Metabolism by rat hepatic microsomes of fluorinated ether anesthetics following isoniazid administration

The possibility that enflurane defluorination is increased following treatment with isoniazid was investigated in male Fischer 344 rats. The effects of various isoniazid dosage regimens on the hepatic microsomal defluorination rates of enflurane were compared with those of several other ether anesthetics, and the conditions for production of maximal enflurane defluorination rates were determined. Seven to ten days of treatment with 50 mg/kg/day isoniazid (Nydrazid) resulted in maximal rates of defluorination of methoxyflurane, enflurane, isoflurane, and sevoflurane with no overt sign of toxicity. Compared with saline treatment of control rats, isoniazid increased defluorination of enflurane 370 per cent, methoxyflurane 259 per cent, sevoflurane 283 per cent, and isoflurane 168 per cent. Previous studies have shown that while the enzyme inducer phenobarbital increased in vitro rates of methoxyflurane defluorination approximately 1000 per cent, the rate of enflurane defluorination remained unchanged or increased by 100 per cent at most. In this study, enhanced hepatic microsomal defluorination was not associated with an increase in cytochrome P-450 per mg protein. Anesthetic defluorination rates were not altered by treatment with chlorobutanol, the preservative contained in Nydrazid.