Exercise hemodynamics and catecholamine metabolism after catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibition with nitecapone.

The effect of catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibition with nitecapone (OR-462) on the hemodynamic responses to exercise and catecholamine metabolism was studied in 10 healthy male volunteers (aged 19 to 26 years). Nitecapone, a new specific and selective catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitor, was given at increasing single oral doses up to 100 mg. Nitecapone did not influence resting or exercise heart rate, blood pressure, systolic time intervals, or plasma catecholamine levels. It altered the metabolic profile of catecholamines as shown by (1) an increase of 140% in the plasma concentration of the monoamine oxidase-dependent metabolite 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (p less than 0.001), (2) a decrease of 27% in the plasma concentration of its methylation product 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (p less than 0.05), and (3) a 25% reduction in the urinary excretion of the methylated metabolites 3-methoxy-4-hydroxymandelic acid and homovanillic acid (p less than 0.05). Nitecapone was well tolerated and seemed to be hemodynamically safe in humans.