Biochemical interaction of anti-HCV telaprevir with the ABC transporters P-glycoprotein and breast cancer resistance protein

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters P-glycoprotein (P-gp)/ABCB1 and breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP)/ABCG2 are involved in the intestinal absorption and renal excretion of various substrate drugs. Their activities affect sub-therapeutic drug concentrations and excretion of natural transporter substrates. The new oral anti-HCV drug telaprevir has dramatically improved the efficacy of hepatitis-C virus (HCV) treatment, and recent studies have suggested a possible pharmacological interaction between telaprevir and P-gp. We studied the kinetics of in vitro interactions between telaprevir and P-gp and BCRP to understand the molecular basis of that interaction. Findings: The effect of telaprevir on P-gp- and BCRP-mediated transport was evaluated by an in vitro vesicle transporter assay using different transport substrates, and the kinetics of transporter inhibition was determined. The

Telaprevir competitively inhibited P-gp and BCRP, and P-gp-mediated transport was more sensitive to telaprevir compared with BCRP-mediated transport. These data suggest that telaprevir represses the transporter functions of P-gp and BCRP via direct inhibition.