Solubilizing efficiency and in vitro cytotoxicity of peptoad G.

A novel non-ionic surfactant, peptoad G, is evaluated for its solubilizing capacity and cytotoxicity in order to explore its possible use in aqueous formulation of hydrophobic drugs. Solubility studies were carried out using ten model hydrophobic drugs, and cytotoxicity of the surfactant was evaluated in three different cell lines using the MTT assay. It was shown that peptoad G enhances the solubility of the ten model drugs to different extents, ranging from 20- to 1100-fold, which correlated with the number of hydrogen-bonding sites on the drug molecules. The in vitro cytotoxicity studies revealed comparable cytotoxicity of peptoad G to that of cremophor EL. The results suggest peptoad G possesses potential as an alternative to conventional solubilizers in hydrophobic drug formulations. 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association