The Department of Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics
The overall objective of our research is to improve the development of safe and effective pharmaceuticals. We aim to increase the knowledge about the uptake, kinetics, metabolism, effects and side-effects of pharmaceutical drugs. Specifically, we study release of active substances from their dosage forms, their systemic absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (LADME system). We evaluate mechanisms and kinetics of these processes and identify the effects of various factors (food, concomitant use of other drugs, various physiological and pathological states, genetic factors) on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.
For pharmacokinetic evaluations we develop various chromatographic methods with UV / Vis, EC, fluorescence and MS-MS detection. With preformulation studies we characterize physicochemical properties such as solubility, dissolution rate, stability, ionization, permeability and metabolic conversion. Based on these parameters and in vitro release profiles we aim to predict bioavailability.
We develop pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic models that allow prediction of the clinical effects of drugs and evaluation of their variability. We use these models in individual drug dosage regimen design according to genotypic and phenotypic characteristics.