A Low-Cost Method for Measuring the Permeability of a Pharmaceutical Drug in a Diffusion Cell

A low-cost, in vitro laboratory experiment has been developed that mimics the absorption of a pharmaceutical drug in the body. It allows undergraduate chemistry students to gain experience in the measurement of drug permeability coefficients, a key indicator used by the pharmaceutical industry to identify the ease of absorption of any new drug candidate. The experiment requires a diffusion cell, coated membrane, peristaltic pump and UV-Vis spectrophotometer. The method has been validated by determining the permeability coefficients for a selection of acidic, basic and non-ionizable drugs. Using this assay, it is possible to classify drugs as exhibiting high or low permeability in a fast, facile and reliable manner.