Utilizing an Orally Dissolving Strip for Pharmacological and Toxicological Studies: A Simple and Humane Alternative to Oral Gavage for Animals

Abstract

Prior to testing novel therapeutics in humans, short and long term preclinical (i.e., animal), repetitive pharmacological and toxicological testing is required. In most cases, the preferred route of administration is via oral delivery. At the present time, oral delivery is mostly accomplished using an oral gavage procedure, in part, because it can achieve consistent and precise dosing in the animal model. Although this method is well established it does have complications that can result in a high rate of animal attrition. To this end, the procedure introduced here describes an alternative to the oral gavage method in which the desired drug is incorporated into a tastant, orally dissolving strip (ODS) that can simply be presented to the test animal where it is then rapidly taken up with minimal manipulation of the test subject. Herein, we demonstrate that preclinical, oral drug delivery using the ODS method represents a safe, convenient, and humane alternative to oral gavage.

Phenolic content of Terminalia catappa L. leaf and toxicity evaluation on red hybrid tilapia (Oreochromis sp.)

“…In the light of this, the present study focused on profiling and identifying the metabolites present in the T. catappa leaf, quantifying the phenolic content and evaluating the toxicity of the extracts administered through the oral gavage at different doses in tilapia. The oral gavage technique was adopted based on the fact that reports have shown it to be the best way of achieving precise dosage in animal models (Huynh et al ., 2016; Jones et al ., 2016). It is believed that the administered plant extract might contain metabolites responsible for the perceived biological activities, namely antioxidant activities, tissue protection, immunomodulatory activity and toxicity that may arise after ingestion (Mendoza & Silva, 2018).…”

Murine Drinking Models in the Development of Pharmacotherapies for Alcoholism: Drinking in the Dark and Two-bottle Choice

“…Worldwide estimates indicate that as many as 76 million people meet the criteria to warrant a diagnosis for Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). Unfortunately, pharmaceutical treatments currently available are largely ineffective and further development is necessary to offset the needs of this clinical population 20 . To this end, the following protocol aims to facilitate this endeavor by exemplifying two of the most basic rodent drinking paradigms: two-bottle-choice (TBC) and drinking in the dark (DID).…”

“…For more information on controls the reader should refer to Yardley et al . 20 No single paradigm can model all aspects of this condition. Instead, each paradigm typically examines a few of the key attributes associated with AUD.…”

“…NOTE: Any non-terminal blood collection method may be used, such as retro-orbital sinus blood collection, or saphenous vein blood collection. For useful protocols see references for Parasuraman et al 21 and Yardley et al 20 . Perform analysis using various methods including LCMS, or commercially available machinery (see Table of Materials ).…”

Next Steps in 3D Printing of Fast Dissolving Oral Films for Commercial Production

“…[92] 5.2.14 In vivo Evaluation FDFs have been evaluated in animal models. [126,127] In one approach, rats were fasted overnight before administration of film. Then, 50 µL aliquot of distilled water was dropped into the rat oral cavity under light ether anesthesia and then film preparation (animal dose = 0.087 mg/kg) was placed on the tongue.…”