Introduction ADME (adsorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination) studies on new drug entities, toxicological studies on environmental contaminants, and evaluation of chemicals in the workplace all involve gathering similar types of information. Such studies rely on a combination of in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo techniques. Among the in vitro and ex vivo systems are isolated enzymes, microsomes, cell cultures, tissue homogenates, tissue slices, and isolated organs. Information about the role of specific enzymes and tissues, types of intermediates formed, and pathways for xenobiotic biotransformation are gained through these types of studies. However, because they represent parts rather than the whole physiological system, the types of information gained do not reflect the entire scheme of biotransformation within the intact organism.Traditional in vivo techniques include sampling blood and other biological fluids, analysis of elimination products to determine final disposition of the parent compound and metabolites, and tissue sampling requiring one or more animals per time point. These studies provide general information about the metabolism and final disposition of a compound, but do not offer details about specific enzymes, intermediates, or in vivo metabolic pathways. An overall limitation to traditional approaches is that results obtained in vitro sometimes do not correlate with those found in vivo.Microdialysis sampling has several characteristics that complement traditional in vitro and in vivo pharmacokinetic and metabolism techniques. This approach is accomplished by implanting a probe consisting of a hollow fiber dialysis membrane into the organ or biological matrix of interest. The short length of hollow fiber is affixed to pieces of narrow bore tubing that serve as inlet and oulet conduits for the probe. A solution, termed the perfusate, is pumped slowly through the probe. The perfusate is an aqueous solution that closely matches the ionic composition of the extracellular fluid (ECF). When the perfusate is correctly matched to the ECF, there should be no net exchange of water or ions across the membrane. Low molecular weight compounds can diffuse into or out of the probe lumen in response to concentration gradients and are pumped to the analysis system.
NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript
NIH-PA Author ManuscriptA diagram of the process is shown in Figure 1. For clarity, the diagram shows only one analyte (A), although several compounds are typically sampled at the same time in a microdialysis experiment. Large molecules such as proteins (P) and small molecules bound to proteins (P-A) are excluded by the membrane. Those molecules entering the lumen of the membrane are swept along by the perfusate and exit the probe. The solution leaving the probe, termed the dialysate, is collected for analysis. The probe can be thought of as an artificial blood vessel in that it can both deliver and remove compounds from the local area. Delivery of the parent compound via the probe permits study o...