Plasma Membrane Proteins

Plasma membrane transporters affect pharmacologic activity of drugs by mediating their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (1 References Plasma membrane transporters affect pharmacologic activity of drugs by mediating their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion ( 1). Drug-drug interactions arise when drugs compete... read more ). Drug-drug interactions arise when drugs compete to bind a drug transporter, altering drug responses and causing potentially toxic adverse effects (2, 3 References Plasma membrane transporters affect pharmacologic activity of drugs by mediating their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion ( 1). Drug-drug interactions arise when drugs compete... read more ). The 2 major transporters are adenosine triphosphate (ATP)–binding cassette (ABC, also referred to as P-glycoprotein) and the solute carrier (SLC) transporters. SLC transporters include emerging clinically significant transporters called multidrug and toxin extrusion (MATE) transporters that contribute to the renal elimination of metformin and interactions of cimetidine with other drugs (2 References Plasma membrane transporters affect pharmacologic activity of drugs by mediating their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion ( 1). Drug-drug interactions arise when drugs compete... read more ). The expression of these drug transporters appears low during the fetal and neonatal periods, but increases after 7 years of age (4 References Plasma membrane transporters affect pharmacologic activity of drugs by mediating their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion ( 1). Drug-drug interactions arise when drugs compete... read more ).

(See also Overview of Pharmacokinetics Overview of Pharmacokinetics Pharmacokinetics, sometimes described as what the body does to a drug, refers to the movement of drug into, through, and out of the body—the time course of its absorption, bioavailability, distribution... read more .)