Clarithromycin is absorbed by an intestinal uptake mechanism that is sensitive to major inhibition by rifampicin: results of a short-term drug interaction study in foals.

Pulmonary penetration of clarithromycin (CLR) in epithelial lining fluid (ELF) and bronchoalveolar lavage cells (BALCs) can be influenced by CYP3A4, by P-glycoprotein, and, according to our hypothesis, by a member of the organic anion-transporting protein (OATP) family, for which rifampicin (RIF) is inhibiting in single doses but inducing after long-term coadministration. To assess the partial inhibitory effect, we measured absorption and pulmonary distribution of CLR after short-term (2.5-day) coadministration of RIF, after which up-regulation is not expected. The drug interaction study was performed with five doses (12-h interval) of CLR (7.5 mg/kg) and RIF (10 mg/kg) in nine healthy foals; horse transporters are very similar in protein sequence and transcriptional regulation to the human analogs. RIF was equally distributed in ELF but reached half the plasma levels in BALCs. The deacetylated metabolite accumulated 1.4- to 6-fold in ELF and 8- to 60-fold in BALCs. CLR did not significantly influence the distribution of RIF. CLR and 14-hydroxyclarithromycin (14OH-CLR) accumulated approximately 20- to 40-fold and 1.5- to 4.5-fold in ELF and 300- to 1800-fold and 25- to 90-fold in BALCs, respectively. With RIF, plasma levels of CLR decreased by more than 70% without changes in 14OH-CLR formation, the half-lives of CLR and 14OH-CLR, and the 4ß-hydroxycholesterol/cholesterol ratio (a surrogate for CYP3A4 induction). CLR was an inhibitor of OATP1B3 (IC(50) = 9.50 ± 3.50 µM), OATP1B1 (IC(50) = 46.0 ± 2.27 µM), OATP1A2 (IC(50) = 92.6 ± 1.49 µM), and OATP2B1 (IC(50) = 384 ± 5.30 µM) but was not a substrate for these transporters in transfected human embryonic kidney cells. In conclusion, despite having no significant inducing effects, RIF decreased plasma levels of CLR below the minimal inhibitory concentration required to inhibit 90% of growth of pathogenic bacteria, most likely through inhibition of an unknown intestinal uptake transporter.

Oral absorption of clarithromycin is nearly abolished by chronic comedication of rifampicin in foals.

The delivery of clarithromycin (CRL) to its site of action in bronchial/alveolar epithelial cells (EC), bronchial epithelial lining fluid (ELF), and bronchoalveolar lavage cells (BALC) may be influenced by CYP3A4 and the drug transporters, ATP-binding cassette (ABC) B1 and ABCC2 and organic anion-transporting polypeptides (OATPs), which can be modulated and/or up-regulated via the nuclear pregnane X receptor (PXR) by rifampicin (RIF). Therefore, we evaluated the disposition and pulmonary distribution of CLR (7.5 mg/kg b.i.d., 21 days) and expression of ABCB1, ABCC2, OATP1A2, and OATP2B1 in EC and BALC before and after comedication of RIF (10 mg/kg b.i.d., 11 days) in nine healthy foals (41-61 days, 115-159 kg) in which the genetic homology of drug transporters is close to that of their human analogs. After RIF comedication, relative bioavailability of CLR decreased by more than 90%. Concentrations in plasma (29.8 ± 26.3 versus 462 ± 368 ng/ml), ELF (0.69 ± 0.66 versus 9.49 ± 6.12 µg/ml), and BALC (10.2 ± 10.2 µg/ml 264 ± 375 µg/ml; all P < 0.05) were lowered drastically, whereas levels of the metabolite 14-hydroxyclarithromycin were not elevated despite higher 4ß-hydroxycholesterol/cholesterol plasma concentration ratio, a surrogate for CYP3A4 induction. In the presence of CLR, ABCC2 and PXR mRNA contents were significantly and coordinately (r(2) = 0.664, P < 0.001) reduced in BALC after RIF. In EC, mRNA expression of OATP1A2 increased but that of OATP2B1 decreased (both P < 0.05). RIF interrupts oral absorption and decreases CRL plasma levels below the minimal inhibitory concentration for eradication of Rhodococcus equi. Evidence that RIF influences the cellular uptake of CLR in bronchial cells and the PXR expression in BALC in the presence of high CLR concentrations exists.

LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of clarithromycin, rifampicin and their main metabolites in horse plasma, epithelial lining fluid and broncho-alveolar cells.

Clarithromycin (CLA) is a well established macrolide antibiotic which is frequently used in therapy of airway diseases in foals. It is extensively metabolized by CYP3A4 resulting in the antimicrobial active metabolite 14-hydroxyclarithromycin (OH-CLA). Rifampicin (RIF) is often comedicated to prevent resistance and augment therapy. RIF is a known inducer for metabolizing enzymes and transporter proteins. Therefore, comedication might bare the risks of pharmacokinetic drug interactions which were investigated in a clinical trial. As no adequate method to determine CLA, RIF and their main metabolites OH-CLA and 25-O-desacetylrifampicin (DAc-RIF) were described so far, we developed a selective and sensitive assay to measure concentrations of all four substances simultaneously in plasma, epithelial lining fluid (ELF) and broncho-alveolar cells (BAC) of foals. Drugs were measured after extraction with methyl tert-butyl ether using roxithromycin as internal standard and liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for detection. The chromatography was done isocratically using 25mM ammonium acetate buffer (pH 4)/acetonitrile (45%/55%, flow rate 200µl/min). The MS/MS analysis was performed in the positive ion mode (m/z transitions: CLA, 748.5-590.1; OH-CLA, 764.1-606.1; RIF, 823.1-791.2; DAc-RIF, 781.1-749.1 and 837.3-679.2 for the internal standard). The method was validated according to selectivity, linearity, accuracy, precision, recovery, matrix effects and stability. The validation ranges for all substances were 2.5-25 for the low and 25-250ng/ml for the high validation range. The described assay was shown to be valid and successfully applied to measure disposition of CLA, OH-CLA, RIF and DAc-RIF in plasma, ELF and BAC of foals in a clinical trial.

Concentration of the macrolide antibiotic tulathromycin in broncho-alveolar cells is influenced by comedication of rifampicin in foals.

Macrolide antibiotics penetrate in the lung against steep concentration gradients into the epithelial lining fluid (ELF) and broncho-alveolar cells (BAC). Since they interact with ABCB1, ABCC2, and organic anion transporting proteins (OATPs), which are localized to lung tissue, pulmonary concentration may be influenced by rifampicin (RIF), an inducer and modulator of efflux and uptake transporters. We measured concentrations of tulathromycin (TM) in plasma, ELF and BAC in 21 warm-blooded foals 24 and 192 h after first and last intramuscular injection of 2.5 mg/kg TM once weekly for 6 weeks. In 11 foals, TM was combined with RIF (10 mg/kg twice daily), and mRNA expression of ABCB1 and ABCC2 in BAC was assessed before and after RIF. Affinity of TM to ABCB1 and ABCC2 was measured by transport assays using cell monolayers and membrane vesicles of MDCKII and 2008 cells transfected with ABCB1 and ABCC2, respectively. At steady state, TM concentrated manifold in ELF and BAC. Comedication of RIF significantly decreased the AUC of TM (18.5 +/- 4.0 versus 24.4 +/- 3.7 microg x h/ml, p < 0.05) and lowered its concentrations in plasma (24 h, 0.17 +/- 0.05 versus 0.24 +/- 0.05 microg/ml; 192 h, 0.05 +/- 0.01 versus 0.06 +/- 0.01 microg/ml) and BAC (24 h, 0.84 +/- 0.36 versus 1.56 +/- 1.02 microg/ml; 192 h, 0.60 +/- 0.23 versus 1.23 +/- 0.90 microg/ml, all p < 0.05). Treatment with rifampicin did not markedly induce ABCB1 and ABCC2 expression. TM had no affinity to ABCB1 and ABCC2 in vitro. Concentration of TM in the lung of foals was significantly lowered by comedication of rifampicin most likely caused by extrapulmonary mechanisms leading to lower plasma concentrations.