@article{Barba2009f,

title = {Swelling of cellulose derivative (HPMC) matrix systems for drug delivery},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore and Serafina Chirico and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861709002707},

doi = {10.1016/j.carbpol.2009.05.001},

issn = {01448617},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-10-01},

journal = {Carbohydrate Polymers},

volume = {78},

number = {3},

pages = {469--474},

abstract = {The water swellable hydrogels are commonly used in the production of solid pharmaceutical dosage systems for oral administration (matrices). Their use allows to obtain the controlled drug release. The key role is played by the transport phenomena which take place: water up-take, gel swelling and erosion, increase in diffusivity due to hydration. Thus, knowledge of these phenomena is fundamental in designing and realizing the pharmaceutical systems. In this work, tablets made of pure hydrogel, HydroxyPropyl-MethylCellulose (HPMC), were produced and immersed in a thermostatic bath filled with stirred distilled water (37°C). The water up-take was allowed only by radial direction (from the lateral surface) by confining the tablet between two glass slides. Two distinct methods, an optical technique already described in a previous work, and a gravimetric procedure described here, were applied to measure the water concentration profiles along the radial direction in the tablets. The data obtained were used both to clarify the nature of the transport phenomena involved, and to perform a better tuning of a mathematical model previously proposed.},

keywords = {Erosion, Extended release, HPMC, Hydrogel Characterization, Swelling, Water diffusion},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009e,

title = {Investigation of Pluronic© F127-Water solutions phase transitions by DSC and dielectric spectroscopy},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore and Mario Grassi and Serafina Chirico and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio},

url = {http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/app.30586},

doi = {10.1002/app.30586},

issn = {00218995},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-10-01},

journal = {Journal of Applied Polymer Science},

volume = {114},

number = {2},

pages = {688--695},

publisher = {Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company},

abstract = {The water solutions of the block copolymers PEOn-PPOm-PEOn, known as pluronics, show a complex thermal behavior, since they are liquid at low temperature (5°C), and they can give soft gel when heated at body temperature (37°C). These properties are of great interest in biomedical applications. To properly design these applications, a prerequisite is the knowledge of the thermodynamics\textemdashhow much\textemdashand of the kinetics\textemdashhow fast\textemdashwith which these transformations take place. In this work, solutions of F127 (the copolymer for which n = 100 and m = 65) were studied by varying the concentration and the temperature and analyzing their behavior when heated under several heating rates. The studies were performed by differential scanning calorimetry (DCS) and dielectric spectroscopy. The investigations carried out under equilibrium conditions allowed us to determine the thermodynamics of the phase transitions, whereas the investigations carried out under varying conditions allowed us to quantify the kinetics of the phase transitions. Empirical models were also proposed to describe both the thermodynamics and the kinetics observed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009},

keywords = {biological applications of polymers, block copolymers, dielectric properties, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), gelation, Hydrogel Characterization},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009,

title = {Microonde e prodotti agro-alimentari},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Tecnologie alimentari},

volume = {Gennaio-Fe},

pages = {30--32},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009d,

title = {Synthesis and characterization of P(MMA-AA) copolymers for targeted oral drug delivery},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Annalisa Dalmoro and Felice De Santis and Gaetano Lamberti},

url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00289-009-0040-4},

doi = {10.1007/s00289-009-0040-4},

issn = {0170-0839},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Polymer Bulletin},

volume = {62},

number = {5},

pages = {679--688},

publisher = {Springer-Verlag},

abstract = {This paper describes the development of pH-sensitive poly(methyl methacrylate-acrylic acid) copolymers for the enteric coating of pharmaceutical products for oral administration. To obtain the dissolution at the desired pH level, different pH-sensitive polymers are available on the market. Usually, for each desired dissolution pH, an ad hoc polymer is designed. Thus, different dissolution pH values could ask for completely different polymers. Instead, the materials proposed in this work are copolymers of the same two monomers, and the different dissolution pH was obtained by changing the volume fraction of the hydrophobic methyl methacrylate monomer to the hydrophilic acrylic acid monomer. Increasing the volumetric percentage of methyl methacrylate causes the polymer to dissolve at increasing pH, until the dissolution does not take place at all, and it is replaced by a slow swelling phenomenon. The copolymers obtained were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, in order to evaluate their glass transition temperature, and these latter were related to %MMA. The molecular weights of the pure polymers (PAA, PMMA) were measured by intrinsic viscosity, to further validate the glass transition temperatures observed. The dissolution of the copolymers was carefully tested in buffer solutions for a dense set of pH values. A linear relationship between dissolution pH and volumetric percentage of methyl methacrylate was obtained from these measurements. As a result, for any physiological compartment, the copolymer which dissolves at the pH of interest can be easily synthesized.},

keywords = {drug delivery, Enteric coating, P(MMA-AA)},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{BARBA2009bb,

title = {IL BLANCHING DEI PRODOTTI AGRO-ALIMENTARI: ANALISI E MODELLAZIONE},

author = { Anna Angela BARBA and Gaetano LAMBERTI and Loredana MALAFRONTE},

issn = {0019-901X},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Industrie alimentari},

volume = {48},

number = {490},

pages = {19--23},

publisher = {Chiriotti},

abstract = {Usually, the industrial processes were managed according to procedures which in turn were founded on previous experiences and traditions. Instead, the knowledge of the phenomena, which takes place during the transformation process, could help in optimizing and intensifying actions. A powerful tool, often neglected in industrial practice, to perform the desired optimization is the use of theoretical models which are able to simulate the real processes, i.e. the description of the unit operations in physical and mathematical terms. The availability of reliable mathematical models (predictive) allows remarkable savings during the design phase (the number of preliminary tests on laboratory and on pilot scale drastically decreases) and during the management (it is possible to test the effect of process condition change, even if this change does not take place in the real world). In the case history analyzed in this communication, two potential blanching treatments on foodstuff were investigated on laboratory scale (paying attention in particular to banana samples), a conventional treatment as well as a process assisted by microwave, with the aim of process intensification, and different models were tested to describe the observed phenomena.},

keywords = {},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009c,

title = {A general code to predict the drug release kinetics from different shaped matrices.},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore and Serafina Chirico and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0928098708004338},

doi = {10.1016/j.ejps.2008.10.006},

issn = {1879-0720},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {European journal of pharmaceutical sciences : official journal of the European Federation for Pharmaceutical Sciences},

volume = {36},

number = {2-3},

pages = {359--68},

abstract = {This work deals with the modeling of drug release from solid pharmaceutical systems (matrices) for oral delivery. The attention was paid to the behavior of matrices made of hydrogels and drug, and the modeling was devoted to reproduce all the relevant phenomena (water up-take, gel swelling, diffusivity increase, drug diffusion and polymer erosion). Thus, the transient mass balances (for both drug and water), with the proper initial and boundary conditions were written, and a generalized numerical code was formulated; it is able to describe several geometries (slab, sphere, infinite and finite cylinders; this latter was done by an approximation which reduces the 2D problem to an 1D scheme). The main phenomena observed in drug delivery from hydrogel-based matrix, i.e. polymer swelling and erosion, were taken into account. The code was validated by comparison with analytical solutions, available for some simplified situation, and then it was tested with some experimental data taken from literature.},

keywords = {drug release, Hydrogel Modeling, Matrix geometry, Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009a,

title = {Simultaneous measurement of theophylline and cellulose acetate phthalate in phosphate buffer by UV analysis},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Serafina Chirico and Annalisa Dalmoro and Gaetano Lamberti},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Can J Anal Sci Spectros},

volume = {53},

number = {6},

pages = {249--253},

abstract = {The oral administration of pH-sensitive drugs requires protecting the drug molecules from the acidic pH in the stomach: the simplest way is to use polymers as coating, especially polymers which are insoluble at low pH (in the stomach) and soluble under neutral conditions (in the intestine). The Cellulose Acetate Phosphate, CAP, is one of these polymers, and it is one of the most used coating polymers. Studies related to the behavior of such pharmaceutical systems require fast and accurate methods to assay the released drug concentration in dissolution medium. However, both the drug and the coating polymer are present in the dissolution bulk with unknown concentration, and they can interfere each other in assaying. In this communication, a simple method to assay, by UV analysis, Theophylline (TP) and Cellulose Acetate Phosphate concentrations in a dissolution medium, phosphate buffer pH 7.0 (BP), is proposed and validated.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009b,

title = {Verso un rilascio intelligente},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Gaetano Lamberti},

issn = {0393-3733},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {NCF-Notiziario Chimico Farmaceutico},

volume = {48},

number = {1},

pages = {68--71},

abstract = {L’efficacia di una terapia farmacologica dipende molto dal profi lo di rilascio del principio attivo dalla forma farmaceutica selezionata. In riferimento alla via di somministrazione orale, comprendere i fenomeni che si verificano dopo l’ingestione di una compressa \'{e} un passaggio fondamentale per poter ottimizzare le formulazioni e le tecniche di preparazione. Investigare tali fenomeni \'{e} uno degli scopi della nostra ricerca, e nell’articolo sono presentati e discussi alcuni risultati selezionati.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009g,

title = {Intensification of biopolymeric microparticles production by ultrasonic assisted atomization},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore and Sara Cascone and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0255270109001524},

doi = {10.1016/j.cep.2009.08.004},

issn = {02552701},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-01-01},

journal = {Chemical Engineering and Processing: Process Intensification},

volume = {48},

number = {10},

pages = {1477--1483},

abstract = {In this work ultrasonic atomization process is applied to produce biopolymer microparticles with potential applications in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical fields. Natural polymer (alginate)/water solution is atomized by ultrasonic assisted process and the droplets spray is reticulated using a solution of copper sulfate, where the Cu2+ ions cause the formation of a network structure (hard porous gel). Several operating parameters (solution concentration, flow rate, atomization power) are changed to study their effects on the produced microparticles. Literature correlations able to predict the features of the droplets as functions of process parameters are optimized using a statistical approach. Furthermore, the energy requirement for the drops production is compared with the energy required by traditional techniques to evaluate the intensification effect of the ultrasonic on the atomization process.},

keywords = {Biopolymer, Intensified ultrasonic atomization, Micro and Nano Vectors, Microparticles},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2008a,

title = {Phenolic constituents levels in cv. Agria potato under microwave processing},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Antonella Calabretti and Matteo D'Amore and Anna Lisa Piccinelli and Luca Rastrelli},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0023643808000509},

doi = {10.1016/j.lwt.2008.02.004},

issn = {00236438},

year  = {2008},

date = {2008-01-01},

journal = {LWT - Food Science and Technology},

volume = {41},

number = {10},

pages = {1919--1926},

abstract = {Phenolic compounds have long been associated with flavour and colour characteristics of fruits and vegetables and actually attract a great interest due to their health protecting properties. In this work, the influence of different power input of microwave baking on the amount of protocatechuic acid (1), tryptophan (2), chlorogenic acid (3), neo-chlorogenic acid (4), and cryptochlorogenic acid (5) marker compounds left over in peeled and not-peeled potatoes (Solanum tuberosus L., Agria cultivar) was assessed. A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method with diode-array detection (DAD) was used to identify and quantify compounds 1\textendash5. Other tubers were used to perform analysis of raw potato (control) and traditional baking potatoes products (boiled potatoes). Dielectric behavior of the irradiated tubers was also investigated to emphasize if microwaves treatments are suitable for food processing in terms of nutritional factor preservation. The main results of this work consist on the relevance of the water contents in potato matrixes during the baking processes since these have a crucial role to keep lossy features, to avoid thermal damages and to preserve antioxidant. The best compromise in terms of short baking time and reduced water and phenolic losses is obtained using 500W as power input.},

keywords = {Food analysis, HPLC-DAD, Microwave cooking, Phenolic compounds, Solanum tuberosum},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}