Drug disposition studies show that the active ingredient has a long plasma elimination half-life (101 hours in rat, 338 hours in dog). In both species, the highest tissue concentration of gallium was found in bone (12% in rat and 15% in dog of the administered dose at 192 hours, respectively).
Ionic gallium is poorly absorbed when administered orally, probably due to the formation of insoluble complexes in the GI tract. The barriers to oral gallium absorption can be reduced when the gallium ion is protected with appropriate complex anionic counter ions. These counter anions may prevent or reduce the formation of insoluble gallium compounds and also improve partitioning into biological membranes, thus improving passive transcellular transport and absorption.
The safety and efficacy of an oral gallium compound has not been established for any use.
