lipofiliaa

Lipofiliaa is the property of a molecule to preferentially associate with lipids rather than with water, a concept commonly referred to as lipophilicity. In chemistry and pharmacology, lipophilicity describes how readily a compound dissolves in lipid environments such as cell membranes. The standard quantitative measures are the octanol/water partition coefficient (logP) and, at a given pH, logD, which account for ionization.

Lipophilicity is determined by molecular features including hydrocarbon content, polarity, hydrogen-bond capability, and molecular size. It can be assessed experimentally by partitioning a compound between octanol and water (the shake-flask method) or inferred from chromatographic retention or in silico predictions.

Biological and pharmacological relevance: Lipophilicity influences membrane permeability and oral absorption; compounds with higher lipophilicity generally cross biological membranes more readily but may suffer from poor aqueous solubility. Lipophilic drugs tend to distribute widely into fatty tissues and may cross the blood–brain barrier; high lipophilicity can lead to extensive plasma protein binding, faster metabolism, or bioaccumulation, and may increase toxicity risk. Conversely, very low lipophilicity can limit absorption and tissue distribution.

In drug development and toxicology, lipophilicity is balanced with solubility, stability, and target specificity. It is routinely predicted early in design and refined during optimization to achieve favorable bioavailability and safety profiles.