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Bioavailability

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Cancer

  • 173 Accesses

Definition

Bioavailability of Nutrients

Refers to the fraction of a mineral nutrient intake that is biologically available to meet the essential metabolic and/or structural functions associated with that mineral nutrient in the body. Bioavailability incorporates the concepts of absorption, distribution, metabolic transformation (where necessary to meet biological function), and excretion. In some circumstances the main component of bioavailability is absorption across the gastrointestinal wall, so that sometimes the term bioavailability may be used interchangeably with absorption.

Bioavailability of Drugs

Refers to the percentage of drug that is detected in the systemic circulation after its administration. Losses can be attributed to an inherent lack of absorption/passage into the systemic circulation and/or to metabolic clearance. Detection of drug can be accomplished pharmacodynamically or pharmacokinetically. Oral bioavailability is associated with orally administered drugs.

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See Also

  • (2012) Pharmacodynamics. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 2840. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_4495

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  • (2012) Pharmacokinetics. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 2845. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_4500

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Manfred Schwab

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  1. Manfred Schwab
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Correspondence to Manfred Schwab .

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  1. Abt. Tumorgenetik, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany

    Manfred Schwab

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Schwab, M. (2015). Bioavailability. In: Schwab, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cancer. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_626-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_626-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27841-9

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