The role of metabolites in predicting drug-drug interactions: Focus on irreversible P450 inhibition

Irreversible inhibition of cytochrome P450 enzymes can cause significant drug-drug interactions (DDIs). Formation of metabolites is fundamental for the inactivation of P450 enzymes. Of the 19 inactivators with a known mechanism of inactivation, 10 have circulating metabolites that are known to be on path to inactive P450. The fact that inactivation usually requires multiple metabolic steps implies that predicting in vivo interactions may require complex models, and in vitro data generated from each metabolite. The data reviewed here suggest that circulating metabolites are much more important in in vivo P450 inhibition than is currently acknowledged.