Castor oil, produced from castor beans, has long been considered to be of important commercial value primarily for the manufacturing of soaps, lubricants, and coatings, among others. Global castor oil production is concentrated primarily in a small geographic region of Gujarat in Western India. This region is favorable due to its labor-intensive cultivation method and subtropical climate condit...

Self-emulsifying compositions are the basis of oral drug delivery systems used to improve solubility and increase bioavailability active pharmaceutical ingredients that poorly soluble in aqueous medium gastric juice. Aim. To develop self-emulsifying using simvastatin as an ingredient. Materials methods. During development composition mixture, excipients, such solvents, co-solvents, surfactants ...

A new crystal form of yeast triose phosphate isomerase has been grown from solutions of the enzyme in polyethylene glycol (PEG) of average molecular weight 4000. The crystals are monoclinic, space group P21, with a = 61.3 A, b = 98.4 A, c = 49.7 A, /3 = 90.9”. There is one dimeric molecule per asymmetric unit. Data are observable to at least 1.3A resolution. Crystallization can be achieved afte...

The objective of this study was to develop an oral microemulsion formulation of the antitumor diterpenoid agent, ent-11α-hydroxy-15-oxo-kaur-16-en-19-oic-acid (henceforth referred to as 5F), to enhance its bioavailability and evaluate its hepatotoxicity. Pseudoternary phase diagrams showed that the optimal microemulsion formulation contained 45% water, 10% castor oil as the oil phase, 15% Cremo...

Resveratrol (Res) is a common phytoalexin present in a few edible materials, such as grape skin, peanuts, and red wine. Evidence has shown the beneficial effects of Res on human health, which may be attributed to its anti-inflammatory activity. However, the poor aqueous solubility of Res limits its therapeutic effectiveness. Therefore, the use of nanostructured delivery systems for Res, such as...

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to evaluate in an analytical and descriptive manner the evidence published so far on the use of polyethylene glycol (PEG), with or without electrolytes, in the management of functional constipation and the treatment of fecal impaction. METHODOLOGY Search on MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane databases until May 2016 of all publications adjusted to the follo...

With the current high level of interest in patches to deliver drugs across the skin, the concept of external applications for delivery of medicinal substances is becoming widely accepted. This study evaluated the potential for transdermal absorption of castor oil, a treatment modality recommended by Edgar Cayce. Specific epoxydicarboxylic acids are known to be excreted via the urine when castor...

Castor oil is one of the oldest drugs. When given orally, it has a laxative effect and induces labor in pregnant females. The effects of castor oil are mediated by ricinoleic acid, a hydroxylated fatty acid released from castor oil by intestinal lipases. Despite the wide-spread use of castor oil in conventional and folk medicine, the molecular mechanism by which ricinoleic acid acts remains unk...

Castor oil is 90% ricinoleate (12-hydroxy-oleate) and has numerous industrial uses. Components of castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) pose serious problems to processors. We are evaluating two complementary approaches to providing a safe source of castor oil.

This paper reports on the assessment of the quality and quantity of castor oil from castor seeds collected from different regions in Tanzania. The castor seeds from Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Dodoma, Iringa, Kagera and Morogoro regions in Tanzania were extracted by Soxhlet method using n-hexane and the oil yields were determined. The yields were 52.78%, 49.95%, 47.89%, 44.23%, 43.71% and 43.69% for...