Influence of cimetidine and its metabolites on Cisplatin—Investigation of adduct formation by means of electrochemistry/liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry

Cimetidine has been studied as an additive in cancer chemotherapy. It is claimed to reduce the side effects of Cisplatin. This study focuses on possible interactions between Cisplatin and cimetidine on the molecular level. Due to the fact that cimetidine is metabolized in the liver, interactions between its metabolites and Cisplatin are also investigated. By means of LC/ESI-MS, Cisplatin–cimetidine adducts were detected. In a second step, the metabolism of cimetidine was simulated by electrochemical oxidation. These results were compared with microsomal incubations of cimetidine using rat and human liver cell microsomes. Because the two methods showed a correlation, the electrochemical approach was further used to investigate Cisplatin's interactions with metabolites of cimetidine. However, notable interactions that might take place in the human body could neither be observed for pure cimetidine nor for its metabolites. Finally, the impact of cimetidine on Cisplatin–protein interactions were studied using the model protein β-lactoglobulin A. In the presence of cimetidine, the affinity of Cisplatin towards the model protein appears to be increased.

► Investigation of drug interactions by means of LC/EC/ESI-MS.
► No reactive cimetidine oxidation products interacting with Cisplatin were observed.
► Cimetidine increases Cisplatin–protein interactions.