Inhibition of P‐glycoprotein enhances transport of imipramine across the blood–brain barrier: microdialysis studies in conscious freely moving rats

• Published in: British journal of pharmacology 2012-06, Vol.166 (4), p.1333-1343
• Main Authors: O'Brien, FE, Clarke, G, Fitzgerald, P, Dinan, TG, Griffin, BT, Cryan, JF
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Animals; antidepressant; Antidepressants; Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic - administration & dosage; Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic - blood; Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic - metabolism; Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic - pharmacokinetics; ATP-Binding Cassette, Sub-Family B, Member 1 - antagonists & inhibitors; Biological and medical sciences; Biotransformation - drug effects; Blood-brain barrier; Blood-Brain Barrier - drug effects; Blood-Brain Barrier - metabolism; Cyclosporine - pharmacology; Depression; desipramine; Desipramine - blood; Desipramine - metabolism; Drug Interactions; Drug therapy; Extracellular Fluid - metabolism; Half-Life; imipramine; Imipramine - administration & dosage; Imipramine - blood; Imipramine - metabolism; Imipramine - pharmacokinetics; Injections, Intravenous; Male; Medical sciences; Metabolic Clearance Rate - drug effects; Microdialysis; Mood disorders; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Prefrontal Cortex - metabolism; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; P‐glycoprotein; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Research Papers; Tissue Distribution - drug effects; treatment‐resistant depression; Verapamil - pharmacology
• ISSN: 0007-1188; 1476-5381
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.2012.01858.x

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Recent studies indicate that efflux of antidepressants by the multidrug resistance transporter P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp) at the blood–brain barrier (BBB) may contribute to treatment‐resistant depression (TRD) by limiting intracerebral antidepressant concentrations. In addition, clinical experience shows that adjunctive treatment with the P‐gp inhibitor verapamil may improve the clinical outcome in TRD. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of P‐gp inhibition on the transport of the tricyclic antidepressant imipramine and its active metabolite desipramine across the BBB. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Intracerebral microdialysis in rats was used to monitor brain levels of imipramine and desipramine following i.v. imipramine administration, with or without pretreatment with one of the P‐gp inhibitors verapamil or cyclosporin A (CsA). Plasma drug levels were also determined at regular intervals. KEY RESULTS Pretreatment with either verapamil or CsA resulted in significant increases in imipramine concentrations in the microdialysis samples, without altering imipramine plasma pharmacokinetics. Furthermore, pretreatment with verapamil, but not CsA, led to a significant elevation in plasma and brain levels of desipramine. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS The present study demonstrated that P‐gp inhibition enhanced the intracerebral concentration of imipramine , thus supporting the hypothesis that P‐gp activity restricts brain levels of certain antidepressants, including imipramine. These findings may help to explain reports of a beneficial response to adjunctive therapy with verapamil in TRD.