Species Differences in the Dissolution and Absorption of Griseofulvin and Albendazole, Biopharmaceutics Classification System Class II Drugs, in the Gastrointestinal Tract

Summary:It is well known that large differences exist in the bioavailability of orally administered drugs between species. Dissolution is the first step in the oral absorption of solid drugs. In this study, we measured the in vivo luminal concentrations of griseofulvin (GF) and albendazole (AZ), Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) class II drugs, and the GF fraction absorbed (Fa) in rats. Then, we compared the GF Fa in rat with that in other species reported previously to evaluate differences in drug dissolution and oral absorption. The Fa of GF has been reported to decrease from 80% to 40% with an increase in the oral dose in dogs and humans, because the rate-limiting step for absorption shifts from dissolution to solubility. However, such non-linearity was not observed in rats that were administered doses in the same ranges as those in humans, and the Fa values in rats were higher than those in dogs or humans. The in vivo luminal concentration of GF after oral administration in rats was much higher than the saturated solubility of GF in fasted-state simulated dog (FaSSIFdog) or human intestinal fluid (FaSSIFhuman). Furthermore, oral administration of AZ showed similar tendencies of interspecies differences in dissolution and oral absorption.