Plasma and milk kinetics of eprinomectin following topical or oral administration to lactating Chinese Holstein cows

Chinese Holstein, bred by mating the Holstein-Friesian to Chinese Yellow Cattle, is a major dairy cattle breed in China. Eprinomectin is widely used in the treatment of nematode and ectoparasite infections in lactating cattle. The pharmacokinetics of eprinomectin in the plasma and milk were determined in Chinese Holstein cows following topical (at 0.5 mg kg−1) or oral (at 0.2 mg kg−1) administration. For topical administration, the concentrations of eprinomectin in plasma reached peak values (Cmax) of 16.16 ± 6.02 ng ml−1 at 3.20 ± 1.30 days (Tmax). In milk, the Cmax values of 2.28 ± 0.85 ng ml−1 were obtained at 3.48 ± 0.65 days. The MRT values were 5.00 ± 0.96 days for plasma and 4.65 ± 0.60 days for milk. The AUC values were 91.00 ± 25.32 ng d ml−1 for plasma and 10.53 ± 1.55 ng d ml−1 for milk. The ratio of AUC milk/plasma was 0.124 ± 0.041. Significant differences were found in Cmax and AUC of eprinomectin in plasma between Chinese Holstein and Prim Holstein following topical administration. It was probably due to the lower storage of body fat in Chinese Holstein than in Prim Holstein. For oral administration, the concentrations of eprinomectin reach peak values of 30.02 ± 5.73 ng ml−1 at 1.60 ± 0.55 days in plasma and 3.14 ± 0.88 ng ml−1 at 1.40 ± 0.27 days in milk. The MRT values for plasma and milk were 3.00 ± 0.46 and 3.18 ± 0.55 days, respectively. The AUC values were 98.46 ± 24.75 ng d ml−1 for plasma and 10.42 ± 4.22 ng d ml−1 for milk. The ratio of AUC milk/plasma was 0.104 ± 0.022. Compared with the topical administration, a significantly shorter MRT of eprinomectin in plasma was obtained following oral administration, which would shorten residue time of this compound in faeces and reduce its ecotoxicological effect. The low exposure of eprinomectin in milk would favor the use of eprinomectin in lactating Chinese Holstein for topical or oral administration.