“
“A composite polymeric membrane to be used as electrolyte in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells has been prepared and characterized. The membrane is composed of an acidic polymer, sulfonated polyetheretherketone, and of basic filler, amino-diphenylsilandiol,

a functionalized organically modified silane. Attenuated total reflectance (ATR)/fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated the occurrence of a specific interaction of the polymer ?SO3H groups with the basic function of the filler. Such interaction reflected in reduced swelling, enhanced thermal stability, and good proton conductivity values at intermediate temperatures (s approximate to 10(-2) GSK621 molecular weight S cm(-1) at 100 degrees C). (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012″
“Pulmonary delivery of therapeutic peptides and proteins has many advantages including high relative bioavailability, find more rapid systemic absorption and onset of action and

a non-invasive mode of administration which improves patient compliance. In this study, we investigated the effect of spray-drying (SD) and spray freeze-drying processes on the stability and aerosol performance of parathyroid hormone (PTH) (1-34) microparticles. In this study, the stabilisation effect of trehalose (a non-reducing sugar) and Brij 97 (a non-ionic surfactant) on spray-dried PTH particles was assessed using analytical techniques including circular dichroism (CD), fluorescence spectroscopy, modulated differential scanning calorimetry and an in vitro bioactivity assay. Physical characterisation also included electron microscopy, tap density measurement and laser light diffraction. The aerosol aerodynamic performance of the formulations was assessed using the Andersen cascade impactor. Based on these studies, a formulation for spray freeze-drying was selected and the effects of

the two particle engineering techniques on the biophysical stability and aerosol performance of the resulting powders was determined. CD, fluorescence click here spectroscopy and bioactivity data suggest that trehalose when used alone as a stabilising excipient produces a superior stabilising effect than when used in combination with a non-ionic surfactant. This highlights the utility of CD and fluorescence spectroscopy studies for the prediction of protein bioactivity post-processing. Therefore, a method and formulation suitable for the preparation of PTH as a dry powder was developed based on spray-drying PTH with trehalose as a stabiliser with the bioactivity of SD PTH containing trehalose being equivalent to that of unprocessed PTH.”
“Cluster headache (CH) is a strictly unilateral headache that occurs in association with cranial autonomic features. It is an excruciating syndrome and is probably one of the most painful conditions known to exist, with some female patients describing each attack as being worse than childbirth.