Abdel naser Zaid

• Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry & Technology
• Managing Director at An-Najah National University

Probiotics are live microorganisms believed to confer health benefits when consumed appropriately. Prebiotics are non-digestible food components that promote health by encouraging the growth or activity of beneficial microorganisms. Synbiotics are a combination of probiotics and prebiotics. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and awareness of...

The purpose of this questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was to investigate the knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes regarding halal pharmaceuticals among sharia practitioners in Palestine. A total of 420 sharia practitioners with different educational levels were included. This was a cross-sectional study conducted between March and July 202...

Sitagliptin is a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor that is used orally in conjunction with diet and exercise to control sugar levels in type 2 Diabetes Mellitus patients. This study aimed to extemporaneously prepare SiP solution (1% w/v) using pure Sitagliptin phosphate (SiP) powder and assess its stability according to pharmaceutical regula...

Background The taste of oral liquid dosage forms is a crucial factor that impacts pediatric patient compliance. Taste of suspensions can be typically evaluated by human volunteers. Recently, the electronic tongue (ET) has been proven as an emerging tool that could be useful to follow up various formulations’ properties like taste and composition. T...

Cosmeceuticals are a branch of cosmetic products that forms a bridge between cosmetic and drug products. It is a fast-growing branch of the cosmetic industry, especially after the introduction of novel formulation and manufacturing techniques such as lipid nanoparticles (LNPs). These LNPs-based cosmeceutical products offer several advantages such a...

Background Rutin is available on the market as a topical formulation for the treatment of several conditions, such as internal bleeding, hemorrhoids, and varicose veins. However, these gels have low solubility and limited bioavailability due to their decreased lipid solubility. Objective In this study, we aimed to synthesize potentially novel lipo...

Ivermectin is a gamma amino butyric acid (GABA)-gated-Cl-channels modulator, which has been used orally in the treatment of numerous parasitic infections. The study target was to set up a stable, efficient 0.2% w/v ivermectin solution, which would be achieved from pure ivermectin powder as a source of the active pharmaceutical ingredient. Several t...

Method: Amlodipine/valsartan extemporaneous suspension was prepared from available commercial tablets such as Valzadepine®. The dissolution profiles for the extemporaneous preparation and the commercial tablet were determined in different pH media. The physical, chemical, and microbial stability of the compounded formulation was evaluated over one...

This study aimed to develop a topical emulgel formulation from olive oil and lemongrass (LG) extracts and to evaluate its in vitro and in vivo (sensorial) properties in addition to its sun protection factor (SPF) value. The primary emulsion and the gel were prepared separately, and then they were levigated together to formulate the emulgel. The pro...

a series of benzodioxole compounds were synthesized and evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against cervical (Hela), colorectal (Caco-2), and liver (Hep3B) cancer cell lines. Compounds 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a and 7b showed very weak or negligible anticancer activity with IC 50 3.94-9.12 mM. On the contrary, carboxamide containing compounds 2a and 2b...

Pharmaceutical film coating is considered a key part in the production of solid pharmaceutical dosage forms since it gives superior organoleptic properties products. In addition, it can improve the physical and chemical stability of dosage forms, and modify the release characteristics of the drug. Several troubleshooting problems such as twinning m...

The emergence of resistance for antipedicular agents and the need of potent acetylcholinesterase (AChE) therapeutics for the treatment of a neurodegenerative disorder such as Alzheimer disease has led researchers to the exploration of new therapeutic alternatives such as natural volatile oils. Therefore, the current investigation aimed to identify...

Sesame oil has many cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical benefits. These can be exploited to produce cosmeceuticals such as sunscreens and wound healing creams according to their sun protection factor (SPF) value and β-sitosterol content. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of sesame oil available on the Palestinian market for cosmeceutical...

Pharmaceutical nanotechnology is an emerging technology that proved its effectiveness in decreasing the side effects and improving the therapeutic outcomes of chemotherapeutic drugs. Combretastatin A4 (CA4) is a natural potent tubulin polymerization inhibitor. However, it suffers from low water solubility with various side effects. The aim of this...

Sesame oil has many cosmeceutical and pharmaceutical benefits. These can be exploited to produce cosmeceuticals such as sunscreens and wound healing creams according to their sun protection factor (SPF) value and β-sitosterol content. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of sesame oil available on the Palestinian market for cosmeceutical...

Introduction: Dyslipidemia is the most important modifiable risk factor that leads to cardiovascular diseases. The screening for dyslipidemia in Palestine is not established in primary health care centers for healthy people. Our study aims to determine the prevalence of dyslipidemia among healthy undiagnosed adult men in Palestine in order to asse...

Background Electronic tongue (ET) is a well-established technology that is used to detect the taste of a food or a medicinal product and to differentiate between different products based on their tastes. In addition, it can be used to monitor environmental parameters and biochemical and biological processes. Purpose This study aims to assess any c...

Maintaining safety and efficacy is an important task when splitting a tablet. This Pharmacy practice affords the patient with unavailable required dose, easy swallowing, and cost-saving measure. To access the role of formulation variables on the weight uniformity test of halves tablets. Uncoated and coated placebo tablets were prepared using wet gr...

Plants have been used by human being in the treatment and prophylaxis of various diseases since thousands of years ago. Chrozophora obliqua is an aromatic plant that possesses beneficial health properties in traditional medicine. However, other properties of Chrozophora obliqua such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, and helminthicidal properties have...

Background Electronic tongue (ET) is a simple device that may have some applications in the medical field as an alternative tool to traditional diagnostic methods. The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential use and accuracy of ET in the diagnosis of certain bacterial infections. Methods An alpha-Astree ET was used for the detection of know...

Background: Infertility considered one of the global public health problems and during human history, it is also considered one of the unsolved problems of the continuous human race. This study aimed to collect and document the ethnopharmacological data on herbal remedies, which traditionally used by Palestinian healers in the rural areas of the We...

Natural molecules are becoming more accepted choices as cosmetic agents, many products in the market today claim to include natural components. Plants include many substances that could be of a value in the whitening skin and working as anti-aging agents. A wide range of articles related to natural skin whitening and anti-aging agents have been rev...

Background Food may affect the oral absorption of drugs. Purpose: The aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of food on the oral absorption of Clarithromycin by evaluating the effect of media parameters such as; pH, bile secretions and food composition on the release of the drug from immediate release tablet, using in vitro and i...

Lavandula dentata L. and Origanum syriacum L. essential oils have numerous health benefits and properties, such as possessing common components with a variant degree of depressive actions in the central nervous system. We investigated the depressive property of these oils on AMPA receptors, which are responsible for most of the fast-excitatory neur...

Background: Origanum syriacum (O. syriacum) is a very popular edible and medicinal plant in the East Mediterranean countries. The aims of the current study were to use microwave-ultrasonic assisted hydrodistillation (MUAHD) method to produce essential oils (EOs) from wild O. syriacum samples collected from four different geographical areas in The...

Menthol is widely used as a fragrance and flavor in the food and cosmetic industries. It is also used in the medical and pharmaceutical fields for its various biological effects. Gas chromatography (GC) is considered to be a sensitive method for the analysis of menthol. GC chromatographic separation was developed using capillary column (VF-624) and...

Introduction Protection of skin from wrinkles and pigmentation changes are among the most common challenges for modern science and cosmetics. These are caused by unusual disruption of connective tissue, the formation of free radicals and ultraviolet radiation. The current research is the first study to compare the phytoconstituents, antioxidant, s...

The emergence of pathogenic microbes with increased resistance to established antibiotics provides a major incentive for the discovery of new antimicrobial agents. Herbals may provide valuable solutions for this global problem. In addition, the replacement of harmful synthetic antioxidants with natural ones may prevent various serious diseases. The...

Background Many generic pharmaceutical products are currently available on the market place worldwide. Recently, there is a growing concern on the quality and efficacy of generic products. However, health care professionals such as physicians and pharmacists are in difficult situations to choose among alternatives. Purpose The aim of this study is...

Single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) are currently under intensive investigation by many labs all over the world for being promising candidates for cancer chemotherapy delivery. On the other hand, combretastatin A4 (CA4) is an anticancer drug that induces cell apoptosis by inhibiting tubulin polymerization. However, it has the disadvantage of low...

The aims of this study were to evaluate the mothers' practice in case of children diarrhea and measure osmolality and PH of some oral rehydration solutions (ORS) and carbonated beverages. The study consisted of two parts; the first part was a face to face questionnaire that was conducted at a group of community pharmacies between July and November...

Background: The taste of oral liquid dosage forms is a crucial factor that impacts paediatric patient compliance. The electronic tongue (ET) is an emerging tool that could be useful in taste assessment in order to minimize the involvement of humans in such evaluations. Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the taste of commercially availabl...

Background: Sunlight exposure affects all skin types causing skin tanning, burns or even skin cancer. Sunscreens were invented to prevent these outcomes by scattering or absorbing the UV light. Aims: This study aimed to verify the effectiveness of Mansur method in SPF measurement and to find out how much reliable the labeled sun protection facto...

ABSTRACT: Arum palaestinum is one of the famous wild plants that have been used since the ancient time in the Palestinian folk food and medicine. However, it needs particular cooking steps to decrease its numbing taste. We investigated the impact of cooking, measures on taste, total phenols and antioxidant activity of wild A. palaestinum by using...

Background: Herbs have played a fundamental and essential role in the humans life since ancient times, especially those which are used as food and/or folk medicinedue to both their nutritive and curative properties.This study aimed to investigate new antilipase agents from tentraditional Palestinian edible and medicinal plants through inhibition of...

Background Orlistat is an irreversible inhibitor of the lipase enzyme that prevents trigylcerides from being digested, thereby inhibiting triglyceride hydrolysis and absorption. The resultant reduced calorie uptake enables a positive effect on weight control. Systemic absorption of the drug is, therefore, not necessary for its mode of action. An al...

Introduction: In the last thirty years, interests in searching for plants with potential antimicrobial and antioxidant activities have been increased due to their probable health benefits. This study aimed to investigate the antimicrobial and antioxidant effects of various solvents fractions of Bupleurum lancifolium. Methods: The antioxidant activi...

Introduction Interest in essential oils was recently revived with their popularity increasing in medicine, pharmacy, and aromatherapy. This study was performed to identify the chemical compositions of the essential oil of Ruta chalepensis growing wildly in three regions in Palestine and to assess and compare their antimicrobial and antioxidant acti...

Newprsoon

Purpose: The stability of an extemporaneously prepared rosuvastatin suspension stored over 30 days under various storage conditions was evaluated. Methods: Rosuvastatin suspension was extemporaneously prepared using commercial rosuvastatin tablets as the source of active pharmaceutical ingredient. The organoleptic properties, dissolution profile...

Plants are used to the treatment and prevention of many of metabolic, degenerative and cardiovascular diseases. Obesity is one of the most common metabolic diseases which is considered one of the global health problems. The present study aimed to screen anti-lipase effect of Portulaca oleracea, Urtica urens, Brassica napus and Lathyrus hierosolymit...

As infectious diseases continue to be one of the greatest health challenges worldwide, the demand toward alternative agents is continuously increasing. Recent advancement in nanotechnology has expanded our ability to design and construct nanomaterials to treat bacterial infections. Carbon nanotubes are one among these nanomaterials. Herein, we desc...

Background: Various epidemiological studies showed that herbal remedies containing polyphenols may protect against various diseases such as cancers, vascular diseases and inflammatory pathologies. Currently, such groups of bioactive compounds have become a subject of many antimicrobials and antioxidant investigations. Accordingly, the current stud...

Background: Since ancient times, the treatment of various diseases has relied on medicinal plants. The replacement of chemically synthesized drugs with natural medications gave the later advantageous due to their safety for humans. This study aimed to screen and to evaluate preliminarily phytoconstituents, total contents of flavonoids, tannins, and...

Background Natural products have many uses and purposes, including those linked to pharmaceutics and cosmetics. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of natural remedies for the treatment of hair and scalp disorders in the West Bank, Palestine. Methods An ethnopharmacological survey of herbal remedies and other natural products used in...

various diseases. Rutin is available in different oral dosage forms such as tablets or capsules, widely available in the market. Rutin and many herbalmedicines lack quality control due to unavailability of analyticalmethods. In this study, we formulated rutin tablet and studied its stability using a simple developed analytical method.The dissolutio...

Background Throughout history, every civilization in the world used plants or their derivatives for treatment or prevention of diseases. In Palestine as in many other countries, herbal medicines are broadly used in the treatment of wide range of diseases including urological diseases. The main objective of this research is to study the use of herba...

The cooking method may affect antioxidant capacity and total phenol and flavonoid content in many fruits and vegetables. These effects may cause degradation of anti-oxidant compounds, formation of new products or destruction of active metabolites. The aim of this study is to measure the antioxidant activity, total phenol and flavonoid contents of f...

In this study, the in vitro and in vivo interchangeability between generic candesartan 16 mg and the branded formulation was assessed. The in vitro release of these products was conducted in 3 pH media (1.2, 5.0, and 6.8), and similarity factors (f2) were calculated. This bioequivalence study was a randomized, 2‐period crossover study that included...

Menthol is widely used as a fragrance and flavor in the food and cosmetic industries. It is also used in the medical and pharmaceutical fields for its various biological effects. Gas chromatography (GC) is considered to be a sensitive method for the analysis of menthol. GC chromatographic separation was developed using capillary column (VF-624) and...

Carvedilol poly(d,l)-lactide nanoparticles/microparticles were prepared. The size and morphology of the developed particles were optimized to study the carvedilol release profile by studying the effect of organic solvents and polymer amount through atomic force microscopy analysis. Spherical particles were obtained with a minimum size of 125 nm in...

Background: The clinical implications of food-drug interactions may have to be taken seriously into account with oral drugs administration in order to minimize variations in drug bioavailability. Food intake may alter physiological changes in the pH and viscosity of the gastrointestinal lumen, which could affect the oral absorption of drugs. Purp...

This study aimed to demonstrate interchangeability between 2 lornoxicam tablet formulations under fasting conditions among Mediterranean Arabs by using a newly validated high-pressure liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method. A single-oral solid dosage form (8 mg/tablet), randomized, open-label, 2-way crossover study was conducted on 3...

Purpose: Ephedra alata (E. alata) is perennial tough shrub plant that grows in Palestine and other regions. It is used often in folk's medicine for the treatment of various diseases. In this project, E. alata extract was tested for its ability to improve wound and burn healing. Methods: An aqueous extract of E. alata was prepared and underwent s...

Introduction Several species that belong to the genus Astragalus have been used in Palestinian folk medicine to treat various infectious and non-infectious diseases. This study aimed to assess the phytochemical and biological activities of four Astragalus species growing wild in Jerusalem. Methods Phytochemical screening, estimation of total phenol...

The food composition tables, which are necessary tools for nutritional and epidemiological studies, are representative of food stuffs consumed in only raw state. These studies don’t take into consideration the facts that, the concentration of nutrients and their biological activity may be changed by processing methods. The aim of this study is to i...

Preservation methods may affect total phenols, flavonoids contents, and antioxidant capacity of many vegetables and fruits. These effects may cause degradation of antioxidant compounds, formation of new products, or destruction of the active metabolites. This study investigated the effects of different preservation methods, such as canning and free...

Background: Historically, plants have proven their value as a source of phytochemicals with therapeutic potentials and recently they play an important role in the discovery of novel drugs. Objectives: The current study aimed to investigate new antiobesity drugs from Plumbago europaea and Plumbago auriculata through the inhibition of the adsorption...

Background It has been recently recognized that oxidative stress, helminth and microbial infections are the cause of much illness found in the underdeveloped, developing and developed countries. The present study was undertaken to identify the chemical composition, and to assess anthelmintic, antimicrobial and antioxidant effects of Thymus bovei es...

Objectives The objectives of this study were to evaluate the general quality of the most prescribed products of valsartan (VL; alone or in combination) and to evaluate their efficacy and safety among Palestinian population through in vivo postmarketing surveillance. Patients and methods The first part was pharmacopeial quality control assay, inclu...

According to Food and Drug Administration (FDA), therapeutically equivalent antibiotics is expected to have equivalent clinical efficacy and safety when used under the conditions of their labeling. However, any defect in the quality of an antibiotic may negatively affect its efficacy and safety and accordingly are considered a substandard drug. Cef...

There is a wide inter-individual response to statin therapy including rosuvastatin calcium (RC), and it has been hypothesized that genetic differences may contribute to these variations. In fact, several studies have shown that pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters for RC are affected by race. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the interchangeabilit...

Introduction: Montelukast is recommended for the treatment of asthma, exercise -induced bronchospasm and allergic rhinitis. Several trials demonstrated potential therapeutic effects in other respiratory conditions, and different animal-model-based studies explored potential pharmacological actions in non-respiratory conditions. Areas covered: Clini...

Bioequivalence studies are expensive, time consuming and invasive to humans. Accordingly, an alternative in vitro study (biowaivers) has been introduced for drugs which belong to BCS class I and III and for other strengths of already approved higher drug strength. The main objective of this study was to prove the biowaiver eligibility of a lower st...

Background: Treatment of neuropathic pain has always been challenging, not only from the pharmaco-therapeutic/toxicological point of view, but also due to the unpredictable pharmacokinetic (PK) variations among different generic formulations of the same drug, which require further dose optimization. Objectives: This progressive work aims to eval...

Background Statins are the first-line therapy for lowering high lipid levels. Atorvastatin calcium (AtC) is the most commonly prescribed statin. It inhibits 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase which converts HMG-CoA into mevalonic acid, a cholesterol precursor. Objective To compound and evaluate the stability of AtC suspension...

Carvone volatile oil is a commercial product that is widely used in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry due to its fragrance, flavoring and medicinal properties. A validated HPLC method for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of this oil in raw and commercial products is not available in the literature. The aim of this study is to...

The aims of this study were to evaluate the mothers’ practice in case of children diarrhea and measure osmolality and PH of some oral rehydration solutions (ORS) and carbonated beverages. The study consisted of two parts; the first part was a face to face questionnaire that was conducted at a group of community pharmacies between July and November...

Background: Currently, there is an increasing interest in developing more efficient techniques for the extraction of phytochemicals. Microwaves and ultrasonic extraction methods are promising techniques that can be used for this purpose. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of different extraction methods on yield,...

Ciprofloxacin is a broad spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic that acts by the inhibition of bacterial topoisomerase type II (DNA gyrase) and have a potent activity against Gram positive and negative bacteria. However, due to its rigid and solid-state structure it suffers from limited water solubility. Improving its pharmacokinetic properties especi...

Background Plants have been the primary source of medicines since life on earth; more than 50 % of existing cancer treatments are derived from plants. Methods An ethnopharmacological survey of herbal remedies used in cancer treatment was carried out in the West Bank/ Palestine. A questionnaire was distributed to one hundred and fifty herbalists, t...

Abstract: Atorvastatin reduces morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular events. This study was conducted to assess the prices and pharmaceutical quality of innovator atorvastatin 20 mg with its locally available generics in Palestine and to assess the suitability of their interchangeability. The prices of innovator and generic atorvastatin 20...

Background: Paracetamol is an analgesic and antipyretic agent. Honey is a nutrient that has many medicinal benefits and uses. It is has a demulcent activity and used in alternative medicine as a mild antitussive agent. Moreover, honey demonstrated an antitoxic activity in paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity. Objective: The aim of this study is to fo...

Background The objective of this study was to evaluate the appropriateness of antibiotic suspensions use for pediatrics among Palestinian mothers’ including their reconstitution, dose administration, duration, and storage conditions. Methods This study was a questionnaire based cross sectional descriptive study. It was conducted at a governmental...

Background: Montelukast is a leukotriene receptor antagonist. The release of leukotrienes causes narrowing and constricting in the respiratory airways. Blocking the action of these leukotrienes, montelukast can be used for the prophylaxis and treatment of chronic asthma. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the interchangeability and...

Background Montelukast (MT) is a leukotriene D4 antagonist. It is an effective and safe medicine for the prophylaxis and treatment of chronic asthma. It is also used to prevent acute exercise-induced bronchoconstriction and as a symptomatic relief of seasonal allergic rhinitis and perennial allergic rhinitis. Objective The aim of this study was to...

ABSTRACT Dissolution profiles were developed in three different pH media for the evaluation of valsartan/amlodipine (VS/AM) release from tablets. The selection of the most appropriate dissolution method was based on the calculated similarity (f2) and dissimilarity (f1) values. A new HPLC method was developed to quantify VS/AM in tablets. The method...

The patient package inserts (PPIs) should contain all the required information for the patient. It must be clear and understandable. There are several problems with the PPIs including the wrong information, readability and comprehensibility. Thus the pharmacists have to take an active role in making sure that patient is aware of important instructi...

The aims of this study were to establish a bioanalytical method and to evaluate the bioequivalence of two drug products; a generic sildenafil 50 mg filmcoated vs. the brand drug Viagra® 50 mg filmcoated tablets. Bioequivalence of tablets was tested by comparisons against the reference brand product in accordance with the requirements of the Declara...

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioequivalence of two drug products, generic clopidogrel bisulfate 75 mg film-coated tablets versus the reference Plavix® clopidogrel bisulfate 75 mg film-coated tablets. Methods Bioequivalence of tablets was tested by comparisons against the reference brand product in accordance with the require...

Abstract Background: The transdermal delivery (TDD) is one of the most attractive routs for drug administration as it eliminates the GIT absorption variable, improves patient compliance and also reduces drug plasma fluctuations. However, TDD only drugs with suitable physico-chemical properties can be absorbed. The oral administration of NSAIDs fo...

ABSTRACT Arum palaestinum Boiss. leaves considered one of the most edible wild plant in Palestine also one of the medicinal plant utilized for treatment various diseases specially cancer. The present study sought to evaluate the exhaustive extract yields percentages for Solomon's Lily (Arum palaestinum Boiss.) leaves from all of the regions in the...