The low solubility of hydrophobic drugs presents essential formulation challenges for pharmaceutical development regarding fenofibrate and ibuprofen. Fenofibrate as a lipid-lowering agent classified under BCS Class II shows poor solubility but excellent permeability qualities. The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen which belongs to BCS Class II faces identical solubility problems as a result of its properties. The drug development process becomes complex when working with formulations containing these substances because they resist standard bioavailability testing. Increasing the dissolution rate represents a main priority for improving the therapeutic benefits of hydrophobic drugs since their absorption depends heavily upon dissolution rates. The development of effective dosage forms for hydrophobic medications including fenofibrate and ibuprofen becomes complicated because these drugs easily crystallize in water-based solutions which decreases their absorption capabilities. The conventional methods of particle size reduction and solid dispersion techniques proved limited because they witness problems with stability and complexity and produce variable outcomes. Scientists now employ co-solvents as an uncomplicated yet efficient method to increase the dissolution properties of medicines with poor water solubility.
Sample papers and reference materials are offered to help students improve their understanding of assignment writing and academic requirements. Working as a reliable assignment help in UK, we promote originality while offering academic support. The The Effects or Influences of Propylene Glycol Assignment Sample illustrates standard report formatting, key observations, and analytical discussion. All samples are for reference and learning purposes only.
The chemical compound propylene glycol (PG) functions as a co-solvent that lowers the water solution polarity which enhances hydrophobic drug dissolution capacity. PG functions as an amphiphilic solvent because it interacts with water-affine substances in addition to fat-affine constituents thus making it desirable for dissolving drugs that show poor aqueous solubility. The incorporation of PG within aqueous solutions transforms the solution structure by making the solvent less polar and reducing drug crystalline order which enables drug dissolution enhancement and the subsequent absorption process. The research analyzes the effect of PG on dissolving fenofibrate and ibuprofen as representative hydrophobic pharmaceutical agents.
The experimental objective examined how propylene glycol (PG) affects the solubility of hydrophobic compounds ibuprofen and fenofibrate. These medications have limited bioavailability and therapeutic effects because they show poor dissolution in water. Both fenofibrate along with ibuprofen belong to the Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) Class II since they exhibit low solubility but high permeability.
The research investigated how different PG concentrations in water solutions affect drug dissolution rates by modifying solution polarity to increase drug solubility. Phospholipids bind to hydrophilic and hydrophobic molecules because of its amphiphilic nature, so researchers believe PG will affect the solubility of drugs in formulations (Kroll et al., 2022).
Investigators studied drug solubility in PG-water solutions at different concentration levels because this data would enable improved formulation design and better bioavailability outcomes. The study aimed to check the experimental outcome consistency from UV-VIS spectrophotometric analysis while clarifying the origins of measurement error due to procedural discrepancies between research teams.
An evaluation of ibuprofen and fenofibrate solubility through propylene glycol co-solvent addition occurred using matched experimental approaches between two distinct research groups. Several researcher groups participating in the method led to inconsistent pipetting techniques that likely deemed data precision unreliable and introduced data variability.
Preparation of Drug Solutions
Various sealed vials received excess doses of ibuprofen and fenofibrate after filling them with different stock solutions composed of PG and distilled water combined in various volume ratios. The experimental solution contained PG concentrations starting from 0% up to 80% v/v when dissolved with water. The vials received exact tight seals in order to prevent evaporation along with protective contamination.
Incubation and Agitation
Vials received their maintenance needs at 37°C since this temperature was necessary to replicate physical body conditions (Murakami et al., 2021). The vials experienced solid drug-solvent equilibrium through one hour of stirring in a water bath shaker to achieve drug dissolving.
Centrifugation and Filtration
The drug vials demanded centrifugation as their next step to divide between solid drugs and solution materials (Anjani et al., 2022). The experimental team used their pipette skills to obtain supernatant followed by membrane filtration with a 0.45 µm pore size to remove all drug solids before testing.
Spectrophotometric Analysis
The filtered samples needed analysis with a UV-VIS spectrophotometer to determine their drug concentrations. Analysis of ibuprofen occurred at a 272 nm wavelength while fenofibrate required a 291 nm wavelength when performing tests in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer solution. The drug concentrations were calculated in µg/mL through applying data obtained from standard absorbance calibration curves.
Sources of Experimental Error
The students whom the experimental groups tasked with pipetting procedures made human errors which led to deviations from standardized operation procedures. The precise execution of pipetting procedures introduced data deviations between groups and thus reduced both experimental precision and reproducibility according to Nyamba et al. (2024). Minor discrepancies in period lengths for incubation as well as changes made to agitation speed seem to have influenced the experiment outcomes.
The absorbance of finofibrate measured at 291 nm
Calibration curve value
| Conc. (ug/mL) | Absorbance |
| 0 | 0 |
| 2.5 | 0.108 |
| 5 | 0.208 |
| 7.5 | 0.317 |
| 10 | 0.416 |
| 15 | 0.625 |
| 20 | 0.831 |
Finofibrate calibration curve
| Absorbance at 291 nm | Equation | |||||||
| PG/water % (v/v) | Sample | 1 | 2 | 3 | Average | y=0.0415x+0.0023 | Dilition Factor | conc. (ug/mL) |
| x=y-0.0023/0.0415 | ||||||||
| 0 | A | 0.004 | 0.000 | 0.002 | 0.002 | -0.007 | 20 | -0.07 |
| 10 | B | 0.009 | 0.006 | 0.015 | 0.010 | 0.1855 | 20 | 1.855 |
| 20 | C | 0.015 | 0.001 | 0.008 | 0.008 | 0.1373 | 20 | 1.373 |
| 30 | D | 0.005 | 0.004 | 0.009 | 0.006 | 0.089 | 20 | 0.89 |
| 40 | E | 0.014 | 0.013 | 0.0135 | 0.014 | 0.2819 | 20 | 2.819 |
| 45 | F | 0.046 | 0.050 | 0.480 | 0.192 | 4.571 | 20 | 45.71 |
| 50 | G | 0.061 | 0.059 | 0.060 | 0.060 | 1.39 | 20 | 13.9 |
| 60 | H | 0.225 | 0.227 | 0.226 | 0.226 | 5.39 | 20 | 53.9 |
| 70 | I | 0.680 | 0.691 | 0.6855 | 0.686 | 16.47 | 20 | 164.7 |
| 80 | J | 1.608 | 1.814 | 1.711 | 1.711 | 41.17 | 20 | 411.73 |
The graph of drugs (Fenofibrate) solubility (ug/ml) versus PG/water % (v/v).
Ibuprofen
The absorbance of ibuprofen is measured at 272 nm
The weight of ibuprofen to prepare stick solution is 0.126g
| Conc. (ug/mL) | 1 | 2 | 3 | Average |
| 25 | 0.055 | 0.048 | 0.058 | 0.161 |
| 50 | 0.091 | 0.088 | 0.107 | 0.286 |
| 100 | 0.18 | 0.182 | 0.177 | 0.539 |
| 200 | 0.355 | 0.37 | 0.37 | 1.095 |
| 300 | 0.534 | 0.534 | 0.532 | 1.6 |
| 500 | 0.879 | 0.883 | 0.882 | 2.644 |
| PG/water %(v/v) | Sample | Absorbance | y = 0.0052x + 0.0276 | ||||
| 1 | 2 | Average | Dilution factor | x=y-0.0276/0.0052 | Conc. (ug/mL) | ||
| 0 | 1 | 0.478 | 0.481 | 0.4795 | 10 | 86.9 | 869.04 |
| 10 | 2 | 0.959 | 0.957 | 0.958 | 10 | 178.9 | 1789.23 |
| 20 | 3 | 0.42 | 0.418 | 0.419 | 10 | 75.3 | 752.69 |
| 30 | 4 | 0.761 | 0.766 | 0.7635 | 10 | 141.5 | 1415.19 |
| 40 | 5 | 0.514 | 0.514 | 0.514 | 10 | 93.5 | 935.38 |
| 45 | 6 | 0.729 | 0.732 | 0.7305 | 10 | 135.2 | 1351.73 |
| 50 | 7 | 0.684 | 0.681 | 0.6825 | 20 | 125.9 | 2518.85 |
| 60 | 8 | 0.573 | 0.571 | 0.572 | 20 | 104.7 | 2093.85 |
| 70 | 9 | 0.615 | 0.616 | 0.6155 | 20 | 113.1 | 2261.15 |
| 80 | 10 | 0.048 | 0.04 | 0.044 | 40 | 3.15 | 126.15 |
The graph of drugs (Ibuprofen) solubility (ug/ml) versus PG/water % (v/v).
T test
| PG/water %(v/v) | Conc. (ug/mL) | |
| Mean | 245.865 | 103.0769 |
| Variance | 55022.4 | 1065.089 |
| Observations | 2 | 2 |
| Pearson Correlation | 1 | |
| Hypothesized Mean Difference | 0 | |
| df | 1 | |
| t Stat | 1 | |
| P(T<=t) one-tail | 0.25 | |
| t Critical one-tail | 6.313752 | |
| P(T<=t) two-tail | 0.5 | |
| t Critical two-tail | 12.7062 |
The solubility of fenofibrate grew considerably while the PG quantity rose. The addition of 0% PG led to insignificant solubility yet 80% PG enabled maximum solubility to reach 411.73 µg/mL. Similar changes occurred with ibuprofen when the PG concentration in solution increased because its solubility levels rose (Lechanteur et al., 2024). The highest solubility value of 2518.85 µg/mL occurred at 50% PG then timed out at 80% PG where the solution showed 126.15 µg/mL indicating precipitation or saturation could be taking place. Research shows that PG improves solubility because it changes the dielectric constant of mixed solvent solutions. According to previous research: Through its hydrotropic action PG increases the amount of lipophilic drugs that dissolve into solution. The solubility effect of PG may decrease at excessively high PG concentrations since the system becomes saturated. The solubility of Fenofibrate reaches its maximum value at 80% PG when combined with water.The data shows Ibuprofen solubility rises when PG solution concentrations increase until a decline occurs above 80% PG levels.
Conclusion
The experiment discussed that PG significantly increased the solubility of both fenofibrate anmnd ibuprofen in aqueous (H2O) system. As the concentration of PG enhanced, the drug’s solubility developed due to the decrease in solvent polarity and the disruption of the crystalline drug structure. Entirely, the results and finding of this experiment mainly confirm that PG is an effective co solvent for developing the solubility property of different hydrophobic drugs, which can be very beneficial to develop formulations with therapeutic effectiveness along with increased bioavailability.
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