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Background: Gastrin-releasing peptide is a member of the bombesin family of peptides. Its cognate receptor, gastrin releasing peptide receptor (GRPR), is widely expressed in cancers of the lung, pancreas and ovaries. Gastrin releasing peptide (GRP) is an autocrine growth factor in small cell lung cancer, which has very poor patient outcomes. High affinity antagonist peptides have been developed for in vivo cancer imaging. In this report we decorated pegylated liposomes with a GRPR antagonist peptide and studied its interaction with, and accumulation within, lung cancer cells. Results: An N-terminally cysteine modified GRPR antagonist (termed cystabn) was synthesised and shown to inhibit cell growth in vitro. Cystabn was used to prepare a targeted 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N-[amino(polyethylene glycol)-2000] (DSPE-PEG2000) lipid conjugate that was formulated into liposomes. The liposomes displayed desirable colloidal properties and good stability under storage conditions. Flow cytometric and microscopic studies showed that fluorescently labelled cystabn-decorated liposomes accumulated more extensively in GRPR over-expressing cells than matched liposomes that contained no cystabn targeting motif. Conclusion: The use of GRPR antagonistic peptides for nanoparticle targeting has potential for enhancing drug accumulation in resistant cancer cells.

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Background: Medication errors can lead to mild or severe drug related problems. Drug related problems are sometimes unpredictable and can occur without medication errors. Awareness and identification of medication errors and drug related problems aids in adoption of measures to prevent and treat them. Objective: Present study aimed to find out prevalence of drug related problems reporting or occurring at Intensive Care Unit of King Fahd Hospital of the University, Alkhobar, Saudi Arabia. Methods: Scrutinizing written files of all patients reporting to Intensive Care Unit, from January to December 2012. Results: Out of 193 files reviewed, 33 patients (17.1%) had trivial to serious drug related problems, including 8 (4.1%) deaths. Drugs commonly involved in these problems were anticoagulants (Warfarin and heparin, alone or in combination with aspirin or clopidogrel; 8 cases, 24.2%), antiepileptic drugs (Carbamazepine and phenytoin; 6 cases, 18.2%), immune suppressants (Azathioprine and prednisolone; 4 cases, 12.1%), antibiotics (Ciprofloxacin, imipenum, tazocin and vancomycin; 4 cases, 12.1%) and drugs of abuse and dependence (Alcohol, benzodiazepines, cannabis and opioids; 4 cases, 12.1%). Amongst drug related problems detected, 6 cases (18.2%) were linked to drug interactions. Almost 60% of drug related problems found were preventable, including those due to overdose toxicity, non-compliance and drug-drug interactions. Conclusions: Mild to severe drug related problems occurred in intensive care unit of a university hospital and about half of them were preventable. It is hoped that the awareness and insight of drug related problems will help to improve patient care.