Comparative study of Two In Vitro Methods for Assessing Drug Absorption: Sartorius SM 16750 Apparatus Versus Everted Gut Sac

Abstract

– Purpose. Oral drug administration remains the most common and most convenient way used in clinical therapy. The availability of a simple, rapid, economic and reproducible in vitro method to assess drug absorption is a very helpful tool. The purpose of this study is to compare the performance of Sartorius SM 16750 Absorption Simulator apparatus to Everted Gut Sac (EGS) technique in terms of predicting drug absorption. Methods. Permeation studies across these two in vitro models were performed with six drugs selected across the Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) categories: Tramadol (class I of BCS), doxcycycline (class I of BCS), diclofenac (class II of BCS), clopidogrel (class II of BCS), metformin (class III of BCS) and chlorothiazide (class IV of BCS). Results. Apparent permeability coefficient (Papp) and diffusion profiles obtained with EGS and Sartorius SM 16750 apparatus were similar for diclofenac and metformine. But there were differences in results, for the other molecules. Conclusion. It could be concluded that the Sartorius SM 16750 apparatus, easier to carry out, could be an alternative to EGS when drug passage across intestinal barrier occurs by passive diffusion and when no efflux system is implicated in limiting the transepithelial passage.