Methemoglobin formation by hydroxylamine metabolites of sulfamethoxazole and dapsone: implications for differences in adverse drug reactions. (1/317)

Differences in the incidence of adverse drug reactions to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and dapsone may result from differences in the formation, disposition, toxicity, and/or detoxification of their hydroxylamine metabolites. In this study, we examine whether differences in the biochemical processing of sulfamethoxazole hydroxylamine (SMX-NOH) and dapsone hydroxylamine (DDS-NOH) by erythrocytes [red blood cells (RBCs)] contribute to this differential incidence. The methemoglobin (MetHgb)-forming capacity of both metabolites was compared after a 60-min incubation with washed RBCs from four healthy human volunteers. DDS-NOH was significantly more potent (P =.004) but equally efficacious with SMX-NOH in its ability to form MetHgb. The elimination of potential differences in disposition by lysing RBCs did not change the MetHgb-forming potency of either hydroxylamine. At pharmacologically relevant concentrations, greater reduction to the parent amine occurred with DDS-NOH. Maintenance of MetHgb-forming potency was dependent on recycling with glutathione, but no difference in cycling efficiency was observed between DDS-NOH and SMX-NOH. In contrast, the pharmacodynamics of hydroxylamine-induced MetHgb formation were not changed by pretreatment with the glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase inhibitor epiandrosterone or by compounds that alter normal antioxidant enzyme activity. Methylene blue, which stimulates NADPH-dependent MetHgb reductase activity, decreased MetHgb levels but did not alter the differential potency of these hydroxylamines. DDS-NOH was also significantly more potent when incubated with purified human hemoglobin A0. Collectively, these data suggest that the inherently greater reactivity of DDS-NOH with hemoglobin, the greater conversion of DDS-NOH to its parent amine, and potential differences in disposition of hydroxylamine metabolites may contribute to the preferential development of dapsone-induced hemotoxicity and sulfamethoxazole-induced hypersensitivity reactions.  (+info)

A case of methemoglobinemia after ingestion of an aphrodisiac, later proven as dapsone. (2/317)

Methemoglobin (MetHb) is an oxidation product of hemoglobin in which the sixth coordination position of ferric iron is bound to a water molecule or to a hydroxyl group. The most common cause of acquired MetHb-emia is accidental poisoning which usually is the result of ingestion of water containing nitrates or food containing nitrite, and sometimes the inhalation or ingestion of butyl or amyl nitrite used as an aphrodisiac. We herein report a case of MetHb-emia after ingestion of an aphrodisiac, later identified as dapsone by gas chromatograph/mass selective detector (GC/MSD). A 24-year old male was admitted due to cyanosis after ingestion of a drug purchased as an aphrodisiac. On arterial blood gas analysis, pH was 7.32, PaCO2 26.8 mmHg, PaO2 75.6 mmHg, and bicarbonate 13.9 mmol/L. Initial pulse oxymetry was 89%. With 3 liter of nasal oxygen supplement, oxygen saturation was increased to 90-92%, but cyanosis did not disappear. Despite continuous supplement of oxygen, cyanosis was not improved. On the fifth hospital day, MetHb was 24.9%. Methylene blue was administered (2 mg/kg intravenously) and the patient rapidly improved. We proved the composition of aphrodisiac as dapsone by the method of GC/MSD.  (+info)

Pharmacokinetics of dapsone administered daily and weekly in human immunodeficiency virus-infected children. (3/317)

Although dapsone is a commonly used alternative agent for prophylaxis against Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in children intolerant to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, there are few data that describe dapsone pharmacokinetics in children. We studied dapsone pharmacokinetics in 30 children (median age, 2.8 years; age range, 0. 3 to 12 years) receiving a new proprietary liquid preparation by three dosing regimens (1 mg/kg of body weight daily, 2 mg/kg daily, or 4 mg/kg weekly). Dosing of children with 2 mg/kg daily or 4 mg/kg weekly resulted in peak concentrations equivalent to those reached in adults receiving 100-mg tablets daily. For the entire population, the median half-life was 22.2 h (range, 7.1 to 40.3 h), the median oral clearance was 0.0365 liter/kg/h (range, 0.0104 to 0.1021 liter/kg/h), and the median oral apparent volume of distribution was 1.13 liters/kg (range, 0.50 to 2.32 liters/kg). The median dapsone oral clearance was significantly increased in those infants less than 2 years of age compared to the oral clearance in those over 2 years of age (0.0484 versus 0.0278 liter/kg/h; P = 0.011). These data suggest that absorption of this liquid preparation is adequate and that the concentrations in the sera of children receiving 2 mg/kg daily or 4 mg/kg weekly are equivalent to those seen in adults receiving standard dapsone dosing. Dapsone oral clearance appears to be increased in children under 2 years of age.  (+info)

Pneumocystis carinii dihydropteroate synthase but not dihydrofolate reductase gene mutations correlate with prior trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole or dapsone use. (4/317)

Recent studies of the human Pneumocystis carinii dihydropteroate synthase (DHPS) gene suggest that P. carinii is developing resistance to sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and dapsone. To explore whether P. carinii is also developing resistance to trimethoprim (TMP), the human P. carinii dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) gene was cloned, DHFR and DHPS genes in 37 P. carinii isolates from 35 patients were sequenced, and the relationship between TMP-SMX or dapsone use and gene mutations was analyzed. The DHFR gene sequences were identical in all isolates except 1 with a synonymous substitution. In contrast, the DHPS gene sequences showed mutations in 16 of the 37 isolates; prior sulfa/sulfone prophylaxis was associated with the presence of these mutations (P<.001). In addition to suggesting that there is less selective pressure on DHFR than on DHPS, this study reinforces the hypothesis that mutations in the DHPS gene are likely involved in the development of sulfa resistance in P. carinii.  (+info)

Is hydroxylamine-induced cytotoxicity a valid marker for hypersensitivity reactions to sulfamethoxazole in human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals? (5/317)

Hypersensitivity (HS) reactions to sulfonamides and sulfones continue to limit their use in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals. In vitro cytotoxicity of hydroxylamine metabolites toward peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) has been proposed as a marker for these HS reactions. To test the validity of this in vitro system, we determined the selective susceptibility of PBMCs from HIV-infected patients to the cytotoxic effects of hydroxylamine metabolites of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and dapsone (DDS). Concentration-cytotoxic response data were collected using PBMCs from 12 sulfa-HS (10 SMX-HS and 2 SMX/DDS-HS) and 10 sulfa-tolerant HIV-infected individuals. Although sulfamethoxazole hydroxylamine (SMX-NOH) and dapsone hydroxylamine (DDS-NOH) both caused concentration-dependent increases in cell death, DDS-NOH was significantly more potent in each subject (P <.0001). A comparison of a variety of mean data for sulfa-HS and -tolerant patient populations failed to demonstrate the increased susceptibility of PBMCs from HS patients, noted by others, to either SMX-NOH or DDS-NOH. Moreover, any trend toward an increased susceptibility of PBMCs from HS patients was eliminated when adjusted for control cell death. PBMCs from sulfa-HS patients showed significantly greater susceptibility to the stress of short term in vitro incubation (P <. 02). Mean (S.D.) vehicle control cell death values were 24.1% (7.6%) for HS patients and 17.1% (4.4%) for tolerant patients. No significant correlation was observed between hydroxylamine-induced or control cell death and any of the recorded clinical parameters. Although several potential reasons are proposed to explain the disparity with past investigations, the data suggest that in vitro cytotoxicity is not a valid marker for HS reactions in HIV-infected individuals using currently accepted experimental procedures.  (+info)

High rates of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in allogeneic blood and marrow transplant recipients receiving dapsone prophylaxis. (6/317)

Chemoprophylaxis for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) is routinely given after allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation. We evaluated the effectiveness of dapsone prophylaxis (50 mg orally twice daily, 3 times per week) compared with twice-weekly trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMZ) in preventing PCP after allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation. Patients included all (n=646) who received allogeneic blood or marrow transplants between 1 September 1993 and 31 December 1996 who survived at least 100 days after transplantation. A cohort of 111 dapsone recipients was compared with the remaining 535 who received TMP-SMZ. Ten patients developed PCP; 8 were taking dapsone. PCP incidence in the TMP-SMZ cohort was 0.37% versus 7.2% for dapsone. The relative risk for PCP associated with dapsone use was 18.8 (P<.001) and was not accounted for by age, clinical extensive chronic graft-versus-host disease, donor source, or malignant relapse. Dapsone prophylaxis at this dosage is associated with significantly higher rates of PCP than is TMP-SMZ after allogeneic marrow transplantation. We advise caution in prescribing alternatives to TMP-SMZ prophylaxis in this setting.  (+info)

Dihydropteroate synthase of Mycobacterium leprae and dapsone resistance. (7/317)

Two Mycobacterium leprae genes, folP1 and folP2, encoding putative dihydropteroate synthases (DHPS), were studied for enzymatic activity and for the presence of mutations associated with dapsone resistance. Each gene was cloned and expressed in a folP knockout mutant of Escherichia coli (C600DeltafolP::Km(r)). Expression of M. leprae folP1 in C600DeltafolP::Km(r) conferred growth on a folate-deficient medium, and bacterial lysates exhibited DHPS activity. This recombinant displayed a 256-fold-greater sensitivity to dapsone (measured by the MIC) than wild-type E. coli C600, and 50-fold less dapsone was required to block (expressed as the 50% inhibitory concentration [IC(50)]) the DHPS activity of this recombinant. When the folP1 genes of several dapsone-resistant M. leprae clinical isolates were sequenced, two missense mutations were identified. One mutation occurred at codon 53, substituting an isoleucine for a threonine residue (T53I) in the DHPS-1, and a second mutation occurred in codon 55, substituting an arginine for a proline residue (P55R). Transformation of the C600DeltafolP::Km(r) knockout with plasmids carrying either the T53I or the P55R mutant allele did not substantially alter the DHPS activity compared to levels produced by recombinants containing wild-type M. leprae folP1. However, both mutations increased dapsone resistance, with P55R having the greatest affect on dapsone resistance by increasing the MIC 64-fold and the IC(50) 68-fold. These results prove that the folP1 of M. leprae encodes a functional DHPS and that mutations within this gene are associated with the development of dapsone resistance in clinical isolates of M. leprae. Transformants created with M. leprae folP2 did not confer growth on the C600DeltafolP::Km(r) knockout strain, and DNA sequences of folP2 from dapsone-susceptible and -resistant M. leprae strains were identical, indicating that this gene does not encode a functional DHPS and is not involved in dapsone resistance in M. leprae.  (+info)

Molecular evidence of greater selective pressure for drug resistance exerted by the long-acting antifolate Pyrimethamine/Sulfadoxine compared with the shorter-acting chlorproguanil/dapsone on Kenyan Plasmodium falciparum. (8/317)

Pyrimethamine (PM) plus sulfadoxine (SD) is the last remaining affordable drug for treating uncomplicated malaria in Africa. The selective pressure exerted by the slowly eliminated combination PM/SD was compared with that exerted by the more rapidly eliminated combination chlorproguanil/dapsone (CPG/Dap) on Kenyan Plasmodium falciparum. Point mutations were analyzed in dihydrofolate reductase and dihydropteroate synthase and in the genetic diversity of 3 genes in isolates collected before and after CPG/Dap and PM/SD treatments. PM/SD was associated strongly with the disappearance of fully drug-sensitive parasites and with a significant increase in the prevalence of resistant parasites in subsequent parasitemias. However, this was not a characteristic of treatment with CPG/Dap. Moreover, most of the patients who returned with recrudescent infections were in the PM/SD-treated group. The data predict a longer useful therapeutic life for CPG/Dap than for PM/SD, and, thus, CPG/Dap is a preferable alternative for treatment of chloroquine-resistant falciparum malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.  (+info)