October 6 University (O6U) is a private university located in Giza, 6th of October City, Egypt. It was established by the Republican Decree no. 243 in 1996.O6U is in the 6th of October City, 32 km from downtown Cairo. The campus consists of four education buildings, the teaching hospital, and the hostel for female students, while the central library and male students hostel are 150 meters from the campus.All the awarded degrees are accredited and validated by the Egyptian Supreme Council of Universities.O6U is a member of the Association of Arab Universities since 1997 and the Association of African Universities.
Superficial candidiasis caused by Candida albicans is a common fungal infection, with rising resistance to conventional antifungals such as fluconazole. Luliconazole (LUL), a potent imidazole antifungal, exhibits limited skin penetration, necessitating novel delivery systems to overcome this limitation and enhance its therapeutic efficacy. The objective of this study was to develop and optimize a LUL-loaded proniosomal gel (LPG) to enhance topical delivery and antifungal activity against fluconazole-resistant Candida albicans. A D-optimal design was employed for the evaluation of the influence of lecithin amount, surfactant amount, and surfactant type (Cremophor RH40 vs. Brij 57) on vesicle size, zeta potential, polydispersity index, and the entrapment efficiency. Then the optimized LUL formulations were characterized by TEM and FTIR. In-vitro LUL release, ex-vivo skin permeation test, and in-vivo LUL antifungal activity were measured in comparison with the commercial LUL cream. The optimized formulation (300 mg lecithin, 1200 mg Brij 57) produced nanosized vesicles (89.12 nm), with high entrapment efficiency (74.58
Wild plants harbor distinct endophytes that produce potent antimicrobial metabolites that can be used to combat life-threatening pathogens. In our study, four bacterial endophytes (LP1, LP2, LP3, LP4) were isolated from the inner tissues of leaves of Pluchea dioscoridis (L.) DC (Barnûf). The antimicrobial activity of the respective extracts (P1, P2, P3, and P4) against standard, multidrug-resistant (MDR), and Candida albicans was determined using the cup agar diffusion method. The P4 extract showed broad-spectrum activity against all tested pathogens and promising antiviral activity. The endophytic bacterium LP4 was microscopically and genomically identified by whole-genome sequencing (WGS) as Microbacterium testaceum (M. testaceum) strain CCASU-2025-88. The extract of endophytic M. testaceum CCASU-2025-88 (LP4) exhibited broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against standard and multidrug-resistant pathogens as well as antiviral activity against Adenovirus 7, Herpes Simplex Virus 1, and Herpes Simplex Virus 2, and cytotoxic activity with a non-toxic concentration of 7.32 μg/mL, reflecting the promising bioactive properties of LP4 metabolites. Chemical profiling using AntiSMASH and LC–ESI–MS analysis suggested the presence of a compound putatively identified as microansamycin B; however, this assignment remains tentative, since the compound exhibits potent antibacterial activity, and it demonstrates the bioactive potential of M. testaceum metabolites. In conclusion, M. testaceum strain CCASU-2025-88 is a potential source of microansamycin B-like compound based on LC–ESI–MS evidence. This is the first report investigating the production of microansamycin B by a locally isolated endophytic bacterium, M. testaceum CCASU-2025-88. Further studies are recommended to optimize its production and isolation in a pure form.
Lung cancer affects millions of people annually, and while many nodules are resectable, some are difficult to localize because of their small size or depth. CT-guided localization techniques, particularly hook-wire placement and dye marking, are commonly used to facilitate surgical identification of pulmonary nodules. This systematic review and meta-analysis compared the safety and perioperative outcomes of these two approaches. PubMed Central, Cochrane, Scopus, Web of Science, and Ovid were searched from inception to May 2025 for comparative studies of hook-wire versus dye-based localization for pulmonary nodules. Ten studies were included. Hook-wire localization was associated with significantly higher risks of lung hemorrhage (RR = 2.48, 95
Sensitive determination of low-absorbing pharmaceutical compounds present in trace amounts remains a significant analytical challenge. In this study, a voltammetric method was developed and validated for the quantification of lofexidine (LOF), a medication that has been prescribed to manage opioid withdrawal symptoms. LOF is a weakly UV-absorbing compound (lambda max = 222.5 nm), using a carbon paste electrode modified with copper metavanadate (CMV) nanofibers. CMV nanofibers were synthesized via hydrothermal method, the synthesized nanofibers were thoroughly characterized by SEM, EDX, EDS mapping, FT-IR, and XRD confirming their fibrous morphology, homogeneous elemental distribution, and characteristic vanadate functionalities. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) revealed that the CMV-modified electrode exhibited superior electrocatalytic activity, providing higher current responses and lower oxidation potential compared to the bare electrode. The developed method displayed excellent analytical performance with a linear range of 0.1-10.0 & micro;M, a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.09 & micro;M, an electrode sensitivity of 30.64 & micro;A & micro;M- 1 cm- 2 and outstanding repeatability (RSD% = 0.655%). The proposed sensor was successfully applied for the determination of LOF in its pharmaceutical tablet dosage form, which contains only 0.2 mg per tablet, achieving high accuracy and precision despite the extremely low analyte concentration. The sustainability of the proposed method was assessed using the recently developed EPPI (Environmental Performance and Practicality Index) metric, which indicated a high overall EPPI score (90.5), confirming the method's environmentally friendly and practical nature. Finally, this work demonstrates a costeffective, and highly sensitive voltammetric platform for pointing of care monitoring of LOF highlighting the promising role of metal vanadate nanofibers in the electrochemical analysis of trace-level, low-absorbing therapeutic agents.
Background/Objectives: Aspasomes (ASPs) are composed of ascorbyl palmitate (AP), which has antioxidant activity. The objective of this study was the formulation of aspasomes (ASPs) loaded with metformin hydrochloride (MFC) for the topical treatment of melasma. Methods: MFC-ASPs were prepared using the thin-film method with different amounts of phospholipid and ascorbyl palmitate (AP) in the absence or presence of ethanol surfactant. The prepared formulations were optimized using a D-optimal mixture. The assessed responses included entrapment efficiency (%EE), particle size (PS), polydispersity index (PDI), and zeta potential (ZP). Results: The optimum OASPs, composed of 193.121 mg PC and 30 mg AP, exhibited spherical vesicles with an EE% of 87.50 ± 0.33%, PS of 264.47 ± 0.02 nm, PDI of 0.423 ± 0.001, and ZP of -21.67 ± 0.12 mV. The optimum formula represented a spherical morphology using transmission electron microscopy, along with sustained release behavior compared with MFC. Also, it showed good stability for up to 90 days. Furthermore, a clinical appraisal of patients with melasma confirmed the superiority of the cream compared to the other cream in clinical study. Conclusions: The optimum OASPs present a promising approach for the treatment of melasma topically.
