Ruhi V Ubale

Publications (2)3.05 Total impact

• Article: Formulation of meningococcal capsular polysaccharide vaccine-loaded microparticles with robust innate immune recognition.

  Ruhi V Ubale, Martin J D'souza, Daniel T Infield, Nael A McCarty, Susu M Zughaier
  [show abstract] [hide abstract]
  ABSTRACT: Neisseria meningitidis is a leading cause of bacterial meningitis and sepsis associated with a high mortality rate. Capsular polysaccharides (CPSs) are a major virulence factor and form the basis for serogroup designation and protective vaccines. The current polysaccharide meningococcal vaccines are available but are very expensive and require chemical conjugation. Here, we report a novel meningococcal vaccine formulation consisting of meningococcal CPS polymers encapsulated in albumin-based biodegradable microparticles that slowly release antigen and induce robust innate immune responses. Vaccines that elicit innate immunity are reported to have enhanced and protective adaptive immune responses. In this study, the meningococcal CPS-loaded microparticles, but not the empty microparticles, induced the release of IL-8, TNF-α and IL-1β, enhanced phagocytic capacity and induced robust autophagy in macrophages. The novel meningococcal vaccine microparticles are robustly taken up by macrophages and elicit strong innate immune responses that enhance antigen presentation which is a prerequisite for inducing adaptive immunity.
  Journal of Microencapsulation 06/2012; · 1.55 Impact Factor
• Article: Implementation of mixture design for formulation of albumin containing enteric-coated spray-dried microparticles.

  Prathap Nagaraja Shastri, Ruhi V Ubale, Martin J D'Souza
  [show abstract] [hide abstract]
  ABSTRACT: Context: Oral delivery of proteins has been a challenging as well as rapidly developing field. Objective: To implement mixture design of experiment to develop enteric-coated microparticles containing bovine serum albumin. Materials and methods: Microparticles were prepared using Buchi Spray Dryer 191. Simplex lattice mixture design computed using JMP software was implemented to compare the gastric protection rendered by Eudragit FS30D, Eudragit L100-55, and Eudragit S100 in microparticulate form. Further, an extreme vertices mixture design was used to incorporate hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) Chitosan in the formulation to delay the release. Microparticle recovery yield and protein content in microparticles were evaluated. Results and discussions: The design was statistically significant with Eudragit S100 resulting in protein release of < 5% in acidic buffer. The selected optimal formulation had 70% of Eudragit S, 25% HPMC, and 5% Chitosan. The release profiles of protein from Eudragit S alone and along with HPMC were compared. About 25% decrease in the amount of protein release was observed 6 h post exposure of microparticle to buffer of pH 6.8. The microparticle recovery yield reduced from 77.99% to 71.56% which is due to addition of HPMC into the formulation matrix. Conclusion: Although all three Eudragit polymers can be used for enteric coating, in the microparticulate form Eudragit S resulted in higher gastric protection. Also use of HPMC along with Eudragit S resulted in further sustained release.
  Drug Development and Industrial Pharmacy 05/2012; · 1.49 Impact Factor