Micropipette-guided Drug Administration (MDA) as a non-invasive chronic oral administration method in male rats

In preclinical studies resorting to rodents, the effects of prolonged oral intake of active substances are difficult to evaluate. Indeed, to get closer to clinical reality, oral gavage (OG) is frequently used but the repetition of administrations induces risks of lesions of the digestive tract, and stress for animals which can compromise the quality of the results.

This study describes the development of a non-invasive oral administration method in male Sprague Dawley rats, as a safe alternative of OG, more faithful to clinical reality and limiting biases in pharmacokinetics and/or pharmacodynamics interpretation. Micropipette-guided Drug Administration (MDA) is based on the administration by micropipette of a sufficiently palatable vehicle for the animals to voluntarily take its contents.

MDA was not demonstrated as less stressful than OG. A pharmacokinetics equivalence between MDA and OG was demonstrated for pregabalin administration but not for aripiprazole. Despite the use of a sweet vehicle, the MDA method does not result in weight gain or significant elevation of blood glucose and fructosamines level. Regarding the time needed to administrate the solution, the MDA method is significantly faster than OG.

Contrastingly to procedures using food or water, this method allows for a rigorous control of the time and dose administered and is delivered in discrete administration windows which is therefore closer to the clinical reality. This method appears particularly suitable for pharmacological evaluation of hydrophilic compounds.

The MDA procedure represents a respectful and adapted pharmacological administration method to study the effects of chronic oral administration in rats.