Identification of phenobarbital N-glucuronides as urinary metabolites of phenobarbital in mice.

Mice were evaluated for their ability to form phenobarbital N-glucuronides. Following oral administration of [14C]phenobarbital to mice, a radiolabeled phenobarbital metabolite cochromatographed with synthetic standards of phenobarbital N-glucuronides. The phenobarbital N-glucuronides were partially purified from the mouse urine as phenobarbital N-methylglucuronates. The phenobarbital N-methylglucuronates isolated from mouse urine had similar chromatographic and spectroscopic properties as synthetic standards. The diastereomers of phenobarbital N-glucuronides and phenobarbital N-glucosides accounted for 7.8 +/- 2.3% and 1.6 +/- 0.6%, respectively, of the radioactivity excreted in mouse urine in the first 48 hr after dosing. This study indicates that the mouse may be a suitable species to study both N-glucosidation and N-glucuronidation simultaneously as metabolic pathways for barbiturates.

Synthesis of N-beta-D-glucopyranosyluronate derivatives of barbital, phenobarbital, metharbital, and mephobarbital.

The synthesis and characterization of barbital, phenobarbital, metharbital, and mephobarbital glucuronides is reported. The condensation of per(trimethylsilyl)-barbital and -phenobarbital with methyl 1,2,3,4-tetra-O-acetyl-beta-D-glucopyranuronate in the presence of trimethylsilyl trifluoromethanesulfonate gave moderate yields of the N1-(beta-D-glucopyranosyluronate) barbiturate derivatives. The diastereomers of the phenobarbital derivatives were resolved by use of C18 reversed-phase HPLC. The homologous N3-methyl barbiturate N1-glucuronates were prepared by reaction of the barbital and phenobarbital N1-glucuronate derivatives with diazomethane. The absolute configuration of the phenobarbital N1-beta-D-glucopyranuronate epimers was determined by oxidative removal of the glycon from the mephobarbital N1-beta-D-glucopyranuronate epimers to give the optical isomers of mephobarbital. The spectroscopic data for this series of compounds will facilitate the characterization of N-glycosylated imide xenobiotics that may be detected as mammalian metabolites in biodisposition studies.