Pharmacokinetic and toxicological profile in pharmaceutical bioprospecting of caryophyllene molecules using computational biology for therapeutic purposes.

Abstract

β-Caryophyllene, abundant in plants such as Salvia rosmarinus, Cannabis sativa, and Hyptis crenata, possesses various biological activities, including anti-inflammatory, analgesic, neuroprotective, and anticancer properties. However, its high lipophilicity and low stability in hydrophilic environments limit its therapeutic application. To overcome these limitations, the study aimed to bioprospect an molecular derivatives of caryophyllene with improved bioavailability using computational biology analyses. The Canonical SMILES of the molecules were obtained from PubChem and submitted to various servers for analysis of physicochemical, pharmacokinetic, and toxicological properties. Of the 60 identified molecular derivatives, only one met 44 selection criteria, including gastrointestinal absorption, plasma protein binding, metabolism by CYP₄₅₀ enzymes, and toxicological parameters. Comparisons between β-caryophyllene (βC) and caryophyllene-keto-epoxide (CKE) showed that CKE has better gastrointestinal absorption and lower affinity for plasma proteins, increasing the free fraction in the blood. Both compounds do not inhibit nor are they substrates for CYP₄₅₀ enzymes and exhibit good interaction with Caco-2 intestinal cells. CKE, with log P and log D within the desired range, demonstrated to be a more effective alternative in terms of bioavailability compared to βC. These results suggest that CKE can overcome the limitations of βC, offering better stability and bioavailability, thereby enhancing its therapeutic applications. However, further research is necessary to determine whether the primary therapeutic targets of βC remain the same for CKE and to evaluate the differences in therapeutic efficacy between them.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40203-025-00392-8.