs with Phosphorothioate or PNA-Based Anti-miRs in Lymphoma Cell Lines September 7, 2022
  CONCLUSIONS: This project demonstrated that targeting miRNA-155 and miR-21 simultaneously using nanotechnology and a diverse class of antisense oligomers can be used as an effective approach for lymphoma therapy.
  Karishma Dhuri
• Mechanisms and Extent of Enhanced Passive Permeation by Colloidal Drug Particles August 23, 2022
  Formulations containing nanosized drug particles such as nanocrystals and nanosized amorphous drug aggregates recently came into light as promising strategies to improve the bioavailability of poorly soluble drugs. However, the increased solubility due to the reduction in particle size cannot adequately explain the enhanced bioavailability. In this study, the mechanisms and extent of enhanced passive […]
  Akshay Narula
• On the Applicability of the Coarse Grained Coupled CFD-DEM Model to Predict the Heat Transfer During the Fluidized Bed Drying of Pharmaceutical Granules August 19, 2022
  Fluidized bed dryer often used in the pharmaceutical industry for drying of wet granules. Coupled computational fluid dynamics (CFD) - discrete element method (DEM) is frequently used to model the drying process because of its ability to obtain the relevant information at the particle level. However, it becomes almost impossible to model the industrial scale […]
  Hossain Aziz
• Comparisons of <em>in Vitro</em> Models to Evaluate the Membrane Permeability of Amorphous Drug Nanoparticles August 16, 2022
  The spontaneous formation of amorphous drug nanoparticles following the release of a drug from a supersaturating formulation is gaining increasing attention due to their potential contribution to increased oral bioavailability. The formation of nanosized drug particles also has considerable implications for the interpretation of in vitro and in vivo data. However, the membrane transport properties […]
  Rayan Sabra
• Molecular Dynamics Modeling Based Investigation of the Effect of Freezing Rate on Lysozyme Stability August 10, 2022
  CONCLUSIONS: For the first time, ice formation in therapeutic protein solution was studied "non-isothermally" at different freezing rates using molecular dynamics simulations. Thus, a good understanding of freezing rates on protein instability was revealed by applying the developed computational model.
  Tibo Duran
• Role and Regulation of Hepatobiliary ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters during Chemical-Induced Liver Injury August 1, 2022
  Severity of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) ranges from mild, asymptomatic, and transient elevations in liver function tests to irreversible liver damage, often needing transplantation. Traditionally, DILI is classified mechanistically as high-frequency intrinsic DILI, commonly dose dependent or DILI that rarely occurs and is idiosyncratic in nature. This latter form is not dose dependent and has […]
  Carolina I Ghanem
• Viral Nucleases from Herpesviruses and Coronavirus in Recombination and Proofreading: Potential Targets for Antiviral Drug Discovery July 27, 2022
  In this review, we explore recombination in two very different virus families that have become major threats to human health. The Herpesviridae are a large family of pathogenic double-stranded DNA viruses involved in a range of diseases affecting both people and animals. Coronaviridae are positive-strand RNA viruses (CoVs) that have also become major threats to […]
  Lee R Wright
• Rethinking Subthreshold Effects in Regulatory Chemical Risk Assessments July 25, 2022
  No abstract
  Evgenios Agathokleous
• Polymer source affects in vitro-in vivo correlation of leuprolide acetate PLGA microspheres July 25, 2022
  Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) PLGA (release controlling excipient) plays a dominant role on the performance of PLGA based long-acting parenterals. These types of drug products typically exhibit complex multi-phasic in vitro/in vivo release/absorption characteristics. In particular, owing to their large size, charged state, and hydrophilicity, peptide loaded microspheres can exhibit more complex release mechanisms. Accordingly, it is […]
  Bo Wan
• Assessing microstructural critical quality attributes in PLGA microspheres by FIB-SEM analytics July 8, 2022
  The distribution of the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) within polymer-based controlled release drug products is a critical quality attribute (CQA). It is crucial for the development of such products, to be able to accurately characterize phase distributions in these products to evaluate performance and microstructure (Q3) equivalence. In this study, polymer, API, and porosity distributions […]
  Andrew G Clark
• New Technologies Bloom Together for Bettering Cancer Drug Conjugates June 16, 2022
  Drug conjugates, including antibody-drug conjugates, are a step toward realizing Paul Ehrlich's idea from over 100 years ago of a "magic bullet" for cancer treatment. Through balancing selective targeting molecules with highly potent payloads, drug conjugates can target specific tumor microenvironments and kill tumor cells. A drug conjugate consists of three parts: a targeting agent, […]
  Yiming Jin
• Andexanet alfa versus four-factor prothrombin complex concentrate for the reversal of apixaban- or rivaroxaban-associated intracranial hemorrhage: a propensity score-overlap weighted analysis June 16, 2022
  CONCLUSIONS: In this indirect comparison of patients with an apixaban- or rivaroxaban-associated ICH, andexanet alfa was associated with better hemostatic effectiveness and improved survival compared to 4F-PCC. Trial registration NCT02329327; registration date: December 31, 2014.
  Olivia S Costa