| abstract |
Compounds which are otherwise difficult to solubilize, such as, for example, pharmaceutical actives difficult for the body to absorb, are solubilized into a composition using a solvent system that is a structured fluid. The structured fluid is a reversed cubic phase or reversed hexagonal phase material, or a combination thereof, which includes a polar solvent, a surfactant and a non-paraffinic liquid with a high octanol-water partition coefficient which does not qualify as a surfactant. The compositions thus formed are able to enhance absorption of drugs by the induction of local, transient nanopores in biomembrane absorption barriers and particularly those in which efflux mechanisms, such as those associated with P-glycoprotein and/or cytochrome 3A4, are active. The compositions and methods that are used for solubilizing pharmaceutical actives in structured fluids can simultaneously accomplish solubilization of difficultly soluble drugs and enhancement of absorption. |