The pharmacokinetics of oral carbamazepine in rats dosed using an automated drug delivery system

Objective Pharmacokinetics (PK) of antiseizure drugs differ considerably between rats and humans. Rodents require larger and more frequent doses to maintain therapeutic drug levels. This study uses the antiseizure drug (ASD) carbamazepine (CBZ) to validate the application of a previously described automated drug delivery system for delivering chronic oral medication to rats. Methods Treatment-naive, male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with oral CBZ, 75 mg/kg every 6 hours for 10 days, via the automated feeder. Blood samples were collected on day 0 (acute), day 2 (steady-state), and day 9 (chronic) and used to measure plasma CBZ and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide (CBZ-E) concentrations via high-performance liquid chromatography. The PK of CBZ and CBZ-E were modeled using Monolix v2018R1. The acute and chronic tolerability of CBZ was evaluated using the open field test. Results CBZ and CBZ-E concentrations were best described by a one-compartment parent-metabolite model with first-order absorption and elimination kinetics. Observed and predicted CBZ concentrations were maintained within the therapeutic window (4-12 mu g/mL) for the duration of the study. There was no change in open-field test activity following acute or chronic oral dosing of 75 mg/kg CBZ compared to a pretreatment baseline (P > 0.4). Significance Oral administration of CBZ dosed q.i.d. in rats using an automated drug delivery system results in therapeutic concentrations of CBZ and its active metabolite. This study represents the first PK validation for this previously described preclinical drug delivery system.