Bioavailability of Thymol Incorporated into Gastro-Resistant Self-Emulsifying Pellets in Rabbit Organism

Thymol gastro-resistant self-emulsifying pellets were used to achieve thymol targeted release on the side of the intestine with the most intensive absorption to enhance its oral bioavailability. Forty - eight rabbits (35 d of age) were divided into two groups fed with a standard diet containing gastro-resistant enteric pellets (control, CG; without thymol and experimental, EG; with thymol 250 mg/kg). The experiment lasted 28 days; thymol was administered for 21 days and then withdrawn for 7 days. Thymol was in balance in all parts of the intestinal tract, significantly higher in duodenal wall (DW) than in plasma during both periods (p = 0.0053, p < 0.0001), and a significant correlation was established between thymol concentration in plasma and DW during thymol applica-tion (rs = 0.9333, p < 0.001), which points to the efficient release of thymol from enteric pellets in the small intestine with an intensive absorption rate. Thymol was below the limit of quantitation in plasma, spleen and muscle only after its withdrawal, and its significantly higher concentration in kidney and fat than in plasma (p = 0.0182, p = 0.0003) and muscle (p = 0.0236, p = 0.0004) indicates its efficient accumulation.