A DRUG ABSORPTION-MODEL BASED ON THE MUCUS LAYER PRODUCING HUMAN INTESTINAL GOBLET CELL-LINE HT29-H

A new drug absorption model based on monolayers of the human intestina l goblet cell fine HT29-H grown on permeable filters has been characte rized. HT29-H cells have been shown (a) to form monolayers of mature g oblet cells under standard cell culture conditions, (b) to secrete muc in molecules, (c) to produce a mucus layer that covers the apical cell surface, and (d) that this mucus layer is a significant barrier to th e absorption of the lipophilic drug testosterone. This is the first de monstration of an intact human mucus layer with functional barrier pro perties produced in cell culture. The results indicate that monolayers of HT29-H cells provide a valuable complement to mucus-free drug abso rption models based on absorptive cell lines such as Caco-2 cells.