PK: Drug Excretion Flashcards
2 ways drugs are eliminated
Metabolism
Excretion
Absorption vs elimination phase during the time post-ingestion

6 routes for drug excretion // elimination
- Renal
- Biliary/gastrointestinal
- Pulmonary
- Skin
- Mammary - drug delivery to baby
- Salivary - drug monitoring
Name 3 renal processes that account for renal drug excretion
Glomerular filtration
Active tubular secretion
Passive reabsorption across tubular epithelium

What passes through glomerular filtration
Molecules less than 20 kDa filtered i.e. enter filtrate
Protein bound drugs or not filtered (plasma albumin 68 kDa)
What is tubular secretion
What compounds does it apply to
MOA
Active carrier mediated elimination
secretory mechanisms for both acidic and basic compounds
can transport against electrochemical gradient and when the drug protein is bound
Describe reabsorption
What drugs does it apply to
Passive diffusion back across the tubular epithelium
Lipid soluble drugs with a high tubular permeability are excreted slowly
- polar water soluble drugs remain in the urine
- pH partitioning is relevant

Generally, what is renal excretion most important for
Low MW polar substances
GLOMERULAR FILTRATION
What drugs does it allow to cross
What is it affected by
What is GFR
- Free drug in plasma (unbound) if use across capillary membrane into filtrate in Bowman’s capsule
- Large drugs > 20,000 Da retarded
- Not affected by pH or lipid solubility
- GFR = 120ml/min (movement into Bowman’s capsule
ACTIVE TUBULAR SECRETION
What % of plasma is unfiltered in glomerulus
How are drugs transported to lumen
Give an example
- 80% plasma is unfiltered in glomerulus
- 2 carrier systems transport drugs to lumen
- 1 carries acid drugs, other carries bases
- Carried against electrochemical gradient
- e.g. penicillin
- Not dependent on PP binding
- Carrier removes free drug and alters equilbrium

Give an example of competition with regard to active tubular secretion
Probenecid inhibits tubular secretion
What is reabsorbed in distal tubule
What is this reabsorption limited by
- Water is greatly reabsorbed
- 99% of filtered drug is reabsorbed passively
- Lipophilic drugs cross passively - easily
- Polar (metabolised) drugs stay in lumen and are excreted
- Reabsorption is limited by pH trapping
Define renal clearance
Volume of plasma, containing amount of substance that is eliminated by the kidney per unit time
Cp = plasma conc
Cu = urinary conc
Vu = rate of urine flow

Variation in renal clearance for different drugs
< 1ml/min to theoretical max of 700 ml/min
How is the theoretical max of renal clearance measured
PAH clearance (nearly 100%)
How to know if a substance will be secreted or reabsorbed
Baseline renal clearance = f*GFR
If actual renal drug clearance is GREATER than f*GFR, the drug must be secreted
If actual renal clearance is LESS than f*GFR, it must be reabsorbed

What significantly limits the time course of action of the drug at its targets
Drug clearance
If hepatic blood flow is 800 ml/min and 10% of the drug is metabolised by hepatic enzymes with each passage through the liver, what will be the rate of clearance of the drug from the blood
80 ml/min of blood cleared of the drug
Define total body clearance
Sum of all the different clearance processes occurring for a given drug
What would a short half-life result from
Rapid metabolism
Rapid excretion
What would a long half-life result from
Extensive plasma protein binding
Slow metabolism
Poor excretion
IV vs oral administration

IV administration on a semilog plot

2 parameters Plasma t1/2 is determined by
Activity of metabolising enzymes or excretion mechanisms - clearance
Distribution of drug between blood into tissues - high Vd (drug mainly located in tissue) results in prolonged t1/2














