Pharmacokinetic (PK)
Is a process by which a drug is absorbed, distributed, metabolized and eliminated by a body.
Pharmacokinetic is therefore a key requirement in the evaluation of new chemical entities. A quantitative measure of drug exposure is always needed for interpretation of preclinical efficacy studies.
Standard drug efficacy testing can be performed in a variety of rodent models using protocols supplied by you, or developed by us. We provide both fast, fixed and ready solutions for pharmacokinetic studies as well as studies tailored on customer’s request.
Our Pharmacokinetics Services
- Intravenous (iv.) (also jugular vein catheter)
- Oral (po.)
- Subcutaneous (sc.)
- Intradermal (id.)
- Intraperitoneal (ip.)
- Intramuscular (im.)
- Epicutanious/topical
- Inhalation – (the administration of drugs by the respiratory route. It includes insufflation into the respiratory tract)
- Intranasal – (delivery of medications through the nasal mucosa.)
The pharmacokinetics studies (PK) are usually conducted in small rodents (mice or rats) and the aim is to find out the bioavailability and plasma clearance.
This can be done by dosing the test item both by oral (po.) and intravenous (iv.) routes, followed by plasma sampling at given intervals.
PO route may be also replaced with other dosing route, like subcutaneous (sc.), intradermal (id.), intramuscular (im.), intraperitoneal. The benefits of the other dosing routes include slowed release of the test compound (like in im. route) and avoiding the first-pass metabolism (happens with po. dosed compounds). Some of the dosing routes are limited by the dosing volume (like low volumes can be adjusted only for im. and id. routes).
Vehicle to which the test compound is dissolved for dosing is one important parameter in pharmacokinetics studies. Typically especially with iv. dosing, the vehicle must be aqueous enough suitable for iv. injection whilst still being able to solubilize the compound. Poorly chosen vehicle can ruin the pharmacokinetics studies, either as destabilizing the compound itself or causing the compound to precipitate and not entering to the systemic circulation. Incomplete solubility of the compound to the chosen vehicle is often less of a problem with po. dosing route, however, the different environments in gastric tract may cause stability issues for the compound (like different pH values in GI tract).
Time Points
For example:
iv. dosing: 5, 15, 30, 60 min, 2, 4, 6 and 24 hrs.
PO dosing: 30, 60 min, 2, 4, 6, and 8,24, 48 hrs
The time points depend on the compound, the route of administration, and its half-life.
Matrices
We collect different matrices according to your demands
plasma/serum
whole blood
solid tissues,liver, lungs, brain, heart, muscle, testis etc.
weights, preservation and collection of designated organs for histology and pathology.
Collection of urine and feces in metabolic cages.