The weanling Yorkshire pig as an animal model for measuring percutaneous penetration

Percutaneous penetration of compounds of varying lipid solubility was studied in three systems, in vivo with the data from weanling Yorkshire pigs compared to data reported for nine compounds in man, in vivo with the same nine compounds on either weanling Yorkshire pig skin or human skin grafted to athymic nude mice and in vitro with twelve compounds on weanling Yorkshire pig skin and human skin mounted on a skin penetration/evaporation apparatus. Correlations (P<0.05) were found between in vivo pig values and those reported for man (r=0.83), between values for human and pig skin grafted to nude mice (r=0.69) and between in vitro human and in vitro pig skin values (r=0.76). The in vitro skin penetration system provides a valid approximation of a chemical's penetration through human skin; therefore, the number of animals required to obtain such information is reduced