Mammalian Drug Metabolism

Drugs and other chemicals that do not occur in mammalian systems are metabolized by a wide variety of enzymes. Reactions catalyzed by these enzymes have been classified into two general phases. Phase I reactions include oxidations, reductions, and hydrolyses, whereas Phase II reactions are broadly defined as conjugation reactions and include glucuronidation, sulfation, acylation, methylation, and conjugation with glutathione. The mechanisms of these biotransformations are outlined to demonstrate how both non-toxic and toxic metabolites are produced. The mammalian metabolism of acetaminophen, a widely used mild analgesic, and R-(+)-pulegone, the major constituent terpene of pennyroyal oil, will be discussed to illustrate specific features of mammalian drug metabolism.