Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic aspects of combined use of glycyrrhizinic acid

Glycyrrhizinic acid is a triterpenoid plant-derived compound with potent antisteatotic, anticytolitic, anti-inflammatory, antifibrotic, anticholestatic as well as antiapoptotic, antineoplastic and some other effects. Recent studies have demonstrated glycyrrhizinic acid to form supramolecular self-associates and micelles, which makes it a pharmacokinetic, and, hence, a pharmacodynamic enhancer. Thus, the prospects and possibilities of combined use of glycyrrhizinic acid in liver disease and other pathologies arise due to the pharmacological properties of the molecule itself as well as its function as drug carrier and delivery enhancer. The present review is focused on the pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic features of glycyrrhizinic acid combinations with essential phospholipids and ursodeoxycholic acid.