Lipophilic salts of poorly soluble compounds to enable high-dose lipidic SEDDS formulations in drug discovery.

Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) have been used to solubilize poorly water-soluble drugs to improve exposure in high-dose pharmacokinetic (PK) and toxicokinetic (TK) studies. However, the absorbable dose is often limited by drug solubility in the lipidic SEDDS vehicle. This study focuses on increasing solubility and drug loading of ionizable drugs in SEDDS vehicles using lipophilic counterions to prepare lipophilic salts of drugs. SEDDS formulations of two lipophilic salts-atazanavir-2-naphthalene sulfonic acid (ATV-2-NSA) and atazanavir-dioctyl sulfosuccinic acid (ATV-Doc)-were characterized and their performance compared to atazanavir (ATV) free base formulated as an aqueous crystalline suspension, an organic solution, and a SEDDS suspension, using in vitro, in vivo, and in silico methods. ATV-2-NSA exhibited ∼6-fold increased solubility in a SEDDS vehicle, allowing emulsion dosing at 12mg/mL. In rat PK studies at 60mg/kg, the ATV-2-NSA SEDDS emulsion had comparable exposure to the free-base solution, but with less variability, and had better exposure at high dose than aqueous suspensions of ATV free base. Trends in dose-dependent exposure for various formulations were consistent with GastroPlus™ modeling. Results suggest use of lipophilic salts is a valuable approach for delivering poorly soluble compounds at high doses in Discovery.

Synthesis of 2-thio- and 2-oxoimidazoles via cascade addition-cycloisomerization reactions of propargylcyanamides.

A methodology to generate 2-thio- and 2-oxoimidazoles through an addition-cyclization-isomerization reaction of propargylcyanamides with thiol and alcohol nucleophiles is described. In general, the reaction sequence allows for the rapid formation of highly substituted 2-thio- and 2-oxoimidazoles in good to excellent yields.

Conformational preferences of 3-(dimethylazinoyl)propanoic acid as a function of pH and solvent; intermolecular versus intramolecular hydrogen bonding.

The conformational equilibrium of 3-(dimethylazinoyl)propanoic acid (DMAPA, azinoyl = N(+)(O(-)) has a weak pH-dependence in D(2)O, with a slight preference for trans in alkaline solutions. The acid ionization constants of the protonated amine oxide and carboxylic functional groups as determined by NMR spectroscopy were 7.9 x 10(-4) and 6.3 x 10(-6), respectively. The corresponding value of K(1)/K(2) of 1.3 x 10(2) is not deemed large enough to provide experimental NMR evidence for a significant degree of intramolecular hydrogen bonding in D(2)O. Conformational preferences of DMAPA are mostly close to statistical (gauche/trans = 2/1) in other protic solvents, e.g., alcohols. However, the un-ionized form of DMAPA appears to be strongly intramolecularly hydrogen-bonded and gauche in aprotic solvents.

Conformational analysis of 3-(trimethylsilyl)propionic acid by NMR spectroscopy: an unusual expression of the beta-silyl effect.

The rotational freedom of the carbon-carbon single bonds of 1,2-disubstituted ethanes affords the possibility of these compounds existing as a rapidly interconverting mixture of conformers in solution. The conformational preferences of one such compound, 3-(trimethylsilyl)propionic acid, and its anion were studied in water, dimethyl sulfoxide, methanol, ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, tert-butyl alcohol, tetrahydrofuran, and toluene with 1H NMR spectroscopy. The conformational preferences were determined from the vicinal proton-proton coupling constants between the hydrogen nuclei of the CH(2)CH(2) group with the aid of the Altona equations to derive the equilibrium anti and gauche percentages of rotamers from the averaged NMR-time scale couplings. Conformational analyses of 4,4-dimethylpentanoic acid and its anion as well as 2-(trimethylsilyl)ethanesulfonate anion were also conducted to compare the relative structural influences on the conformational preferences of silicon and carbon.