Merck, 16758-250G, Poloxamer 407

General description
Poloxamer 407 is a water-soluble, non-ionic surfactant with low toxicity and good solubilizing capacity. This triblock copolymer is composed of a hydrophobic residue of polyoxypropylene (POP) flanked by two hydrophilic units of polyoxyethylene (POE).
Application
Poloxamer 407 has been used:
as an inhibitor of lipoprotein lipase activity to assess hepatic very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL)- triglyceride (TG) secretion in mice
for VLDL secretion assay in mice
to intraperitoneally inject the mice by dissolving in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) for hepatic triglyceride production

Biochem/physiol Actions
Poloxamer 407 (P407) exhibits reversible gelation properties above a particular polymer concentration and temperature. Poloxamer 407-based sterile injectable formulations serve to be a good candidate for drug delivery. P407 thermo-responsive hydrogels are broadly used as mucosal drug delivery systems as they do not irritate the mucosal membranes. P407 is called an “inactive ingredient” by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for several drug products like oral solutions, suspensions, and inhalation formulations.