[Comparison of kinetic behavior in both plasma and tissue after intravenous administration of alpha-asarone in lipid emulsion and aqueous solution in rats and mice].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of alpha-asarone in lipid emulsion and aqueous solution for injection and study the feasibility of lipid emulsion of alpha-asarone as the parenteral drug delivery system. METHOD: HPLC was used to determine the drug concentration in rat plasma and mice tissues after intravenous (i.v.) administration of lipid emulsion and aqueous solution of alpha-asarone at a single dose (40 mg x kg(-1)), respectively. RESULT: The plasma concentration-time profiles of lipid emulsion and aqueous solution of alpha-asarone after intravenous administration of them are similar and the drug concentration-time data were fitted to a two-compartment open model. The results of tissues distribution showed that distribution contents of alpha-asarone from lipid emulsion and aqueous solution in vivo are similar in lungs but lipid emulsion increased the uptake in livers and spleens, and decreased the uptake in hearts and kidneys for alpha-asarone. CONCLUSION: The plasma concentration-time profiles of alpha-asarone in lipid emulsion and aqueous solution are similar, but lipid emulsion significantly altered the tissue distribution of alpha-asarone, which may be beneficial to decrease its potential toxicity to heart and kidney.