A Physiologically-Based Flow Network Model for Hepatic Drug Elimination I: Regular Lattice Lobule Model

TL;DR

This paper introduces a detailed lattice model for hepatic drug transport and metabolism, emphasizing convection's role, and compares predicted internal drug distributions with observable exit concentrations.

Contribution

It presents a physiologically-based lattice model focusing on convection in liver lobules, providing insights into drug distribution and elimination mechanisms.

Findings

Convection dominates transport in well-vascularized liver tissue.

Model accurately predicts drug exit concentrations from the lobule.

Provides estimates of convective, diffusive, and reaction contributions.

Abstract

We develop a physiologically-based lattice model for the transport and metabolism of drugs in the functional unit of the liver, called the lobule. In contrast to earlier studies, we have emphasized the dominant role of convection in well-vascularized tissue with a given structure. Estimates of convective, diffusive and reaction contributions are given. We have compared drug concentration levels observed exiting the lobule with their predicted detailed distribution inside the lobule, assuming that most often the former is accessible information while the latter is not.