Predicting the Volume of Distribution of Drugs in Humans

Title: Predicting the Volume of Distribution of Drugs in Humans

Volume: 9 Issue: 6

Author(s): Xiaofan Sui, Jin Sun, Xin Wu, Haiyan Li, Jianfang Liu and Zhonggui He

Affiliation:

Keywords: Volume of distribution, Tissue/plasma partition coefficients, Physiologically based pharmacokinetic modeling, Quantitative structure, –, pharmacokinetic relationship

Abstract: Recent studies have shown that many promising new drug candidates were abandoned due to poor pharmacokinetic properties (PKs). Therefore, it is important to predict the PKs of compounds during the early stages of drug development. The volume of distribution (VD) is one of the most important PK parameters. When considered along with systemic clearance, the VD determines the biological half-life, which is used for designing suitable dosage regimens and rational formulations. At present, the methods used to predict VD include (i) the extrapolation of animal data, (ii) physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling and (iii) in silico approaches that employ quantitative structure – pharmacokinetic relationships (QSPR). In this article, the latest progress in the field of VD prediction is summarized in terms of the above three areas, respectively, and these approaches are expected to be valuable for screening new drugs during the early stages of drug discovery and development.

Cite this article as:

Sui Xiaofan, Sun Jin, Wu Xin, Li Haiyan, Liu Jianfang and He Zhonggui, Predicting the Volume of Distribution of Drugs in Humans, Current Drug Metabolism 2008; 9 (6) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/138920008784892137