Objective: The aim of this study was to clarify the effect of genetic polymorphisms of CYP2C19 on the pharmacokinetics of phenobarbitone (PB) using a nonlinear mixed-effects model (NONMEM) analysis in Japanese adults with epilepsy.
Methods: A total of 144 serum PB concentrations were obtained from 74 subjects treated with both PB and phenytoin but without valproic acid. All patients were classified into three groups by CYP2C19 genotyping: G1, G2 and G3 were homozygous for the wild type of CYP2C19 (*1/*1), heterozygous extensive metabolizers (EMs), (*1/*2 or *1/*3), and poor metabolizers (PMs), (*2/*2, *2/*3), respectively. All data were analyzed using NONMEM to estimate pharmacokinetic parameters of PB with respect to the CYP2C19 genotype.
Results: Thirty-three patients belonged to G1 (44.6%), 35 to G2 (47.3%), and 6 to G3 (8.1%). The total clearance (CL) of PB significantly decreased by 18.8% in PMs (G3) relative to EMs (G1 and G2). The CL tended to be lower in G2 than in G1.
Conclusion: In this study, we first demonstrated the effect of the CYP2C19 polymorphism on pharmacokinetics of PB by genotyping. The contribution of other metabolic enzymes in the metabolism of PB in humans remains to be elucidated; however, it appears that the disposition of PB is mediated in part by this enzyme. The estimated population clearance values in the three genotype groups can be used to predict the PB dose required to achieve an appropriate serum concentration in an individual patient.