Understanding the Stability and Lifetime of Emulsions

This paper aims to review the various degradation pathays of emulsions. Aging of emulsions may proceed through three distinct microscopic mechanisms: diffusion or permeation, dewetting, and coalescence, each one being associated with a very characteristic growth scenario. We show within this context how double emulsions are a unique tool to complete the basic understanding of emulsion metastability.     

Study of benznidazole–cyclodextrin inclusion complexes, cytotoxicity and trypanocidal activity

The current chemotherapy for Chagas disease is still based on benznidazole, which has low solubility, but complexation with cyclodextrins provides a way of increasing the solubility. The objective of this work was to characterize the inclusion complexes formed between benznidazole (BNZ) and randomly 2-methyled-β-cyclodextrin (RM-β-CD) in aqueous solution and study cytotoxicity and trypanocidal. BNZ:RM-β-CD solution complex systems were prepared and characterized using the phase solubility diagram, nuclear magnetic resonance and a photostability assays, also to investigate the in vitro trypanocidal activity with epimastigote forms of Trypanossoma cruzi and the study of cytotoxicity against mammal cells. The phase-solubility diagram displayed an A _L-type feature, providing evidence of the formation of soluble inclusion complexes. The continuous variation method showed the existence of a complex with 1:1 stoichiometry. Toxicity assays demonstrated that inclusion complexes were able to reduce the toxic effects caused by benznidazole alone and that this did not interfere with the trypanocidal activity of the benznidazole. The use of inclusion complexes benznidazole:cyclodextrin is thus a promising alternative for the development of a safe and stable liquid formulation and a new option for the treatment of Chagas disease.