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Protean mesoporous silica nanoparticles are propitious candidates over decades for nanoscale drug delivery systems due to their unique characteristics, including changeable pore size, mesoporosity, high drug loading capacity and biodegradability.

Background The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) originated in China and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 11th March 2020. Since its emergence in December 2019, there have been challenges in developing drugs that are effective against the virus. Currently, COVID-19 is managed using symptomatic and supportive therapies, antiviral agents, cellular and immunotherapy. Besides, most of the treatment modalities are still under investigation and treatment guidelines vary from one country to another. Ivermectin is among the drugs that are being used as part of treatment guidelines in certain countries like the Republic of Peru. However, the WHO recommends that ivermectin only be used in clinical trials. Aim The authors conducted this review to explore published studies on the possible therapeutic effects of ivermectin against active infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a causative agent of COVID-19. Methods A literature search was conducted using Google Scholar, PubMed and EMBASE for articles published from 2016 to 2021. Search words used included ivermectin, antiviral, COVID-19, efficacy, safety, dosing, lower mortality rate, hospitalised patients and the Boolean operator ‘AND’. Results A few clinical trials have shown that ivermectin is safe for use in humans at specific doses and reduces the severity of the infection. Ivermectin was seen to reduce the signs and symptoms associated with COVID-19 in some studies while others showed no significant reduction. However, more studies must be conducted to ascertain its use in treating COVID-19. Conclusion Since many clinical trials are being conducted on the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19, full evidence will be used to support its use in humans. Currently, some countries that are using ivermectin for treating COVID-19 have reported it to be effective and reduces morbidity and mortality associated with the disease. Therefore, countries should collaborate and provide full evidence for the use of ivermectin in humans to manage COVID-19.

Background: In 2015, Zambia reported 218,200 instances of Diabetes Mellitus (DM) with 8,232 diabetes-related fatalities. Insulin therapy and oral antidiabetic medications are two pharmacological therapies used to treat diabetes mellitus. Herbal medicine, on the other hand, has a lengthy history and is an easily accessible and economical therapeutic option. Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) are increasingly turning to herbal therapies as keeping to conventional regimens becomes more challenging. Aim: We aimed to assess the prevalence and patterns of herbal medicine use among Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients at the University Teaching Hospital. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 101 T2DM patients using a self-administered questionnaire from August to October 2021. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26. Results: Of the 101 participants, (n = 93, 92.1%) used herbal medicines. Garlic (Allium sativum) was the most widely used herbal medication (58.4%), followed by Moringa (Moringa oleifera) at 42.6%, and mule (Myrrh) at 5%. The need to treat diabetes and other medical problems (n = 47, 50.5%) was the main reason for herbal medicines use, followed by family tradition or culture 36 (38.7%). The primary source of information about herbal medicines use was friends (n = 46, 45.5%), followed by family members (n = 38, 37.6%). The majority (n = 83, 82.2%) of the participants reported not having any adverse events from herbal medicines, and only (n = 10, 9.9%) had experienced side effects. Conclusion: There was a high use of herbal medicines among T2DM patients, particularly those aged between 45 and 76 years. From the standpoint of high prevalence and low disclosure rate, it is imperative for healthcare providers to strongly educate patients regarding the use of herbal medicines. In addition, the public need to be educated on pharmacovigilance so that they know the report of adverse events even those that may be associated with herbal medicines.

Background: Malaria remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Zambia, affecting all levels of society, with children under the age of five and pregnant women being most at risk of serious illness. The availability of antimalarial medicines is one of the key interventions of malaria management. This study assessed the availability of antimalarial medicines in community pharmacies in Lusaka district, Zambia. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study that was conducted among 210 community pharmacies from September to November 2022 using a well-structured checklist in selected areas of Lusaka district. The availability was verified by a physical check of the product. The checklist contained the medicines listed both in the guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of malaria in Zambia as well as in the World Health Organization (WHO) malaria treatment guidelines. Results: This study found that all antimalarials listed in the local treatment guidelines for malaria were available in community pharmacies, though with the varying distribution. Of the 210 community pharmacies, 209 (99.5%) had artemether/lumefantrine in stock. The lowest available antimalarial was quinine/clindamycin, which was only available in 3 (1.4%) of the outlets. Conversely, 3 out of 16 (18.8%) antimalarials that were available in community pharmacies were not listed in the local treatment guidelines of malaria in Zambia, despite being listed in the WHO malaria treatment guidelines. This translated into a compliance level of 81.2% based on the local malaria treatment guidelines. Conclusion: This study concluded that antimalarials were How to cite this paper: Chimombe, T.,