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1 Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
2 GlaxoSmithKline, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709.
3 Fujisawa Healthcare, Inc., Deerfield, IL 60015.
aAddress correspondence to this author at: Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, 7 Founders Pavilion, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce St., Philadelphia, PA 19104. Fax 215-662-7529; e-mail shawlmj{at}mail.med.upenn.edu.
| Abstract |
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Methods: Twenty-one renal transplant patients receiving 0.5 or 1.0 g of mycophenolate mofetil twice daily and concomitant tacrolimus provided a total of 50 pharmacokinetic profiles. MPA concentrations were measured by a validated HPLC method in 12 plasma samples collected at predose and at 30 and 60 min; 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 h; 1 and 2 weeks; and 3 months after transplantation. Twenty-six 1-, 2-, or 3-sample estimation models were fit (r2 = 0.3410.862) to a randomly selected subset of the profiles using linear regression and were used to estimate AUC012h for the profiles not included in the regression fit, comparing those estimates with the corresponding AUC012h values, calculated with the linear trapezoidal rule, including all 12 timed MPA concentrations. The 3-sample models were constrained to include no samples past 2 h.
Results: The model using c0h, c0.5h, and c2h was superior to all other models tested (r2 = 0.862), minimizing prediction error for the AUC012h values not included in the fit (i.e., the cross-validation error). The regression equation for AUC estimation that gave the best performance for this model was: 7.75 + 6.49c0h + 0.76c0.5h + 2.43c2h. When we applied this model to the full data set, 41 of the 50 (82%) estimated AUC values were within 15% of the value of AUC012h calculated using all 12 concentrations.
Conclusions: This limited sampling strategy provides an effective approach for estimation of the full MPA AUC012h in renal transplant patients receiving concomitant tacrolimus therapy.
| Introduction |
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MPA is avidly and extensively bound to plasma albumin (7). Several investigators have reported a significant relationship between the MPA dose interval area under the plasma concentrationtime curve (AUC) and the risks for rejection (4)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15) and hematologic side effects (14)(16). A >10-fold range of MPA AUC values has been observed in renal and heart transplant patients who received a fixed dose of 1 g of MMF twice daily (12)(14)(17). Thus the interindividual variability of MPA pharmacokinetics is extensive.
Recent clinical investigations suggest that improved effectiveness and tolerability will result from the incorporation of MPA therapeutic drug monitoring into routine clinical practice, providing effective MMF dose individualization in renal and heart transplant patients (2)(11)(12)(13)(15)(18). A target range of 3060 mg · h/L for the MPA AUC has been proposed for guidance of MMF dosage to optimal values in renal and heart transplant patients receiving concomitant cyclosporine (CsA) and steroid immunosuppression (12)(13)(15). However, the routine measurement of the full 12-h dose interval MPA AUC is very impractical and would be cost-prohibitive. Recent studies have therefore focused on the development and use of abbreviated sampling schemes for the reliable estimation of MPA AUC012h. Results from three such studies have concluded that inclusion of a 6-h sample is critical for the reliable estimation of the MPA AUC012h (19)(20)(21). Inclusion of a 6-h timed sample is impractical, however, for routine practice in many centers because of patient inconvenience. In our experience this is a very important practical factor that limits the use of abbreviated sampling approaches in clinical practice. With these considerations in mind, we investigated the development of a limited sampling procedure using one, two, or three samples. For 1-sample regressions, each time point over the entire 12-h interval was tested. For the 2-sample regressions, the predose sample was tested with each time point over the 12-h interval. For the 3-sample regressions, the predose sample was tested with each combination of two samples from the first 2 h. To minimize the effect of unfavorable sampling on the linear regression modeling, we used repeated cross-validation, similar to the "bootstrap" approach, to identify the most robust models.
| Patients and Methods |
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analytical methods
Plasma MPA concentrations were measured by a validated HPLC method (22). Full 12-h AUC values were calculated using the linear trapezoidal rule.
statistical procedure
Limited sampling strategy (LSS) evaluation.
Repeated cross-validation was used to evaluate each LSS, similar to a bootstrap procedure. These are important general techniques for the evaluation of bias and for estimating the precision of a study parameter (23)(24). Below, we present an outline of the method:
role of the sponsors
GlaxoSmithKline and Fujisawa Healthcare, Inc. participated in the data analysis and manuscript preparation.
| Results |
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When we used the repeated cross-validation procedure described above, the best model for predicting the full MPA AUC012h was 3-time point model 10 (c0h, c0.5h, c2h; r2 = 0.862). Not only did this model have the highest r2 value, but the SD of the prediction residuals (0.0391) was much better than that obtained for all of the other models tested (Tables 1
and 2
; Fig. 2
). The 2-sample model that had the best r2 value (0.793) was model 7 (c0h, c2h). The SD of the prediction residuals (0.4174) for model 7 was more than 10-fold larger than that for model 10, and the mean prediction error of 11.9% ± 50.6% was almost double that for model 10 (6.1% ± 19%). There was poor correlation between the full MPA AUC012h and each of the single MPA concentrations obtained at times up to the first 2 h (r2 = 0.341-0.434; Table 1
).
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The correlation between single MPA concentration values at time points later than 2 h and full MPA AUC012h values are summarized in Table 1
. The best value for r2 (0.686) for a model containing only a single concentration was obtained for MPA concentrations at 8 h (Table 1
). Equations for estimation of MPA AUC values and details of the limited sampling strategies evaluated in this study are summarized in Table 1
. Linear regression analysis plots of the estimated AUC vs the corresponding measured full MPA AUC012h values for models 1, 7, and 10 are displayed in Fig. 2
. The bias of LSS-derived estimates was analyzed by calculating the mean prediction error for the estimates i.e., the mean for the residuals [difference between ln(estimated AUC) and ln(measured AUC)]. The distribution for coefficients and a statistical summary for the distribution of the residuals for models 1, 7, and 10 are summarized in Table 2
. Prediction errors for the abbreviated AUC profiles are summarized in Table 3
. The median and mean ± SD for the prediction error for model 10 were 3.0% and 6.1% ± 19%, respectively. For this model, in 41 of 50 (82%) of the profiles, the estimation of the values was within ± 15% of the value using all 12 samples over 12 h. For the other models, the estimate was within ± 15% of the actual value in only
62% of the 50 profiles.
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| Discussion |
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Measurement of MPA AUC012h using a full set of samples (e.g., 814 timed samples) is very demanding of skilled personnel time and laboratory resources and requires considerable quantities of the patients blood and at least 12 h of time in a medical center. In our experience, the three samples in the 2-h postdose time period defined by this new sampling scheme provide a testing strategy that our clinical colleagues find is a practical approach, whereas sampling schemes that include a greater number of samples or a larger time interval are unacceptable (T. Pawinski, unpublished observation).
A conclusion drawn by other investigators about abbreviated sampling schemes is that inclusion of a 6-h timed sample is critical to obtaining an abbreviated sampling model with the best predictive performance. For example, coefficients of determination (r2) of 0.87, 0.74, and 0.76 were obtained for models with sampling times of 1, 2, and 6 h; 0, 0.5, and 2 h; and 0, 1.5, and 6 h, respectively, in an investigation involving 61 patients (19). BlandAltman analysis of these data showed that the mean error for the model with the best r2 value was ± 9.5 mg · h/L (19). It is unclear whether this conclusion would have been reached by use of a cross-validation approach, which is the recommended standard of practice for the evaluation of a CsA LSS (26). In another investigation, the r2 value was 0.84 for the best model tested, a 4-sample model with sample times of 0, 1, 3, and 6 h, but was only 0.63 for a model that used five samples obtained within 2 h of the MMF dose (0, 0.25, 0.75, 1.25, and 2 h) (21). The predictive performance analyses reported for these two models were 95% CIs of -26.3% to 32.5% and -45.3% to 52.7%, respectively (21). The improved performance achieved by the addition of the 6-h timed sample in these two studies was attributed to the fact that in both studies the patients did not fast overnight (27). Meal consumption causes an increase in tmax and a decrease in cmax, but no significant change in value for the 12-h MPA AUC (28). According to the authors suggestion, the predictive performance of 2-h limited sampling schemes is diminished by not including maximum concentrations for at least some of the profiles (27). Inclusion of the 6-h sample would eliminate most, if not all such cases and thereby improve the accuracy of the prediction model. In practice, we favor adopting a rule of not using the abbreviated profile to estimate MPA AUC if the predose concentration is unusually high, indicating noncompliance with the procedure (dosing inadvertently started before obtaining the predose sample or lack of overnight fasting). In our investigation, food intake of each study participants choosing was permitted 1 h after the oral MMF dose, following an overnight fast. This produced an average tmax of 2.1 ± 2.7 h (median, 1 h; range, 0.511 h) that is greater than that cited by Willis et al. (1.71 ± 1.22 h) (21), making a delay in tmax less likely to be the overriding factor for establishing an accurate abbreviated sampling model.
We believe that the statistical method used to establish the model deserves serious consideration for its importance in deriving a robust limited sampling estimation model. A commonly used approach for establishing estimation models is to perform a multiple stepwise linear regression on the total set of full AUCs (19). When we used that approach, we obtained a r2 value of 0.74 and a prediction error of 7.6% ± 26.7%, (median, 6.5%; 95% CI, -51.9% to 67.5%), and the model estimated MPA AUC to within 15% of the full value in 56% of the profiles. Our estimation model using the repeated cross-validation approach was significantly better, with a r2 value of 0.862, prediction error of 6.1% ± 19%, (median, 3.0%; 95% CI, -33.1% to 32%), and estimation of MPA AUC to within 15% of the value (when all 12 samples are used to calculate MPA AUC) in 82% of the profiles. To test for the effect of adding a 6-h sample to our 3-sample model, we used the repeated cross-validation approach to derive the model for this case. Indeed, some improvement was achieved by adding the 6-h sample: the r2 was 0.891, the prediction error was 3.5% ± 19.2% (median, 2.9%; 95% CI, -42.6% to 59.2%), and the estimated MPA AUC values were within 15% of the full MPA AUC result in 86% of the profiles. Thus a small improvement in the predictive performance was achieved, although the degree of improvement over the three samples in a 2-h model is small and would not justify adding a fourth sample and a total time of 6 h to the procedure. In addition, the exercise presented here applied a much more stringent challenge in applying regression results to data points not included in the regression, repeated 50 times using random division of the data sets to reduce the impact of sampling variation on the assessment. Fitting regressions to the entire data set causes issues involving model selection and bias (26).
Another recommended abbreviated sampling strategy includes samples collected at 0 and 75 min and 4 h (13). To test for the possibility that a 3-sample model based on these time points would provide an even better estimation of the MPA AUC based on all 12 timed samples, we evaluated an additional set of 3 timed MPA concentrations: 0, 1, and 4 h. The 1-h sample was chosen because the timed samples in our investigation did not include 75 min and the former was the closest in time to the latter. The 3-time point model produced by the repeated cross-validation approach is: MPA AUC=5.03 + 3.36c0h + 1.61c1h + 5.44c4h. The r2 value for the regression analysis of MPA AUC estimated by this 3-sample model vs the 50 full MPA AUCs is 0.748 and the prediction error is as follows: mean ± SE, 7.3% ± 28.7%; median, 3.5%; 95% CI, -35.1% to 76.9%. In this case, 50% of the estimated MPA AUC values were within 15% of the full MPA AUC values. Thus the use of this abbreviated sample model did not improve on the predictive performance of the 0, 30 min, and 2 h model. Other investigators (13) have reported that an abbreviated sampling model that includes 4 h, such as 0, 75 min, and 4 h, provides reliable prediction of the dose interval MPA AUC (r2 = 0.76 for first month posttransplantation; r2 = 0.83 thereafter) for renal transplant patients whose concomitant immunosuppression was afforded by CsA. We do not know the reason for the differences in the results of the two studies. Among the possibilities are the fact that a different concomitant immunosuppressant was used in these two studies (CsA vs tacrolimus), different techniques were used for developing the estimation model, and differences in the timing of the middle sample used for the 4-h model (75 min vs 60 min). Further studies will be required to establish which one or more of these variables contribute(s) to the observed differences and whether the nature of concomitant immunosuppression affects the values of the model equation coefficients. In addition, when contemplating what estimation model to use for patients who are recipients of an organ transplant other than a kidney, further testing and validation are recommended before using the 0, 30 min, 2 h model developed here, or any other algorithm for estimation of the MPA AUC.
David and Johnston (26), in a critical discussion of LSS for estimation of the dose-interval AUC for CsA, emphasized the importance of cross-validation in the evaluation of a LSS. Validation requires dividing a data set into a training set, used to derive model parameter estimates, and a testing set, used to evaluate the predictive abilities of the model arising from the associated training set. In the present study, we used repeated cross-validation, similar to the bootstrap procedure, by randomly assigning data sets to either the training set or the evaluation set, as if a group of independent investigators had each randomly chosen their own training and testing sets and then pooled their results. This produced a distribution of prediction residuals that will be less sensitive to the choice of observations allocated to the training and evaluation sets because each observation will be in either set many times. This procedure enables a more meaningful comparison of the different potential models (i.e., the differing number of sample time points and different time points), based on a criterion of shortest range or tightest clustering (smallest SD) of the prediction residuals. The conclusions regarding the use of three sampling times within the first 2 h after a dose of MMF described here are similar to those found from a set of MPA AUC data for a cohort of renal transplant patients who were receiving MMF and concomitant CsA immunosuppression (M. Hale, unpublished observation). In the latter case, although the equation coefficients derived were different, the development of a reliable model based on three samples obtained within the first 2 h after a dose of MMF was accomplished.
| Footnotes |
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| References |
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The following articles in journals at HighWire Press have cited this article:
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B. C. M. de Winter and T. van Gelder Therapeutic drug monitoring for mycophenolic acid in patients with autoimmune diseases Nephrol. Dial. Transplant., November 1, 2008; 23(11): 3386 - 3388. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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L. M. Shaw, M. Figurski, M. C. Milone, J. Trofe, and R. D. Bloom Therapeutic Drug Monitoring of Mycophenolic Acid Clin. J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., September 1, 2007; 2(5): 1062 - 1072. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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H. Jeong and B. Kaplan Therapeutic Monitoring of Mycophenolate Mofetil Clin. J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., January 1, 2007; 2(1): 184 - 191. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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A Doria, L Iaccarino, S Arienti, M E Rampudda, M G Canova, R Rondinone, and S Todesco Mycophenolate mofetil and systemic lupus erythematosus Lupus, November 1, 2006; 15(11_suppl): 44 - 54. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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Y.-M. Ku, M. McCartan, and D. Collier Clinical Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Monitoring for Mycophenolate Mofetil Journal of Pharmacy Practice, December 1, 2005; 18(6): 422 - 431. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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R. G Morris Immunosuppressant Drug Monitoring: Is the Laboratory Meeting Clinical Expectations? Ann. Pharmacother., January 1, 2005; 39(1): 119 - 127. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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T. M. Sievers New Antiproliferative Immunosuppressive Agents Journal of Pharmacy Practice, December 1, 2003; 16(6): 401 - 413. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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J. C. Panetta, L. C. Iacono, P. C. Adamson, and C. F. Stewart The Importance of Pharmacokinetic Limited Sampling Models for Childhood Cancer Drug Development Clin. Cancer Res., November 1, 2003; 9(14): 5068 - 5077. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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D. R. J. Kuypers, K. Claes, P. Evenepoel, B. Maes, W. Coosemans, J. Pirenne, and Y. Vanrenterghem Long-Term Changes in Mycophenolic Acid Exposure in Combination with Tacrolimus and Corticosteroids Are Dose Dependent and Not Reflected by Trough Plasma Concentration: A Prospective Study in 100 De Novo Renal Allograft Recipients J. Clin. Pharmacol., August 1, 2003; 43(8): 866 - 880. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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