Drug Decomposition and Hydrolysis

Study Notes

Factors affecting drug decomposition and hydrolysis

Drug decomposition can lead to drug loss and decrease therapeutic efficacy.
A decrease to 90% of labelled potency is generally recognized as the minimum acceptable drug potency level.
Drug decomposition products may lead to changes in appearance, taste, toxicity profile, and impurity profile.
Ethers are rarely oxidized, and factors affecting oxidation include drug chemical structure, temperature, light, and atmospheric oxygen.
The environment for the molecule can be made more stable by placing it in a closed container with an argon atmosphere.
Factors affecting hydrolysis include the strength of the nucleophile and electronegativity of the nucleophile.
Oxygen makes carbons more positively charged, causing esters to be more likely to hydrolyze.
Carboxylic acids are hydrolysable, while amides are less likely to be hydrolyzed due to the nitrogen being less electronegative.
Water is a poor nucleophile, but it can become a leaving alcohol group through the catalysis process.
A molecule's hydrolytic stability refers to its resistance to being broken down by hydrolysis.
Alcohols and amines are weak bases, but aldehydes are strong bases, making them less likely to be an easy leaving group.
Acids and bases act as catalysts in hydrolysis, and the base participates stoichiometrically in the reaction.

Description

Test your knowledge on the various factors affecting drug decomposition and hydrolysis with this quiz. Learn about how drug potency can decrease and how drug decomposition products can lead to changes in appearance, taste, toxicity, and impurity profiles. Discover how factors such as chemical structure, temperature, light, and atmospheric oxygen can affect drug oxidation, and how closed containers with an argon atmosphere can stabilize the molecule's environment. Understand the strength and electronegativity of nucleophiles and how they impact hydroly