An open-label, multicenter, phase 2 study of a food enriched with docosahexaenoic acid in adults with sickle cell disease.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) induces red blood cell sickling, which causes debilitating symptoms including vaso-occlusion and inflammation. We investigated a food enriched with omega-3 fatty acids to determine its effect on certain factors: blood cell membrane fatty acid composition (including anti-inflammatory elements-docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)-and the pro-inflammatory, arachidonic acid (AA)); the inflammation biomarker, C-reactive protein (CRP); and vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) pain. Ten adults with SCD ingested the food, daily, for 28 days. Evaluated measures included blood cell membrane fatty acid ratios (AA vs omega-3 (DHA+EPA)), CRP (mg/L) levels, and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores (a VOC assessment). The food was well tolerated and led to a statistically significant CRP reduction (39%). However, changes in omega-3 fatty acid ratios and VAS scores were not significant. Overall, while the omega-3-enriched food reduced inflammation, larger, blinded studies are needed to assess its effectiveness on other measures.

High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole in dosage forms.

A rapid, sensitive, and automatable high-performance liquid chromatographic method is presented for the determination of sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, and a preservative in dosage forms in the presence of excipients and degradation products.

Analysis of steroid phosphates by high-pressure liquid chromatography: betamethasone sodium phosphate.

A sensitive, automatable high-pressure liquid chromatographic procedure is presented for the determination of steroid phosphates. Quantitation is described for betamethasone sodium phosphate in dosage forms in the presence of polar excipients. The separation of a multicomponent mixture of steroid phsophates also is reported.