Pharmacodynamic analysis of contractile potentiation by cholinesterase inhibitors in rats.

Pharmacological profiles of four cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitors: edrophonium, pyridostigmine, neostigmine, and ambenonium after to administration to rats were analyzed. A pharmacodynamic model was developed by considering acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition, direct antagonism to the nicotinic receptor, and desensitization of the nicotinic receptor. Pharmacokinetics of these drugs are dose-independent and have similar volumes of distribution at steady state (0.4-0.6 L/kg various doses). The t1/2 increases in the order of neostigmine, edrophonium, pyridostigmine, and ambenonium. Inhibitory constants of ChE inhibitors to bovine erythrocyte AChE determined in vitro were 2019, 276, 26, and 3.7 nM for edrophonium, pyridostigmine, neostigmine, and ambenonium, respectively. The effect of ChE inhibitor was monitored as the increase of developed tension of triceps muscle induced by sciatic nerve stimulation. The maximum value of contractile tension after i.v. administration decreased at high doses of each drug and the dose-response curves were biphasic. Time courses of plasma concentration and contractile muscle tension were modeled to estimate the association/dissociation rate constants to AChE and the nicotinic receptor, desensitization rate constant of receptor and the dissociation constant of acetylcholine (ACh) to nicotinic receptor/basal acetylcholine level ratio (Kd/ACh0). The estimated Kd/ACh0 values were not dependent on the drug. A significant correlation between inhibitory constants of ChE inhibitors to AChE estimated by in vivo pharmacodynamic analysis and those determined by an in vitro enzyme kinetic study was shown, while the relationship between dissociation constants to nicotinic receptor estimated by in vivo pharmacodynamic analysis and those measured by an in vitro binding study was not clear. Other process such as desensitisization induced by endogenous ACh diffusion rate of drugs into the synaptic cleft, action of presynaptic receptors, etc., might contribute to the dose-effect relationship of ChE inhibitors.

Comparative pharmacokinetics of four cholinesterase inhibitors in rats.

Pharmacokinetics of a very short-acting, a short-acting and two long-acting cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitors, edrophonium, neostigmine, pyridostigmine and ambenonium, respectively, were compared to elucidate the major determinant of their pharmacokinetics. No dose-dependency in pharmacokinetic behavior was observed within the range of 2-10 mumol/kg for edrophonium, 0.5-2 mumol/kg for pyridostigmine, 0.1-0.5 mumol/kg for neostigmine and 0.3-3 mumol/kg for ambenonium, respectively. Neostigmine has the shortest elimination half-life, and edrophonium, pyridostigmine and ambenonium follow in that. Four ChE inhibitors have similar Vdss values within the range of 0.3-0.7 l/kg, which is similar to the muscle/plasma concentration ratio of these drugs. The liver or kidney to plasma concentration ratio of all ChE inhibitors at 20min after i.v. administration ranged from 5 to 15. Small distribution volumes estimated from the plasma concentration profiles may reflect the distribution to muscle and to the extracellular space of other organs/tissues, while the rapid disappearance of ChE inhibitors from plasma may reflect the concentrative uptake to the liver and kidney.

Dose-response relationships for edrophonium and neostigmine antagonism of pipecuronium-induced neuromuscular block.

We have studied the dose-response relationships for neostigmine and edrophonium during antagonism of neuromuscular block induced by pipecuronium bromide. Fifty-six ASA physical status I or II adults were given pipecuronium 70 micrograms/kg during fentanylthiopental-nitrous oxide-halothane anesthesia. Train-of-four (TOF) stimulation was applied to the ulnar nerve every 10 s, and the force of contraction of the adductor pollicis muscle was recorded. When spontaneous recovery of first twitch height reached 20% of its initial control value, edrophonium (0.125, 0.25, 0.75, or 1 mg/kg) or neostigmine (0.015, 0.03, 0.045, or 0.06 mg/kg) was administered by random allocation. Neuromuscular function in another seven subjects was allowed to recover spontaneously. This study demonstrated that the dose-response curves for these two drugs for reversal of first twitch and TOF ratio were not parallel. The doses of neostigmine required to achieve 50% (ED50) and 80% (ED80) recovery of the first twitch after 10 min were 8.5 (7.3-9.7) and 17.4 (16.2-18.7) microgram/kg [mean (95% confidence intervals)], respectively. Corresponding ED50 and ED80 values for endrophonium were 84.1 (72.9-96.9) and 233 (215.7-253.3) microgram/kg, respectively. These values corresponded to neostigmine:edrophonium potency ratios of 9.89 (7.4-12.3) and 13.4 (11.8-14.9) for first twitch ED50 and ED80 height, respectively. The calculated doses producing 50% (ED50) recovery of the TOF ratio at 10 min were 18.8 (17.5-20.2) and 271.3 (246.5-298.6) microgram/kg for neostigmine and edrophonium, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of edrophonium in elderly surgical patients.

The effect of age (over 70 yr) on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of edrophonium was evaluated in seven patients aged 76-87 yr and in seven patients aged 27-57 yr. When elderly patients were compared with younger controls, the elderly exhibited a statistically significant decreased plasma clearance (5.9 +/- 2 versus 12.1 +/- 4 mL.kg-1.min-1) and a prolonged elimination half-life (84.2 +/- 17 versus 56.6 +/- 16 min). Pharmacodynamically, a higher concentration of edrophonium is required in elderly patients to produce the same effect as in the younger controls. This observation may be explained in part by changes in neuromuscular transmission that are a function of the aging process. In addition, even though plasma concentrations were significantly greater at every sampling point in the elderly than the younger group, there was no difference between either the maximum duration or the total duration of action of edrophonium in the two groups. The maximum duration of action of edrophonium in both groups was very brief (1.3-2.2 min). These results contrast with a previous study of the anticholinesterases neostigmine and pyridostigmine, in which the action of these drugs was significantly prolonged in elderly patients. Explanations for the observed differences between edrophonium and other anticholinesterases may relate to differences in chemical structure and the possibility that edrophonium produces antagonism of neuromuscular blockade by a different mechanism than neostigmine or pyridostigmine.