Effect of carbamazepine on dolutegravir pharmacokinetics and dosing recommendation

Dolutegravir (DTG) is primarily metabolized by UGT1A1 with CYP3A as a minor route. Carbamazepine (CBZ) is a potent inducer of these enzymes; thus, the effect of oral extended-release CBZ on DTG pharmacokinetics (PK) was evaluated to provide dose recommendation when co-administered. This was a single-center, open-label, fixed-sequence, crossover study in healthy adults. Subjects received three treatments: DTG 50 mg every 24 h (q24h) x 5 days in period 1, followed by CBZ 100 mg every 12 h (q12h) x 3 days, then 200 mg q12h x 3 days, then 300 mg q12h x 10 days in period 2, and DTG 50 mg q24h + CBZ 300 mg q12h x 5 days in period 3. No washout intervals occurred. Each dose was administered with a moderate-fat meal. Serial PK samples for DTG were collected on day 5 of periods 1 and 3. Plasma DTG PK parameters were determined with non-compartmental analysis. Geometric least-squares mean ratios (GMRs) and 90 % confidence intervals (CIs) were generated by the mixed-effect model for within-subject treatment comparisons. Safety assessments were performed throughout the study. Sixteen subjects enrolled; 14 completed the study. CBZ significantly reduced DTG exposure: GMRs (90 % CI) for DTG + CBZ versus DTG alone were 0.51 (0.48-0.549), 0.67 (0.61-0.73), and 0.27 (0.24-0.31) for area under the curve from time zero to the end of the dosing interval (AUC(0-tau)), maximum observed plasma concentration (Cmax), and plasma concentration at the end of the dosing interval (C tau), respectively. DTG alone and co-administered with CBZ was well tolerated. Integrase strand transfer inhibitor-naive subjects taking CBZ should receive DTG 50 mg twice daily versus once daily, as is recommended with other potent UGT1A/CYP3A inducers. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01967771.