Self-emulsifying excipient for solubility and oral bioavailability enhancement: Gelucire® 44/14
Gelucire® 44/14 is a non-ionic water dispersible surfactant recommended for use in lipid-based formulations to increase the aqueous solubility and oral bioavailability of poorly water soluble drugs.
A multi-component excipient
Gelucire® 44/14 is obtained by an alcoholysis reaction between coconut oil and polyethylene glycol-32 (PEG-32) under controlled conditions. It consists of glycerides and PEG esters of fatty acids of varying chain length.
Melt characteristics
Gelucire® 44/14 presents a broad endotherm ranging from 10 to 45°C, with an onset melting temperature of about 38°C and a peak melting temperature of about 43°C (blue line, Figure 2). This thermal behaviour is related to composition: the mono-, di- and triglyceride fraction melts first (orange line, Figure 2), followed by the PEG-ester fraction (green line, Figure 2).
