Metabolism and Excretion Flashcards
define elimination
irreversible loss of drug from the body
metabolism
conversion of a drug to a metabolite
excretion
removal of drugs (chemically unchanged or metabolites) from the body
main site of metabolism
liver
main site of excretion
kidney
aim of metabolism
to make drug more water soluble and polar to be easily excreted.
if the drug is already polar…
doesnt need changing
what is a prodrug and give an example
inactive when administered but made more active by metabolism in the liver
e.g., aspirin is converted to salicylic acid.
first pass effect
occurs for oral drugs and is when drugs are metabolised by the liver after entering the gut by the hepatic portal vein. This reduces the drug available in the systemic circulation so there is a decrease in bioavailability.
Gut -> Hepatic portal vein -> liver
where else can first pass metabolism occur
in the gut by gut enzymes and the microbiota.
bypassing first pass effect
giving the drug by sublingual and buccal routes.
enterohepatic circulation
when drugs are metabolised by liver and bile and enter the gut but then reenter the liver for metabolism
compounds undergoing enterohepatic circulation
hormones eg oestrogen, NSAIDs
what do Abx do in relation to enterohepatic circulation
antibiotics that kill gut bacteria often reduce enterohepatic drug circulation and this requires a temporary increase of the drug’s dose until the antibiotic use is discontinued and the gut repopulates with bacteria.
do the 2 phases of drug metabolism act sequentially or independently
both
what are the phases of drug metabolism in the liver
Phase I
-Functionalisation reactions.
-Examples include oxidation, reduction and hydrolysis.
-Primarily mediated by CYP enzymes: 3A4, 2D6, and 1A2.
-Aim = make drug more water soluble so it be easily excreted by the liver
Phase II
-Detoxification reaction by conjugation
-Aim = Sometimes the metabolites from phase I are more toxic so phase II removes this and makes drug even more water soluble if needed.
-Examples include acetylation, methylation and sulfoconjugation, glucuronidation.
-Must have amino, hydroxyl or thiol group for conjugate to attach to.
what 3 groups do conjugates attach to in phase II
amino, hydroxyl or thiol
metabolism of aspirin
Phase I = hydrolysis to salicylic acid by esterases
Phase II = glucuronidation by UGT (UDP-glucuronosyltransferases)
why is aspirin administered and not salicyclic acid
because it causes GI irritation
more about CYP enzymes
450 nm wavelength.
family of haem containing monooxygenases.
Lungs have CYP enzymes and some are more highly expressed in lungs than liver e.g. enzymes capable of prostenoid metabolism
inhibition/induction of CYP enzymes:
grapefruit juice inhibits CYP3A4
St johns wort, cigarettes and brussel sprouts induce CYP3A4.
other phase I enzymes apart from CYP
Monoamine oxidase – inactivates biologically active amines
gut has microbiota and gut enzymes
alcohol is metabolised by alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase and CYP2E1.
What does long term alcohol exposure do to the alcohol metabolising enzymes?
Acetaldehyde (metabolite of alcohol dehydrogenase) causes liver toxicity. Body deals with it by increasing expression of alcohol dehydrogenase. This increases the body’s tolerance to alcohol. Alcohol also damages liver.