Enalapril increases the urinary excretion of metformin in rats by inducing multidrug and toxin excretion protein 1 in the kidney

Two‐thirds of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus have hypertension, and thus the combination of two or more drugs to treat these diseases is common. It has been shown that the combination of metformin and enalapril has beneficial effects, but few studies have evaluated the interactions between these two drugs. This study investigated the effects of enalapril on the pharmacokinetics and urinary excretion of metformin in rats, with a focus on transporter‐mediated drug interactions. Rats were dosed orally with metformin alone (100 mg/kg) or in combination with enalapril (4 mg/kg). The concentration of metformin was measured by high performance liquid chromatography and the level of organic cation transporters (rOCTs) and multidrug and toxin excretion protein 1 (rMATE1), which mediate the uptake and efflux of metformin, respectively, were evaluated by immunoblotting. After single and 7‐day dosing, the plasma concentration of metformin in the co‐administration group was significantly lower than that in the metformin‐only group, and the CL/F and urinary excretion were increased in the co‐administration group. Enalapril did not affect the Kp of metformin but reduced renal slice‐uptake of metformin. The expression of rMATE1 was increased, whereas rOCT2 expression was decreased in rat kidney. Importantly, long‐term co‐administration of metformin and enalapril markedly decreased the level of lactic acid and uric acid in the blood. Enalapril increases the urinary excretion of metformin through the up‐regulation of rMATE1. This reveals a new mechanism of drug interactions and provides a basis for drug dosage adjustment when these drugs are co‐administered. Whether by single, 7‐day or long‐term co‐administration, enalapril increases the urinary excretion of metformin and decreases the plasma concentration, renal tissue distribution of metformin. The up‐regulation of multidrug and toxin excretion protein 1 (rMATE1; an apically expressed poly‐specific transporter which mediates the efflux of diverse substrates, primarily organic cations, in the kidney and the liver) is a vital reason in metformin and enalapril interactions.