Drug Interactions between ivacaftor / lumacaftor and quinine

GENERALLY AVOID: Grapefruit juice may increase the plasma concentrations of ivacaftor. The proposed mechanism is inhibition of CYP450 3A4-mediated first-pass metabolism in the gut wall by certain compounds present in grapefruit. Elexacaftor and tezacaftor are also CYP450 3A4 substrates in vitro and may interact similarly with grapefruit juice, whereas lumacaftor is not expected to interact.

ADJUST DOSING INTERVAL: According to prescribing information, systemic exposure to ivacaftor increased approximately 2.5- to 4-fold, systemic exposure to elexacaftor increased approximately 1.9- to 2.5-fold, and systemic exposure to lumacaftor increased approximately 2-fold following administration with fat-containing foods relative to administration in a fasting state. Tezacaftor exposure is not significantly affected by administration of fat-containing foods.

MANAGEMENT: Patients treated with ivacaftor-containing medications should avoid consumption of grapefruit juice and any food that contains grapefruit or Seville oranges. All ivacaftor-containing medications should be administered with fat-containing foods such as eggs, avocados, nuts, meat, butter, peanut butter, cheese pizza, and whole-milk dairy products. A typical cystic fibrosis diet will satisfy this requirement.

Coadministration with grapefruit juice does not appear to affect the pharmacokinetics of quinine in a clinically relevant manner. Although grapefruit juice is an inhibitor of CYP450 3A4 and quinine is metabolized by this pathway to its major metabolite, 3-hydroxyquinine, a study of ten healthy volunteers found no significant differences in quinine peak plasma concentration (Cmax), time to reach Cmax (Tmax), terminal elimination half-life, systemic exposure (AUC), or apparent oral clearance (Cl/F) when a single 600 mg oral dose of quinine sulfate was administered in combination with 200 mL of orange juice (control), half-strength grapefruit juice, and full-strength grapefruit juice twice daily for 6 days each, separated by a 2-week washout period. Relative to the control period, the apparent renal clearance of quinine was markedly increased by 81% during treatment with half-strength grapefruit juice. However, since renal clearance accounts for approximately 6% of the total clearance of quinine, this change would likely have minimal clinical impact. The lack of a significant interaction is probably due to the fact that grapefruit juice primarily inhibits intestinal rather than hepatic CYP450 3A4, and quinine is not known to undergo significant presystemic metabolism as evidenced by its relatively high oral bioavailability (76% to 88%). Nevertheless, excessive consumption of grapefruit juice and tonic water (which contains quinine) was suspected as the cause of torsade de pointes arrhythmia in a patient with a history of asymptomatic long QT syndrome. Treatment with magnesium sulfate and metoprolol had no effect, but the arrhythmia resolved spontaneously 48 hours after discontinuation of the drinks. Based on current data, moderate grapefruit juice consumption is probably safe for the majority of patients taking quinine.