STUDIES ON THE CHEMOTHERAPY OF THE HUMAN MALARIAS. II. METHOD FOR THE QUANTITATIVE ASSAY OF SUPPRESSIVE ANTIMALARIAL ACTION IN FALCIPARUM MALARIA

Click Inspired Synthesis of Novel Cinchonidine Glycoconjugates as Promising Plasmepsin Inhibitors

Among all the malaria parasites, P. falciparum is the most predominant species which has developed drug resistance against most of the commercial anti-malarial drugs. Thus, finding a new molecule for the inhibition of enzymes of P. falciparum is the pharmacological challenge in present era. Herein, ten novel molecules have been designed with an amalgamation of cinchonidine, carbohydrate moiety and triazole ring by utilizing copper-catalyzed click reaction of cinchonidine-derived azide and clickable glycosyl alkynes. The molecular docking of developed molecules showed promising results for plasmepsin inhibition in the form of effective binding with target proteins.

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic considerations in antimalarial dose optimization

Antimalarial drugs have usually been first deployed in areas of malaria endemicity at doses which were too low, particularly for high-risk groups such as young children and pregnant women. This may accelerate the emergence and spread of resistance, thereby shortening the useful life of the drug, but it is an inevitable consequence of the current imprecise method of dose finding. An alternative approach to dose finding is suggested in which phase 2 studies concentrate initially on pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) characterization and in vivo calibration of in vitro susceptibility information. PD assessment is facilitated in malaria because serial parasite densities are readily assessed by microscopy, and at low densities by quantitative PCR, so that initial therapeutic responses can be quantitated accurately. If the in vivo MIC could be characterized early in phase 2 studies, it would provide a sound basis for the choice of dose in all target populations in subsequent combination treatments. Population PK assessments in phase 2b and phase 3 studies which characterize PK differences between different age groups, clinical disease states, and human populations can then be combined with the PK-PD observations to provide a sound evidence base for dose recommendations in different target groups.

Population pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of intramuscular quinine in Tanzanian children with severe Falciparum malaria

Although artesunate is clearly superior, parenteral quinine is still used widely for the treatment of severe malaria. A loading-dose regimen has been recommended for 30 years but is still often not used. A population pharmacokinetic study was conducted with 75 Tanzanian children aged 4 months to 8 years with severe malaria who received quinine intramuscularly; 69 patients received a loading dose of 20 mg quinine dihydrochloride (salt)/kg of body weight. Twenty-one patients had plasma quinine concentrations detectable at baseline. A zero-order absorption model with one-compartment disposition pharmacokinetics described the data adequately. Body weight was the only significant covariate and was implemented as an allometric function on clearance and volume parameters. Population pharmacokinetic parameter estimates (and percent relative standard errors [%RSE]) of elimination clearance, central volume of distribution, and duration of zero-order absorption were 0.977 liters/h (6.50%), 16.7 liters (6.39%), and 1.42 h (21.5%), respectively, for a typical patient weighing 11 kg. Quinine exposure was reduced at lower body weights after standard weight-based dosing; there was 18% less exposure over 24 h in patients weighing 5 kg than in those weighing 25 kg. Maximum plasma concentrations after the loading dose were unaffected by body weight. There was no evidence of dose-related drug toxicity with the loading dosing regimen. Intramuscular quinine is rapidly and reliably absorbed in children with severe falciparum malaria. Based on these pharmacokinetic data, a loading dose of 20 mg salt/kg is recommended, provided that no loading dose was administered within 24 h and no routine dose was administered within 12 h of admission. (This study has been registered with Current Controlled Trials under registration number ISRCTN 50258054.).

Quinine pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic relationships in uncomplicated falciparum malaria

The relationships between the pharmacokinetic properties of quinine during a 7-day treatment course and the therapeutic response were studied in 30 adult patients with uncomplicated falciparum malaria monitored for > or = 28 days. All patients received a 7-day oral quinine regimen either alone (n = 22) or in combination with rifampin (n = 8). The median fever clearance time was 58.5 h, and the mean +/- standard deviation parasite clearance time was 73 +/- 24 h. After recovery, six patients had recrudescences of Plasmodium falciparum malaria and seven had delayed appearances of P. vivax infection between days 16 and 23. Between the patients with and without recrudescences, there were no significant differences either in fever clearance time or parasite clearance time or in the overall pharmacokinetics of quinine and 3-hydroxyquinine. Patients for whom the area under the concentration-time curve from 3 to 7 days for quinine in plasma was <20 microg.day/ml had a relative risk of 5.3 (95% confidence interval = 1.6 to 17.7) of having a subsequent recrudescence of infection (P = 0.016). Modeling of these data suggested an average minimum parasiticidal concentration of quinine in plasma of 3.4 microg/ml and an MIC of 0.7 microg/ml for uncomplicated falciparum malaria in Thailand. To ensure a cure, the minimum parasiticidal concentration must be exceeded during four asexual cycles (>6 days).

Management of HIV-infected pregnant patients in malaria-endemic areas: therapeutic and safety considerations in concomitant use of antiretroviral and antimalarial agents

Chemotherapy in pregnancy is an intricate process requiring prudent use of pharmacologic agents. Malarial infection during pregnancy is often fatal, and prophylaxis against the causative parasite necessitates rational therapeutic intervention. Various agents have been used for prophylaxis against malaria during pregnancy, including chloroquine, mefloquine, proguanil, pyrimethamine, and pyrimethamine-sulfadoxine. Use of these agents has been based on a risk-benefit criterion, without appropriate toxicologic or teratologic evaluation. Some of the aforementioned prophylactic agents have been shown to alter glutathione levels and may exacerbate the oxidation-reduction imbalance attendant on HIV infection. HIV-infected patients traveling to or residing in malaria-endemic areas require protection from malarial infection to avoid placing themselves in double jeopardy. Zidovudine (AZT) is recommended for the prevention of vertical transmission of HIV-1 from mother to child. Other agents, such as lamivudine alone or in combination with AZT, nevirapine, or the HIV-1 protease inhibitors, are either being considered or are currently undergoing trials for use in preventing vertical transmission of HIV-1 or managing HIV infection in infants and children. Although the potential for antimalarial agents to cause congenital malformations is low when they are used alone, their ability to cause problems when combined with antiretroviral drugs needs to be evaluated. In developing countries that have high birth rates, a high endemicity of malaria, and alarming rates of new cases of HIV, prophylaxis against both diseases with combination agents during pregnancy is a challenge.

Antiarrhythmic activity of quinine in humans

BACKGROUND

Quinine is the diastereomer of quinidine. In dogs, it has similar effects on conduction time but does not prolong epicardial repolarization time or ventricular refractoriness. It has antiarrhythmic effects in both cats and dogs. We assessed the antiarrhythmic potential of quinine in suppressing ventricular arrhythmias in humans.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Patients underwent open-label, dose-ranging trials of quinine with daily doses of 600, 1200, and 1800 mg in a twice-daily dosing regimen. In 17 patients with frequent spontaneous ventricular ectopy, oral quinine suppressed arrhythmia in 11 of 12 patients who finished the study and was not tolerated by 4 patients, and 1 patient withdrew from the study. The mean effective daily dosage was 927 mg, the mean effective trough serum level was 11 mumol/L (range, 4 to 17 mumol/L), and the half-life was 20 +/- 7 hours. In a second open-label, dose-ranging trial in 10 patients with inducible ventricular tachycardia and reduced left ventricular systolic function (left ventricular ejection fraction, 35 +/- 16%), quinine suppressed inducibility of ventricular tachycardia in 3 of 10 patients. At a basic pacing cycle length of 500 milliseconds, ventricular effective refractory period was prolonged (279 +/- 21 versus 247 +/- 10 milliseconds, quinine versus drug free, P = .003). In the remaining patients, ventricular tachycardia cycle length was prolonged (373 +/- 48 versus 253 +/- 30 milliseconds, quinine versus drug free, P < .001). The corrected QT interval was not prolonged.

CONCLUSIONS

Quinine is an effective and convenient antiarrhythmic drug for the suppression of ventricular arrhythmias in humans.

Clinical pharmacokinetics of antimalarial drugs

For the past 300 years antimalarial dosage regimens have not been based on pharmacokinetic information. However, now that this information is available, it is appropriate to examine current recommendations for prophylaxis and treatment. In healthy subjects, the cinchona alkaloids (quinine and quinidine), primaquine and proguanil (chloroguanide) are all rapidly eliminated with half-lives (t1/2 beta) of between 6 and 12 hours. Hepatic biotransformation accounts for approximately 80, 96 and 50% of their total clearance, respectively. In malaria, the pharmacokinetic properties of quinine and quinidine are significantly altered with a decrease in the apparent volume of distribution (Vd), prolongation of the elimination half-life, and a reduction in systemic clearance (CL) that is proportional to the severity of infection. Red cell concentrations and plasma protein binding are both increased in severe disease. Parenteral quinine or quinidine should be given by slow intravenous infusion rather than by intravenous or intramuscular injection, and a loading dose is necessary in severe infections. Chloroquine (t1/2 beta 6 to 50 days) and mefloquine (t1/2 beta 6.5 to 33 days) have extensive tissue distribution and prolonged activity after a single dose. Both drugs are concentrated in erythrocytes and 55% of chloroquine and 98% of mefloquine in plasma is bound to protein. The pharmacokinetics of chloroquine are complex and, because of the extremely long beta phase, difficult to accurately define. Pyrimethamine (t1/2 35 to 175 hours) has more limited tissue distribution, plasma and erythrocyte concentrations are similar, and 85% of the drug in plasma is bound to plasma proteins. The clearance of quinine, mefloquine and pyrimethamine appears to be higher in children than in adults. Currently, most of the information available on disposition of antimalarial drugs in humans is derived from studies in healthy adult subjects. More information is required on their pharmacokinetics in malaria, pregnancy, and in young children.