Micro total bioassay system for oral drugs: evaluation of gastrointestinal degradation, intestinal absorption, hepatic metabolism, and bioactivity.

A micro total bioassay system that mimics physiological processes was developed as a means of evaluating orally administered drugs. A new feature accounting for gastrointestinal digestion was added to the previous system, which consists of microintestine, microliver, and target components. The artificial micro-gastrointestinal tract employs synthetic digestive juices. The system could correctly assay the overall digestive properties of ingested anticancer agents, i.e., the stability during digestive processes, as well as intestinal absorption, hepatic metabolism, and bioactivity toward target cells.