Mechanism of nasal absorption of drugs. II: Absorption of L-tyrosine and the effect of structural modification on its absorption.

The nasal absorption of L-tyrosine and the effect of structural modification on that absorption have been studied using an in-situ experimental technique. The extent of nasal absorption of the amino acid was found to be the same at pH values of 4.0 and 7.4 but dependent on concentration in the range of 2.8 X 10(-4)-2.2 X 10(-3) M. O-Acyl-L-tyrosine esters, although possessing higher octanol-water (pH 7.4) partition coefficients, have the same rate of nasal absorption as the parent amino acid. N-Acetyl-L-tyrosine, on the other hand, was found to have both partition coefficient and nasal absorption rate similar to those of L-tyrosine. Esterification of the carboxyl moiety of L-tyrosine results in derivatives that hydrolyze in the in-situ perfusion medium generating the original amino acid. The rate of nasal absorption of these derivatives was, therefore, determined from an overall disappearance rate which accounted for the rate of hydrolysis to L-tyrosine. These carboxylic esters were absorbed 4 to 10 times faster than L-tyrosine. Although the carboxylic esters of L-tyrosine possess higher octanol-water partition coefficients than the parent amino acid, the differences in the rates of nasal absorption could not be attributed solely to partition coefficient. The enhancement in the rate of absorption observed for these esters was attributed instead to the absence of the negative charge on the carboxylate moiety. It is a result of this negative charge that the rates of nasal absorption of L-tyrosine, O-acyl-L-tyrosine esters and N-acetyl-L-tyrosine are similar, despite significant differences in their partition coefficients.