Effect of Medium-Chain Glycerides (Mgk®) On the Intestinal Absorption and the Hepatobiliary Transport of Bromthymol Blue

The effect of medium chain glyceride (MGK®) emulsion on the intestinal absorption and the biliary excretion of bromthymol blue (BTB) was investigated in rats. Extensive tissue accumulation of BTB was reduced when BTB was administered with MGK® emulsion formulation. HCO-100, an emulsifier, was also important for the decrease in the tissue accumulation of BTB. The ratios of absorption percent to tissue accumulation percent and to free fraction, not contained in the droplet of emulsion, in MGK® emulsion were much greater than that of the control. Pretreatment with BTB-free emulsion reduced BTB absorption under the control, although tissue accumulation was not affected. The absorption appeared to decrease with increase in the time of pretreatment. The effect of leaving treatment after pretreatment on the absorption of BTB was also investigated. With the increase in leaving time after pretreatment, reduced absorption tended to resume to the level of control. The change in monocaprylate content from 54 to 60% in MGK® made a difference in BTB absorption and it was suggested that monocaprylate content in MGK® was one of the significant factors of MGK® emulsion on drug absorption. Bile recovery study was simultaneously carried out with an in situ recirculation experiment. The recovery of BTB into bile tended to decrease. The ratio of recovery percent of BTB into bile to the absorption percent of BTB also decreased extensively, which is possibly another effect of MGK® on drug disposition.