Search Results (2,392)

As societal demand for sustainable development intensifies, corporate environmental performance has become a key consideration for investors in assessing risk and value. This study investigates the impact of corporate environmental disclosure on the cost of equity and the moderating role of corporate governance, using data from Chinese pharmaceutical listed companies between 2018 and 2022. Employing a firm- and time-fixed effects regression model, the results show that enhanced corporate environmental disclosure significantly reduces the cost of equity. Furthermore, corporate governance positively moderates this relationship, indicating that firms with more effective corporate governance experience a greater reduction in cost of equity from the enhanced disclosure. Robustness checks using a two-step system generalized method of moments and propensity score matching confirm these findings. This study provides empirical evidence on how corporate environmental disclosure improves capital market resource accessibility and underscores the critical role of corporate governance, offering practical implications for managers, investors, and policymakers. Full article

Background: Pharmacovigilance is a critical component of patient safety, particularly among older adults with chronic diseases who are frequently exposed to polypharmacy. In Kosovo, adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reported by patients remain insufficiently recognized within the healthcare system. Polypharmacy, limited access to pharmaceutical counseling, and self-medication practices may contribute to increased medication-related harm. Capturing ADRs directly from patients provides valuable insight into medication safety challenges and communication gaps in clinical care. Objective: To assess the frequency, characteristics, and reporting behavior of adverse drug reactions among adults aged 60–75 years with chronic diseases in Kosovo, and to identify factors associated with awareness and reporting practices. Methods: A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted between January and September 2025 in four major cities in Kosovo (Prishtina, Prizren, Peja, and Gjilan). A total of 1024 patients receiving continuous therapy for at least one chronic condition were surveyed using a structured questionnaire covering demographic characteristics, drug exposure, ADR experience, and reporting behavior. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, chi-square testing, and multivariable logistic regression to identify predictors of ADR reporting. Results: Overall, 47.3% of participants reported experiencing at least one ADR in the preceding 12 months. Among those, 39.5% reported the event to a healthcare professional, whereas 60.5% did not seek professional advice. The most frequently implicated drug classes were antihypertensives (32.8%), analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (27.4%), and antirheumatic agents (14.6%), with mainly gastrointestinal (24.1%) and cardiovascular (18.9%) manifestations. Approximately 19.8% of participants reported discontinuing medication due to adverse effects. Female patients were more likely to report ADRs compared to males (p < 0.01). Lack of prior counseling about potential side effects was independently associated with lower reporting (OR = 2.17; 95% CI: 1.41–3.33). Patients using more than six medications had a higher prevalence of ADRs (61.2%). Conclusion: Adverse drug reactions were frequently reported by older patients, while formal reporting to healthcare professionals remained limited. Strengthening patient education, improving patient–provider communication, and integrating clinical pharmacists into primary care may enhance pharmacovigilance practices and medication safety. Full article

Taste masking in pharmaceutical products is a complex and subjective process that requires reliable evaluation methods. This review focuses on the electronic tongue (e-tongue), an emerging sensor-based technology designed to mimic human taste perception without the need for human panels. E-tongue systems provide objective data to support the development of palatable formulations. In this review, we discuss the principles, types of e-tongue devices, data processing approaches, and their applications in pharmaceutical research. By comparing e-tongue performance with human taste assessment, we highlight its potential as a complementary tool to traditional in vitro assays, accelerating formulation development and improving patient adherence. Full article

Background: Vascular disease is a known risk factor for the development of leukoaraiosis. Assessment of cerebral blood flow (CBF) was performed at baseline and after acetazolamide (AZM) challenge to evaluate for vascular reserve and steal within the brain. Little has been reported on the physiological reserve in the non-flow-limited hemispheres. This study attempts to evaluate for vascular steal in areas commonly involved in leukoaraiosis, in the setting of pharmaceutically induced states of increased CBF. Methods: Patients who underwent AZM challenge MRI from 2014 to 2021 and a cerebral angiogram within one year were included. Patients with bilateral disease or non-diagnostic imaging artifacts were excluded. MRIs were obtained after 1 g of AZM was administered 5 and 10 min prior to acquisition. Augmentation and steal maps were generated. Regression analysis, Pearson correlation coefficient, two-sample t-test, Spearman and Mann–Whitney U analyses were utilized for statistical evaluation. Results: A total of 38 patients with unilateral cerebral vaso-occlusive disease underwent the AZM challenge. Vascular steal and T2 hyperintensities were assessed in non-flow-limited hemispheres (NFLH) and flow-limited hemispheres (FLH). A moderate correlation was demonstrated between NFLH steal and NFLH T2 hyperintensities (rs = 0.48, p = 0.0020). A weak correlation without statistical significance was demonstrated between ipsilateral T2 and contralateral T2 hyperintensities (rs = 0.27, p = 0.10). Conclusions: The vascular steal phenomenon was demonstrated in the distal cerebral vasculature of cerebral white matter even in the absence of upstream flow-limiting stenosis, suggesting an inherent vulnerability of these structures to hemodynamic fluctuations and possiblly contributing etiology to leukoaraiosis. Full article

Background/Objectives: Nusinersen is a synthetic antisense RNA oligonucleotide employed in the management of spinal muscular atrophy, a rare neuromuscular disorder, by modulating the alternative splicing of the survival motor neuron 2 (SMN2) gene. GNR-100 represents the first generic version of the reference listed drug (RLD), containing nusinersen sodium as the active pharmaceutical ingredient. We performed comprehensive evaluations in accordance with FDA guidelines, including side-by-side comparative analyses of critical quality attributes, to thoroughly characterize the structural and functional properties of both nusinersen products. Results/Methods: GNR-100 was comprehensively demonstrated to be highly similar to RLD in terms of oligonucleotide structure, physicochemical properties, impurity profile, and in vitro cell-based assays for SMN-gene splice-switching and SMN-protein activity. Structural analyses confirmed that the oligonucleotide primary sequences and chemical structures were identical. The diastereomeric composition and higher-order structures were also similar between the proposed generic and the reference product. Comparable resistance to phosphodiesterase degradation and nearly identical melting temperatures of the oligonucleotide duplexes with their complementary strand further substantiated the structural sameness of the nusinersen products. The impurity profile of the proposed therapeutic oligonucleotide was consistent with that of RLD, and the collectively reduced levels of impurities, as assessed by orthogonal analytical methods, indicated no meaningful impact on the safety profile. Moreover, both products exhibited comparable biological activity in enhancing the production of full-length SMN2 mRNA transcripts and functional SMN protein in fibroblasts derived from SMA patients. Conclusions: These quality studies demonstrate that GNR-100 exhibits no significant differences from the licensed drug across structural, physicochemical, biophysical, and biological attributes, establishing its potential as a cost-effective therapeutic alternative for patients with spinal muscular atrophy. Full article

Synthesized by expressing natural collagen sequences in specific hosts, recombinant collagen exhibits multiple advantages, encompassing a higher content of bioactive domains, enhanced antioxidant activity, the absence of viral pathogens, favorable hydrophilicity, reproducible production, and low immunogenicity. Consequently, it has found extensive use in applications ranging from biomaterials and pharmaceuticals to skincare. This review systematically explores various expression systems for recombinant collagen, including those utilizing Escherichia coli, Pichia pastoris, plants, insect baculovirus, and mammalian cells. It provides a detailed comparison of their differences and commonalities in terms of production efficiency, post-translational modification capability, and cost-effectiveness. Key separation and purification techniques for recombinant collage-notably precipitation, affinity chromatography, ion-exchange chromatography, and gel filtration chromatography are further introduced, with an in-depth analysis of the applicable scenarios and purification outcomes for each method. Finally, the review comprehensively summarizes the characterization methods for both the physicochemical properties and biological functions of recombinant collagen. For physicochemical properties, techniques covered include scanning electron microscopy, micro-differential thermal analysis, circular dichroism spectroscopy, SDS-PAGE, mass spectrometry, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. For biological functions, the focus is on its roles and the corresponding assessment methods in processes such as cell proliferation, migration, adhesion, and wound healing. Building upon this comprehensive overview, current challenges facing recombinant collagen are identified, and future directions are proposed, emphasizing the need to reduce R&D costs, refine testing methods for cosmetic products, and improve safety evaluation protocols to advance the field. Full article

This study presents a comprehensive evaluation and environmental risk assessment (ERA) of pharmaceutical residues in the Cerrón Grande Reservoir, one of the most important surface water bodies in El Salvador. Sampling campaigns were conducted over a one-year period, covering both the dry (January 2024) and rainy (July 2024) seasons. A total of 76 pharmaceutical compounds were analyzed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), of which only five were not detected. During the dry season, the highest environmental concentrations were observed for mecamylamine (1710–6913 µg L⁻¹), 1,7-dimethylxanthine (379–2829 µg L⁻¹), chloroquine (2.29–362.7 µg L⁻¹), and hydroxychloroquine (5.02–315.4 µg L⁻¹). Concentrations generally decreased in the rainy season, with mecamylamine (1526–2198 µg L⁻¹), 1,7-dimethylxanthine (0.018–0.55 µg L⁻¹), and caffeine (0.2–0.474 µg L⁻¹) remaining the most prevalent. Compounds exceeding 1 µg L⁻¹ were assessed using predicted no-effect concentrations (PNEC) to calculate risk quotients (RQ). Chloroquine (RQ = 3346.3), mecamylamine (RQ = 1437.8), hydroxychloroquine (RQ = 1027.2), and manidipine (RQ = 271.0) posed the highest risks during the dry season, while only mecamylamine (RQ = 502.0) exceeded this threshold in the rainy season. To our knowledge, this represents the first in-depth study of pharmaceutical residues in Salvadoran surface waters, providing a foundational reference for future research and environmental policy in the region. Full article

Biomolecules play pivotal roles in cellular signaling, metabolic regulation and the maintenance of physiological homeostasis in the human body, and their dysregulation is closely associated with the onset and progression of various human diseases. Consequently, the development of highly sensitive, selective, and stable detection platforms for these molecules is of significant value for drug discovery, pharmaceutical quality control, pharmacodynamic studies, and personalized medicine. In recent years, electrochemical biosensors, particularly those integrated with functional nanomaterials and biorecognition elements, have emerged as powerful analytical platforms in pharmaceutics and biomedical analysis, owing to their high sensitivity, exquisite selectivity, rapid response, simple operation, low cost and suitability for real-time or in situ monitoring in complex biological systems. This review summarizes recent progress in the electrochemical detection of representative biomolecules, including dopamine, glucose, uric acid, hydrogen peroxide, lactate, glutathione and cholesterol. By systematically summarizing and analyzing existing sensing strategies and nanomaterial-based sensor designs, this review aims to provide new insights for the interdisciplinary integration of pharmaceutics, nanomedicine, and electrochemical biosensing, and to promote the translational application of these sensing technologies in drug analysis, quality assessment, and clinical diagnostics. Full article

Introduction: Today, scientists are searching for alternative approaches to preventing metabolic diseases, particularly non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which reduces the healthy life expectancy of the working population. Fungi, such as Hericium coralloides (Scop.) Pers., are promising raw materials for extracting bioactive substances with preventative potential. Materials and Methods: This review covered review and research articles published over the last 42 years and indexed in the databases of the eLIBRARY.RU, the National Center for Biotechnology Information, and Scopus. Results and Discussion: It has been established that H. coralloides is valued for its nutritional properties due to its rich protein, fat, and mineral composition. It is in demand for pharmaceutical purposes due to its content of bioactive metabolites. The most studied metabolites are lovastatin and ergothioneine. The activity of these biologically active substances against NAFLD has been confirmed by studies in vitro and in vivo. Market analysis revealed that most dietary supplements contain fungal mycelium or its extract. It is preferable to use pure metabolites of H. coralloides as nutrients in dietary supplements and functional foods, since it allows the scientists to standardize their doses, target the therapeutic effect (immunity, neuroprotection, or antitumor), and reduce the required intake of the product. Since this fungus is a rare species in nature, its biomass should be grown in vitro for industrial use. Conclusions: Further research will focus on developing methods for extracting H. coralloides metabolites and assessing their biopotential in vivo and clinical studies. Full article

Background/Objectives: The development of small-molecule agents that selectively target DNA replication remains a central strategy in anticancer drug discovery. In this study, we report the biological characterization of a novel 6-nitro-benzodioxin-naphthalimide (NI) derivative (compound 5a), evaluated as a potential DNA-targeted anticancer lead. Methods/Results: The antiproliferative activity of 5a was assessed in a small panel of human lung carcinoma cell models (A549, H1299) and a non-malignant control (MRC-5), revealing pronounced cytotoxic effects in tumor cells, accompanied by favorable selectivity indices. Mechanistic investigations demonstrated that treatment with 5a results in strong inhibition of DNA synthesis, as evidenced by a marked reduction in EdU incorporation and a robust induction of the DNA damage marker γH2AX. These effects were associated with cell-cycle perturbations characterized by accumulation in G₁ and G₂/M phases, followed by activation of apoptotic pathways. Importantly, clonogenic survival assays confirmed that even transient exposure to 5a leads to a sustained loss of proliferative capacity, indicating irreversible long-term cellular damage. These results support a replication stress-driven mechanism of action for compound 5a, consistent with interference in DNA-associated processes during S phase. Conclusions: While the precise molecular initiating event remains to be elucidated, the observed biological profile positions 5a as a promising DNA-targeted lead structure with potential for further pharmaceutical optimization. These findings provide a solid foundation for the continued development of naphthalimide-based compounds as anticancer agents within a pharmaceutically relevant framework. Full article

Background: Pharmacists in Saudi Arabia are assuming increasingly diverse and specialized roles amid rapid healthcare transformation. However, evolving expectations and expanding responsibilities may influence their job satisfaction, well-being, and career stability. This study aimed to assess job satisfaction, burnout, well-being, and career intentions among pharmacists across multiple practice sectors in Saudi Arabia. Method: A nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted between December 2024 and January 2025 using an electronic questionnaire distributed to licensed pharmacists. The instrument assessed mental well-being, job satisfaction, burnout, workplace environment, and career mobility. Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: A total of 531 pharmacists completed the survey; 65% were male, and 89.3% were Saudi nationals. Sector distribution differed significantly by gender (p < 0.001): females were more represented in clinical and hospital pharmacy, while males predominated in the pharmaceutical industry–related roles. Male pharmacists reported higher work environment scores (p = 0.028) and greater sector mobility (34.2% vs. 23.7%, p = 0.012). Approximately 30.5% of participants had changed their employment sector at least once. Community pharmacists reported the highest burnout levels, whereas those in regulatory and administrative roles demonstrated the greatest job satisfaction (both p < 0.001). Participation in professional development showed strong positive associations with job satisfaction and intention to remain in the current role. Conclusions: Marked variations exist in pharmacists’ well-being, satisfaction, and career mobility across sectors in Saudi Arabia, with notable gender differences. Enhancing professional development, ensuring equitable work environments, and promoting sector-specific support strategies may help inform discussions on pharmacist engagement and retention within the evolving national healthcare system. Full article

B7-H3 (CD276), a member of the B7 family of proteins, is known to play a key role in the progression of a number of cancers. This protein is selectively expressed in both tumor cells and immune cells within the tumor microenvironment. Various investigations, including a number of clinical trials, have reported high levels of expression of this protein in cancerous tissues compared to their healthy counterparts. This difference in expression attracted various research efforts to establish whether such a difference can be linked to the therapeutic potential of this molecule. It is worth noting that B7-H3 is not the only immune checkpoint expressed at different levels in cancerous and healthy cells. Therapeutic strategies, based on different levels of expression, have been tested with other checkpoints. To inhibit the expression of some checkpoints, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) were developed. The introduction of these inhibitors for the treatment of some forms of advanced-stage tumors has been justly described as an important milestone in the landscape of immune therapy. Years after the launch of these inhibitors, numerous clinical trials revealed that these inhibitors benefit a narrow subset of patients suffering from advanced-stage tumors, while the majority of patients treated with these inhibitors either did not respond positively or simply did not respond at all (refractory patients). Other clinical trials showed that this form of treatment can provoke serious immune-related adverse events (irAEs). It is fair to state that changes in the expression level of a given protein in diseased tissue is an important parameter to take into account in the assessment of such a protein as a therapeutic target. However, the last ten years have demonstrated that taking the level of expression of a given checkpoint within a cancerous tissue is not sufficient to consider such expression a reliable predictive biomarker for the investigated disease. On the other hand, to establish a solid base for a given therapeutic strategy, these varying levels of expression have to be combined with a deep understanding of the biology of the molecule under investigation, as well as the identification and thorough analysis of the relevant signaling pathways, particularly those communicating with both the investigated molecule and the immune system. Recently, a number of pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms have suggested that B7-H3 is a highly promising therapeutic target for the development of immune therapeutics. In this review, we ask why hopes of better therapeutic performance are attached to this immune checkpoint. A partial answer to this question is provided through the careful consideration of the available data generated by various clinical trials. The contribution of mass spectrometry-based proteomics to this area of research is highlighted. Full article

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain the leading cause of mortality worldwide. CVDs are associated with multiple factors, including oxidative stress, mediated endothelial dysfunction, vascular inflammation, and atherothrombosis. Although traditional antioxidant supplementation (such as vitamins C, E, and β-carotene) has shown promising results in rigorous animal model studies, it has consistently failed to demonstrate clinical benefit in most human trials. Consequently, there is a substantial unmet need for novel paradigms involving mechanistically and biologically relevant pharmaceutical-grade antioxidant therapies (“next-generation antioxidants”). Rapid advancements in redox biology, nanotechnology, genetic modulation of redox processes, and metabolic regulation have enabled the development of new antioxidant therapeutics, including mitochondrial-targeted agents, NADPH oxidase (NOX) inhibitors, selenoprotein and Nrf2 activators, engineered nanoparticles, catalytic antioxidants, and RNA-based and gene-editing strategies. These interventions have the potential to modulate specific oxidative pathways that contribute to CVD pathogenesis. This review provides a comprehensive assessment of current oxidative stress–modulating modalities and their potential to inform personalized cardiovascular prevention and treatment strategies. Full article

Background: The development of greener synthetic routes to active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) is a key challenge in sustainable chemistry. Methods: In this work, we explored the use of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) in the multi-step synthesis of a fluoroquinolone following the Grohe method. Results: Several steps of the synthetic sequence were successfully carried out using DESs, achieving moderate to good yields, while operating under mild reaction conditions and reducing purification requirements. Overall, the use of DESs led to an overall yield of up to 43%. A comprehensive greenness assessment, combining EcoScale scoring and the GSK and CHEM21 solvent selection guides, confirmed the superior sustainability profile of DESs, reflecting their lower toxicity, biodegradability, and reduced energy demands. Conclusions: These findings establish DESs as promising, eco-friendly alternatives to volatile and hazardous organic solvents for the synthesis of quinolone derivatives, offering a valuable step toward more sustainable pharmaceutical manufacturing. Full article