RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Metabolic Profiling and Cytochrome P450 Reaction Phenotyping of Medroxyprogesterone Acetate JF Drug Metabolism and Disposition JO Drug Metab Dispos FD American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics SP 2292 OP 2298 DO 10.1124/dmd.108.022525 VO 36 IS 11 A1 Jiang-Wei Zhang A1 Yong Liu A1 Jiu-Yang Zhao A1 Li-Ming Wang A1 Guang-Bo Ge A1 Yang Gao A1 Wei Li A1 Hong-Tao Liu A1 Hui-Xin Liu A1 Yan-Yan Zhang A1 Jie Sun A1 Ling Yang YR 2008 UL http://dmd.aspetjournals.org/content/36/11/2292.abstract AB Medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) is one of the most frequently prescribed progestins for conception, hormone replacement therapy, and adjuvant endocrine therapy. MPA has a low oral bioavailability because of extensive metabolism; however, its metabolism was poorly documented. This study was intended to profile the phase I metabolites of MPA and the cytochrome P450 (P450) isoforms involved. After MPA was incubated with human liver microsomes and the NADPH-generating system, five main metabolites (namely M-1, M-2, M-3, M-4, and M-5) were isolated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Three major metabolites (M-2, M-4, and M-3) were tentatively identified to be 6β-, 2β-, and 1β-hydroxy MPA by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance. By consecutive metabolism of purified M-2, M-3, and M-4, M-1 and M-5 were proposed to be 2β-, 6β-dihydroxy MPA, and 1,2-dehydro MPA, respectively. CYP3A4 was identified to be the isoform primarily involved in the formation of M-2, M-3, and M-4 in studies with specific P450 inhibitors, recombinant P450s, and correlation analysis. Rat and minipig liver microsomes were included evaluating species differences, and the results showed little difference among the species. In human liver microsomes, the Km values ranged from 10.0 to 11.2 μM, and the Vm values ranged from 194 to 437 pmol/min/mg for M-2, M-3, and M-4. In conclusion, CYP3A4 was the major P450 isoform involved in MPA hydroxylation, with 6β, 2β, and 1β being the possible hydroxylation sites. Minipig and rat could be the surrogate models for man in MPA pharmacokinetic studies. The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics