Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 13, 2026
Assessment of Social Interaction Behaviors
Published on: February 25, 2011
Development of a perillyl alcohol topical cream formulation
Abhishek Gupta1, Paul B Myrdal
1College of Pharmacy, University of Arizona, 1703 E. Mabel St., Tucson, AZ 85721, USA. gupta@pharmacy.arizona.edu
Abstract:
Perillyl alcohol (POH) is a relatively non-toxic agent that has been shown to be a promising anticancer monoterpene in preclinical models. Studies have indicated that topical application of POH may prove to be effective as a skin cancer chemoprevention therapy. The main aim of this study was to determine the influence of several factors on the stability of POH in solution and develop a topical formulation of POH. During preformulation, the influence of pH, temperature, ionic strength, and organic solvents, on the stability of POH was evaluated at four different temperatures: 4, 25, 37, and 48 degrees C. POH was found to degrade under acidic conditions with degradation following apparent first-order kinetics. A hydrophilic topical cream formulation of POH was developed and prepared for toxicology and clinical studies. A reverse phase gradient HPLC method was developed to quantitate POH in the complex formulation. Stability studies of the formulation and a placebo were performed and the formulation was found to be physically and chemically stable over a period of 1 year at 4 and 25 degrees C.
Related Concept Videos
02:29Ethers from Alcohols: Alcohol Dehydration and Williamson Ether Synthesis
Ethers can be prepared from organic compounds by various methods. Some of them are discussed below,
Preparation of Ethers by Alcohol Dehydration
In this method, in the presence of protic acids, alcohol dehydrates to produce alkenes and ethers under different conditions. For example, in the presence of sulphuric acid, dehydration of ethanol at 413 K yields ethoxyethane, whereas it yields ethene at 443 K.
02:35Ethers from Alkenes: Alcohol Addition and Alkoxymercuration-Demercuration
Ethers can also be prepared from alkenes through acid-catalyzed addition of alcohols and alkoxymercuration–demercuration.
Preparation of Ethers by Acid-Catalyzed Addition of Alcohol to Alkenes
The acid-catalyzed addition of alcohol to an alkene involves treating the alkene with an excess of alcohol in the presence of an acid catalyst to form an ether under suitable conditions. The hydrogen will add to the less substituted carbon so that the nucleophile can attack the more substituted...
01:38Preparation of Alcohols via Substitution Reactions
Alcohols can be synthesized from alkyl halides via nucleophilic substitution reactions. The highly polar carbon-halogen bond in the substrate makes halide a good leaving group. The hydroxide ion or water can act as a nucleophile to take the place of halide and form an alcohol. The substitution reactions occur via two different reaction pathways, SN1 or SN2, depending on the nature of carbon attached to the halide.
Primary alcohols are synthesized from primary alkyl halides, and the...
02:15Preparation of Alcohols via Addition Reactions
The acid-catalyzed addition of water to the double bond of alkenes is a large-scale industrial method used to synthesize low-molecular-weight alcohols. An acidic atmosphere is required to allow the hydrogen in the water molecule to act as an electrophile and attack the double bond in an alkene. The addition of a proton to the double bond creates a carbocation intermediate. The proton preferentially bonds to the less substituted end of the double bond to create a more stable carbocation...
02:35Acid-Catalyzed Dehydration of Alcohols to Alkenes
02:31Protection of Alcohols
Protection
It defines a protecting group as the masking agent to make the more reactive species inert to a given set of conditions. This concept is depicted via the illustration of liquid flow through different outlets in an assembly of pipes. The analogy helps to understand the role...