Abstract

We previously demonstrated that H⁺/peptide cotransporter PEPT1 shows a diurnal rhythm in the rat small intestine. In the present study, we examined the effect of food intake on the diurnal rhythm of intestinal PEPT1 using fed and fasted rats and also determined whether such variation affected the pharmacokinetics of peptide-like drugs. In fed rats, PEPT1 protein level was significantly higher at 8:00 PM than at 8:00 AM. However, during fasting for 2 to 4 days, the differences of PEPT1 protein levels between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM gradually disappeared. Intestinal absorption of an oral antibiotic ceftibuten (CETB), a pharmacological substrate for PEPT1, was also greater at 8:00 PM than at 8:00 AM in fed rats, but not different in 4-day fasted rats. In contrast to PEPT1 protein levels, PEPT1 mRNA levels retained a diurnal rhythm after 4 days of fasting. Pharmacokinetic analyses of CETB after intraintestinal administration demonstrated that both C_max and area under the plasma concentration-time curve from 0 to 3 h were greater at 8:00 PM than at 8:00 AM in fed rats. In contrast, pharmacokinetic parameters showed no significant difference between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM for intraintestinal administration in 4-day fasted rats and for intravenous administration in fed and 4-day fasted rats. These findings suggested that the diurnal rhythm of intestinal PEPT1 transport activity was disrupted by fasting and that diurnal variation of intestinal PEPT1 functionality could influence the pharmacokinetics of peptide-like drugs such as CETB.