Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
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Clin. Pharmacol. Ther. · Dec 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialRole of P-glycoprotein in the intestinal absorption and clinical effects of morphine.
There is considerable and unexplained individual variability in the morphine dose-effect relationship. The efflux pump P-glycoprotein regulates brain access and intestinal absorption of numerous drugs. Morphine is a P-glycoprotein substrate in vitro, and P-glycoprotein affects morphine brain access and pharmacodynamics in animals. However, the role of P-glycoprotein in human morphine disposition and clinical effects is unknown. This investigation tested the hypothesis that plasma concentrations and clinical effects of oral and intravenous morphine are greater after inhibition of intestinal and brain P-glycoprotein, with the P-glycoprotein inhibitor quinidine used as an in vivo probe. ⋯ Quinidine increased the absorption and plasma concentrations of oral morphine, suggesting that intestinal P-glycoprotein affected the absorption, bioavailability, and, hence, clinical effects of oral morphine. However, quinidine had no effect on morphine concentration-effect relationships, suggesting that if quinidine is an effective inhibitor of brain P-glycoprotein then P-glycoprotein did not appear to have a significant effect on brain access of morphine.