Soft drink could boost effects of anti-cancer drug
October 14th, 2010 - 2:34 pm ICT by ANIWashington Oct 14 (ANI): A popular lemon-lime soft drink could play an unexpected role in improving the effectiveness of an oral anticancer drug, experiments with an artificial stomach suggest.
The experiments produced evidence that patients will absorb more of the unnamed drug, tested in Phase I in clinical trials, when taken with “flat” or degassed Sprite.
Faraj Atassi and colleagues note that efforts are underway to develop more anticancer medications that patients can take by mouth.
However, biological variations among patients - due to variations in stomach acidity and other factors - can reduce the effectiveness of oral anticancer drugs.
Such was the case with the unnamed anticancer drug in the study, identified only as “Compound X.”
There were wide differences in how the drug was absorbed in the first patients who took it.
The scientists combined Compound X with Captisol, a substance that helps improve the solubility of drug ingredients, and turned to the artificial stomach.
That glass-and-plastic device is used to study how drugs and foods dissolve through the GI tract.
They showed that Sprite seemed to control stomach acidity in a way likely to allow greater absorption of the drug into the body.
Based on the results, the scientists suggest that patients in future clinical trials take the drug with Sprite.
The study appears in ACS’ Molecular Pharmaceutics, a bi-monthly journal. (ANI)
- Lemon-lime soft drink could boost oral cancer treatment: Study - Nov 11, 2010
- Insulin pills for diabetics may make painful jabs history - Jun 03, 2010
- Insulin pills may replace needles - Jun 03, 2010
- A drug that relieves you of constipation - May 11, 2011
- Osteoporosis drug may benefit patients with oral cancer - Dec 14, 2010
- Nanotechnology could help smuggle drugs into the gut - Nov 05, 2010
- Clinical drug trial centres in Andhra to be probed - Jun 25, 2011
- Heartburn pills may cause osteoporosis - May 30, 2010
- Drug counters bone-damaging effects of breast cancer medication - Oct 10, 2011
- Found! Brain tumour culprit - Oct 24, 2011
- Malaria drug 'may slow pancreatic cancer growth' - Mar 16, 2011
- Drugs to fight bone thinning double cancer risk - Sep 03, 2010
- Genetic patterns that may predict osteoarthritis identified - Sep 22, 2010
- Scientists produce compound that may treat Parkinson's disease - Feb 12, 2011
- Silica cages help anti-cancer antibodies prevent tumour growth in mice - May 22, 2010
Tags: absorption, acs, anticancer drug, anticancer drugs, atassi, cancer drug, clinical trials, colleagues, drug experiments, faraj, gi tract, lemon lime, molecular pharmaceutics, scientists, soft drink, solubility, sprite, stomach acidity, variations