https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:5065 Bioavailability of Thymol Incorporated into Gastro-Resistant Self-Emulsifying Pellets in Rabbits Kristofova, Radoslava Radoslava Kristofova 0000-0002-5169-2858 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia Zitterl-Eglseer, Karin Karin Zitterl-Eglseer 0000-0002-6908-7074 Centre for Veterinary Systems Transformation and Sustainability, Clinical Department for Farm Animal and Food Systems Science, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria Firooznia, Fardad Fardad Firooznia Department of Biology, The City College of New York, 160 Convent Avenue, New York, NY 10031, USA Laukova, Andrea Andrea Laukova 0000-0001-7413-3816 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia Chrastinova, Lubica Lubica Chrastinova Animal Production Research Centre, National Agricultural and Food Centre, Hlohovecka 2, 951 41 Nitra-Luzianky, Slovakia Pogany Simonova, Monika Monika Pogany Simonova 0000-0002-0377-4672 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia Takacsova, Margareta Margareta Takacsova 0000-0002-7478-9177 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia Bacova, Kristina Kristina Bacova 0000-0002-1856-4475 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia Placha, Iveta Iveta Placha 0000-0002-8724-0159 Department of Digestive Tract Physiology, Institute of Animal Physiology, Centre of Biosciences, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Soltesovej 4-6, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia MDPI journal article open access eng Thymol gastro-resistant self-emulsifying pellets were used to achieve thymol targeted release on the side of the intestine with the most intensive absorption to enhance its oral bioavailability. Forty-eight rabbits (35 d of age) were divided into two groups fed with a standard diet containing gastro-resistant enteric pellets (control, CG; without thymol, initial live weight 1350.0 ± 18.0, and experimental, EG; with thymol 250 mg/kg, initial live weight 1352.0 ± 19.9 g). The experiment lasted 28 days: thymol was administered for 21 days and then withdrawn for 7 days. Thymol was significantly higher in duodenal wall (DW) than in plasma during both periods (p = 0.0053, p < 0.0001). Significant correlation was established between thymol concentration in plasma and DW during its application (rs = 0.9333, p < 0.001). Thymol was below the limit of quantitation in plasma, spleen and muscle only after its withdrawal, and its significantly higher concentration in kidney and fat than in plasma (p = 0.0182, p = 0.0003) and muscle (p = 0.0236, p = 0.0004) indicates its efficient accumulation. Thymol in gastro-resistant form prevented its degradation due to adverse conditions in the stomach and ensured its release at the site of greatest absorption in the small intestine. Thymol Self-emulsifying Pellets Oral Bioavailability Rabbits Metabolism http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/api/object/o:5065/download 10.3390/ani15223238 https://phaidra.vetmeduni.ac.at/o:605 application/pdf Animals issn:2076-2615 VoR Animals 15 22 912.99 kB 2025