Micellar solubilization of ibuprofen - influence of surfactant head groups on the extent of solubilization

An important property of micells with particular significance in pharmacy is their ability to increase the solubility of poorly soluble drugs in water, thus increasing their bioavailability. In this work, the solubilization of ibuprofen (IBU) was studied in micellar solutions of there surfactants possessing the same hydrocarbon tail but different hydrophilic head groups, namely sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB), and n-dodecyl octa(ethylene oxide) (`C IND. 12´ E`O IND. 8´). The results showed that, irrespective of the surfactant type, the solubility of IBU increased linearly with increasing surfactant concentration, as a consequence of the association between the drug and the micelles...