Abstract

Assessment of the pharmacokinetics of [¹⁴C]2-[3-[3-[(5-ethyl-4′-fluoro-2-hydroxy[1,1′-biphenyl]-4-yl)oxy]propoxy]-2-propylphenoxy-]benzoic acid ([¹⁴C]LY293111), an experimental anti-cancer agent, suggested long-lived circulating metabolites in rats. In vivo metabolites of LY293111 were examined in plasma, bile, urine, and feces of Fischer 344 (F344) rats after oral administration of [¹⁴C]LY293111. Metabolites were profiled by high-performance liquid chromatography-radiochromatography, and identified by liquid chromatography (LC)/mass spectrometry and LC/NMR. The major in vivo metabolites of LY293111 identified in rats were phenolic (ether), acyl, and bisglucuronides of LY293111. Measurement of radioactivity in rat plasma confirmed that a fraction of LY293111-derived material was irreversibly bound to plasma protein and that this bound fraction increased over time. This was consistent with the observed disparity in half-lives between LY293111 and total radioactivity in rats and monkeys, and is likely due to covalent modification of proteins by the acyl glucuronide. In vitro metabolism of [¹⁴C]LY293111 in liver slices from CD-1 mice, F344 rats, rhesus and cynomolgus monkeys, and humans indicates that glucuronidation was the primary metabolic pathway in all species. The acyl glucuronide was the most prevalent radioactive peak (16% of total ¹⁴C) produced by F344 rat slices, whereas the ether glucuronide was the major metabolite in all other species (26-36% of total ¹⁴C). Several minor hydroxylated metabolites were detected in F344 rat slice extracts but were not observed in other species. The data presented suggest that covalent modification of proteins by LY293111 acyl glucuronide is possible in multiple species, although the relative reactivity of this metabolite appears to be low compared with those known to cause adverse drug reactions.