Bioavailability of Edaravone Sublingual Tablet Versus Intravenous Infusion in Healthy Male Volunteers.

PURPOSE: Edaravone is a free-radical scavenger. Edaravone 30mg IV has been approved for use in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke in Japan and China, and for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Japan and the United States. Considering the inconvenience of IV infusion in clinical practice, an oral tablet formulation of edaravone was developed but failed in 2011 due to poor bioavailability. More recently, a sublingual (SL) tablet formulation of edaravone 30mg was developed by a Good Manufacturing Practices-compliant manufacturer in China. This study explored the bioavailability of the SL tablet of edaravone and aimed to provide evidence to support decision making in future clinical development.

METHODS: This 2-way crossover study was conducted in 10 healthy male volunteers. Eligible subjects were randomized, in a 1:1 ratio, to 1 of 2 dosing sequences: (1) SL edaravone 30mg, followed by edaravone 30mg IV infusion given over 30 minutes; or (2) edaravone 30mg IV infusion given over 30 minutes, followed by SL edaravone 30mg. The washout period between the 2 dosing periods was at least 24hours. Serial blood samples were collected in each dosing period. The bioavailability of the SL tablet was assessed using bioavailability analysis. Tolerability was evaluated throughout the study.

FINDINGS: The plasma concentration-time profile of the SL tablet was similar to that with the IV infusion. Amean (SD) Cmax of 2030.2 (517.2) ng/mL was reached within a median Tmax of 0.875hour, which was statistically significantly longer than the median Tmax with IV administration (0.5 hour). The Cmax with SL administration corresponded to 83.92% (90% CI, 73.22%-96.18%) of the Cmax with the start of IV infusion (2354.0 [336.6] ng/mL). The mean AUC0-t with SL dosing was 5420.07 (1429.75) h · ng/mL, which corresponded to 91.94% (90% CI, 86.81%-97.39%) of the AUC0-t with IV administration (5824.42 [1338.48] h · ng/mL). Two cases of adverse events were reported during the study; both were considered by the investigator to have been possibly not related to the study treatment.

IMPLICATIONS: The bioavailability of the SL tablet of edaravone was 91.94%. Compared with IV administration, Cmax with SL administration was ∼17% lower and Tmax was statistically significantly longer. The exposure differences can be addressed by modifying the strength of the SL tablet, and then conducting a second study to demonstrate the pharmacokinetic bioavailability of the sublingually administered new strength versus IV infusion of edaravone.