Awortwe Charles, Manda Vamshi K, Avonto Cristina, Khan Shabana I, Khan Ikhlas A, Walker Larry A, Bouic Patrick J, Rosenkranz Bernd
Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Stellenbosch , Cape Town , South Africa .
Xenobiotica. 2015 Mar;45(3):218-29. doi: 10.3109/00498254.2014.973930. Epub 2014 Nov 7.
1.This study investigated the mechanism underlying Echinacea-mediated induction of CYP1A2, CYP3A4 and MDR1 in terms of human pregnane X receptor (PXR) activation. 2.Crude extracts and fractions of Echinacea purpurea were tested for PXR activation in HepG2 cells by a reporter gene assay. Quantitative real-time PCR was carried out to determine their effects on CYP1A2 and CYP3A4 mRNA expressions. Capsules and fractions were risk ranked as high, intermediate and remote risk of drug-metabolizing enzymes induction based on EC50 values determined for respective CYPs. 3. Fractions F1, F2 and capsule (2660) strongly activated PXR with 5-, 4- and 3.5-fold increase in activity, respectively. Echinacea preparations potentiated up-regulation of CYP1A2, CYP3A4 and MDR1 via PXR activation. 4.Thus E. purpurea preparations cause herb-drug interaction by up-regulating CYP1A2, CYP3A4 and P-gp via PXR activation.