Lewis V. Buchanan

In vivo characterization of synthetic thromboxane A2 in canine myocardium.

Recently, total chemical synthesis of thromboxane was achieved. The in vitro activity of synthetic thromboxane A2 is indistinguishable from biologically generated material. The present study describes the in vivo characterization of synthetic thromboxane A2 on the regional blood flow distribution of the canine heart. Local injections of synthetic thromboxane A2 into the coronary vasculature caused marked reductions in coronary blood flow, measured by both radiolabeled microsphere injection and an electromagnetic flow device. The threshold concentration required to bring about this effect varied greatly between dogs and ranged from 0.125 microgram/kg to 2.0 micrograms/kg. Similarly, the dose of thromboxane A2 required to aggregate dog platelets in vitro varied from 30 ng/ml to 1,000 ng/ml. Bolus injections of 2 micrograms/ml thromboxane A2 into the circumflex or left anterior coronary artery resulted in a simultaneous reduction in platelet count in coronary sinus blood of 83 +/- 5.2% (mean +/- SEM, n = 4, p = .0005). Both flow reduction and platelet effects were transient and localized. The time taken from onset to recovery of the response to control levels was 77 +/- 6.0 seconds (mean +/- SEM) for flow and 70-80 seconds for platelet count. Injections of thromboxane A2 caused a small but significant increase in heart rate with no change in systemic blood pressure. In conclusion, the in vivo actions of synthetic thromboxane A2 are consistent with the vasoconstrictor and platelet aggregatory effects seen in vitro, but dogs vary considerably in their sensitivity.

Evaluation of cardiac function in unrestrained dogs and monkeys using left ventricular dP/dt

INTRODUCTION Preclinical assessment for alterations in cardiac ventricular function for drug candidates has not been a focus of ICH S7b guidelines for cardiovascular safety studies, but there is growing interest given that the cardiovascular risk is associated with positive and negative inotropes. METHODS From 2003 through 2013, 163 telemetry studies with left-ventricular function analyses were conducted in dogs and monkeys at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) in support for drug development programs. The ability of the telemetry system to detect changes in cardiac contractility was verified with positive control agents pimobendan and atenolol. Control data from a subset of studies were analyzed to determine dP/dt reference range values, and minimum detectable mean differences (control vs. treated) for statistical significance. RESULTS Median minimum detectable differences for dogs ranged from 14 to 21% for positive dP/dt and 11 to 21% for negative dP/dt. For monkeys, median minimum detectable differences were 25 and 14% for positive and negative dP/dt, respectively. For BMS programs, 15 drug candidates were identified that produced primary effects on contractility. Changes in contractility that were associated with, and potentially secondary to, drug-related effects on heart rate or systemic blood pressure were observed with an additional 29 drug candidates. DISCUSSION Changes in contractility have been observed in large animals during drug development studies at BMS over the past 10years. Model sensitivity has been demonstrated and a dP/dt beat-to-beat cloud analysis tool has been developed to help distinguish primary effects from those potentially secondary to systemic hemodynamic changes.