Pharmacokinetics of N-nitrosodimethylamine in swine

The pharmacokinetics of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) have been studied in swine. They were studied following i.v. administration of 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mg/kg, and following oral doses of 1.0 and 5.0 mg/kg of NDMA. Following a bolus i.v. dose, the concentration of NDMA in blood declined biphasically with a mean distribution half-life of 7 min and a mean elimination half-life of 28 min. The areas under the blood concentration versus time curves (AUC) were roughly proportional to dose indicating that the pharmacokinetics in this dose range were first order. The mean systemic clearance from blood was 65.8 ml/min/kg, the steady-state volume of distribution was 1.4 l/kg, and the mean residence time was 20 min. Following the oral doses, the AUC and peak concentration in blood were not proportional to the dose. It is likely that the pharmacokinetics at the lower dose were first order, but at the higher dose the pharmacokinetics were no longer first order because metabolism was saturated. The bioavailability of the 1.0 mg/kg dose was 67%. Since the clearance was probably due to metabolism and the clearance from blood exceeded hepatic blood flow, the high bioavailability suggests that extrahepatic metabolism plays an important role in the systemic clearance of NDMA in swine.