Abstract

Inhibition of brain converting enzyme (CE) has been implicated in the antihypertensive action of some CE inhibitors. However, it is still a matter of debate whether these drugs gain access to the central nervous system upon systemic administration. In this study in rats we investigated the ability of p.o. applied CE inhibitors to penetrate from blood into cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) by analyzing the inhibition of CE activity in the CSF after acute bolus and after 1 week overnight treatment with enalapril, ramipril and Hoe 288. Penetration into the CSF closely paralleled the lipid solubility of the drugs. The most lipophilic drug, Hoe 288 (10 mg/kg), inhibited CE activity in the CSF after acute (66%) and after chronic (30%) p.o. treatment. Ramipril (10 mg/kg), being less lipophilic than Hoe 288, was only effective after acute bolus administration (59% inhibition), whereas the most hydrophilic drug, enalapril (30 mg/kg), did not reduce CE activity in the CSF after either regimen. The CE inhibition in the CSF after acute p.o. treatment with ramipril and Hoe 288 was dose-dependent with threshold doses of 3 to 10 mg/kg (ramipril) and less than 1 mg/kg (Hoe 288). The presence of ramipril and Hoe 288 in the CSF was also demonstrated by the inhibitory effect of heat-inactivated CSF from CE inhibitor-treated rats on purified CE from rabbit lung. A comparison of the in vitro activities of the three prodrugs and their parent diacids against CE in plasma and in CSF and against purified CE revealed hydrolysis of the prodrugs to their parent diacids in plasma and CSF.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)