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Pharmacokinetic (PK) studies of oral firocoxib in large animal species have been limited to horses, preruminating calves, and adult camels. The aim of this study was to describe pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of firocoxib in adult goats. Ten healthy adult goats were administered 0.5 mg/kg firocoxib intravenously (i.v.) and per os (p.o.) in a randomized, crossover study. Plasma firocoxib concentrations were measured over a 96-hr period for each treatment using HPLC and mass spectrometry, and PK analysis was performed. The p.o. formulation reached mean peak plasma concentration of 139 ng/ml (range: 87-196 ng/ml) in 0.77 hr (0.25-2.00 hr), and half-life was 21.51 hr (10.21-48.32 hr). Mean bioavailability was 71% (51%-82%), indicative of adequate gastrointestinal absorption of firocoxib. There were no negative effects observed in any animal, and all blood work values remained within or very near reference range at the study's conclusion. Results indicate that oral firocoxib is well-absorbed and rapidly reaches peak plasma concentrations, although the concentration also decreased quickly prior to the terminal phase. The prolonged half-life may suggest tissue accumulation and higher plasma concentrations over time, depending on dosing schedule. Further studies to determine tissue residue depletion, pharmacodynamics, and therapeutic concentrations of firocoxib in goats are necessary., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The objective of this study was to develop a nonlinear mixed-effects model of vitacoxib disposition kinetics in dogs after intravenous (I.V.), oral (P.O.), and subcutaneous (S.C.) dosing. Data were pooled from four consecutive pharmacokinetic studies in which vitacoxib was administered in various dosing regimens to 14 healthy beagle dogs. Plasma concentration versus time data were fitted simultaneously using the stochastic approximation expectation maximization (SAEM) algorithm for nonlinear mixed-effects as implemented in Monolix version 2018R2. Correlations between random effects and significance of covariates on population parameter estimates were evaluated using multiple samples from the posterior distribution of the random effects. A two-compartment mamillary model with first-order elimination and first-order absorption after P.O. and S.C. administration, best described the available pharmacokinetic data. Final parameter estimates indicate that vitacoxib has a low-to-moderate systemic clearance (0.35 L hr -1  kg -1 ) associated with a low global extraction ratio, but a large volume of distribution (6.43 L/kg). The absolute bioavailability after P.O. and S.C. administration was estimated at 10.5% (fasted) and 54.6%, respectively. Food intake was found to increase vitacoxib oral bioavailability by a fivefold, while bodyweight (BW) had a significant impact on systemic clearance, thereby confirming the need for BW adjustment with vitacoxib dosing in dogs., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

This study describes the pharmacokinetics of vitacoxib in healthy rabbits following administration of 10 mg/kg intravenous (i.v.) and 10 mg/kg oral. Twelve New Zealand white rabbits were randomly allocated to two equally sized treatment groups. Blood samples were collected at predetermined times from 0 to 36 hr after treatment. Plasma drug concentrations were determined using UPLC-MS/MS. Pharmacokinetic analysis was completed using noncompartmental methods via WinNonlin ™ 6.4 software. The mean concentration area under curve (AUC last ) for vitacoxib was determined to be 11.0 ± 4.37 μg hr/ml for i.v. administration and 2.82 ± 0.98 μg hr/ml for oral administration. The elimination half-life (T 1/2λz ) was 6.30 ± 2.44 and 6.30 ± 1.19 hr for the i.v. and oral route, respectively. The C max (maximum plasma concentration) and T max (time to reach the observed maximum (peak) concentration at steady-state) following oral application were 189 ± 83.1 ng/ml and 6.58 ± 3.41 hr, respectively. Mean residence time (MRT last ) following i.v. injection was 6.91 ± 3.22 and 11.7 ± 2.12 hr after oral administration. The mean bioavailability of oral administration was calculated to be 25.6%. No adverse effects were observed in any rabbit. Further studies characterizing the pharmacodynamics of vitacoxib are required to develop a formulation of vitacoxib for rabbits., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The purpose of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetics and dose-scaling model of vitacoxib in either fed or fasted cats following either oral or intravenous administration. The concentration of the drug was quantified by UPLC-MS/MS on plasma samples. Relevant parameters were described using noncompartmental analysis (WinNonlin 6.4 software). Vitacoxib is relatively slowly absorbed and eliminated after oral administration (2 mg/kg body weight), with a T max of approximately 4.7 hr. The feeding state of the cat was a statistically significant covariate for both area under the concentration versus time curve (AUC) and mean absorption time (MAT fed ). The absolute bioavailability (F) of vitacoxib (2 mg/kg body weight) after oral administration (fed) was 72.5%, which is higher than that in fasted cats (F = 50.6%). Following intravenous administration (2 mg/kg body weight), Vd (ml/kg) was 1,264.34 ± 343.63 ml/kg and Cl (ml kg -1  hr -1 ) was 95.22 ± 23.53 ml kg -1  hr -1 . Plasma concentrations scaled linearly with dose, with C max (ng/ml) of 352.30 ± 63.42, 750.26 ± 435.54, and 936.97 ± 231.27 ng/ml after doses of 1, 2, and 4 mg/kg body weight, respectively. No significant undesirable behavioral effects were noted throughout the duration of the study., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The purpose of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetic profile of intravenous firocoxib in neonatal foals. Six healthy foals were administered 0.09 mg/kg firocoxib intravenously once a day for 7 days. Blood was collected for plasma firocoxib analysis using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection at times 0 (day 1 of study only) and 0.08, 0.25, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 16 and 24 hr on dose numbers 1, 5 and 7. Blood was also collected immediately prior to doses 3, 4, 5 and 7. Final samples were collected at 36, 48, 72 and 96 hr following the final dose. Noncompartmental analysis using the trapezoidal method with linear interpolation revealed a moderate half-life (15.9 ± 9.1 hr) with a large volume of distribution at steady state (1.79 ± 0.57 L/kg) and a clearance (96.0 ± 59.2 ml h -1  kg -1 ) that was more rapid than that observed in adult horses., (© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The objectives of this study were to compare the pharmacokinetics and COX selectivity of three commercially available formulations of firocoxib in the horse. Six healthy adult horses were administered a single dose of 57 mg intravenous, oral paste or oral tablet firocoxib in a three-way, randomized, crossover design. Blood was collected at predetermined times for PGE2 and TXB2 concentrations, as well as plasma drug concentrations. Similar to other reports, firocoxib exhibited a long elimination half-life (31.07 ± 10.64 h), a large volume of distribution (1.81 ± 0.59L/kg), and a slow clearance (42.61 ± 11.28 mL/h/kg). Comparison of the oral formulations revealed a higher Cmax , shorter Tmax , and greater AUC for the paste compared to the tablet. Bioavailability was 112% and 88% for the paste and tablet, respectively. Maximum inhibition of PGE2 was 83.76% for the I.V. formulation, 52.95% for the oral paste formulation, and 46.22% for the oral tablet formulation. Pharmacodynamic modeling suggests an IC50 of approximately 27 ng/mL and an IC80 of 108 ng/ mL for COX2 inhibition. Inhibition of TXB2 production was not detected. This study indicates a lack of bioequivalence between the oral formulations of firocoxib when administered as a single dose to healthy horses., (© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The objective of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetics of intravenous and oral firocoxib in 10 healthy preweaned calves. Firocoxib (0.5 mg/kg) was initially administered i.v. to calves, and following a 14-day washout period, animals received firocoxib orally prior to cautery dehorning. Firocoxib concentrations were determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Changes in hematology and plasma chemistry were determined using automated methods. Computer software was used to estimate pharmacokinetic parameters best described with a two-compartment model for i.v. administration and a one-compartment model for p.o. administration. Following i.v. dosing, the geometric mean (range) T1/2K10 and T1/2β were 6.7 (4.6-9.7) and 37.2 (23.5-160.4) h, respectively, Vss was 3.10 (2.10-7.22) L/kg, and CL was 121.7 (100.1-156.7) mL/h/kg. Following oral administration, geometric mean (range) Cmax was 127.9 (102.5-151.3) ng/mL, Tmax was 4.0 (2.6-5.6) h, and T1/2K10 was 18.8 (14.2-25.5) h. Bioavailability of oral firocoxib was calculated using the AUC derived from both study populations to be 98.4% (83.1-117.6%). No adverse clinical effects were evident following firocoxib administration. Pharmacokinetic analysis of i.v. and p.o. firocoxib indicates high bioavailability and a prolonged terminal half-life in preweaned calves., (© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The purpose of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetics and safety profile of firocoxib in neonatal foals. Seven healthy foals were administered 0.1 mg/kg firocoxib orally q24 h for nine consecutive days, commencing at 36 h of age. Blood was collected for firocoxib analysis using high-pressure liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection at 0 (dose #1 only), 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 24 h after doses 1, 5, and 9. For all other doses (2, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8), blood was collected immediately prior to the next dose (24 h trough). Elimination samples (36, 48, 72, 96, 120, and 144 h) were collected after dose 9. Safety was assessed via physical examinations, body weight measurements, gastroscopy, complete blood count, plasma biochemistry and urinalysis. Firocoxib was rapidly absorbed following oral administration with minimal accumulation after repeat dosing. After the final dose, the terminal half-life was approximately 11 h. Firocoxib was below the limit of detection (<2.5 ng/mL) in plasma 72 h after the final dose. No significant abnormalities were found on blood analyses, urinalysis, or gastroscopy. This study demonstrated that firocoxib is absorbed in neonatal foals with no demonstrable adverse effects after repeated doses of 0.1 mg/kg., (© 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The pharmacokinetic properties of the developmental Amino-Acetonitrile Derivative (AAD), monepantel and its sulfone metabolite, monepantel sulfone were investigated in sheep following intravenous (i.v.) and oral administrations. The sulfone metabolite was rapidly formed and predominated over monepantel 4 h after dosing, irrespective of the route of administration. The steady-state volume of distribution, total body clearance and mean residence time of monepantel were 7.4 L/kg, 1.49 L/(kg x h) and 4.9 h, respectively and 31.2 L/kg, 0.28 L/(kg x h) and 111 h, respectively for monepantel sulfone. The overall bioavailability of monepantel was 31%, but it was demonstrated that approximately the same amount of monepantel sulfone was produced whether monepantel was given intravenously or orally (AUC((0-infinity)) oral/AUC((0-infinity)) i.v. of 94% for monepantel sulfone), making oral administration a very efficient route of administration for monepantel in terms of the amount of sulfone metabolite generated. Because monepantel sulfone is the main chemical entity present in sheep blood after monepantel administration and because it is also an active metabolite, its pharmacokinetic properties are of primary importance for the interpretation of future residue and efficacy studies. Overall, these pharmacokinetic data aid in the evaluation of monepantel as an oral anthelmintic in sheep.

This study evaluated the adverse effects of oral firocoxib in dogs. Six dogs (20.2+/-6.3 kg) were studied. Values for complete blood count (CBC), serum urea, creatinine, alanine transaminase, alanine phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transferase, occult blood in feces, platelet aggregation, and buccal mucosal bleeding time were measured before and 7, 14, 21, and 29 days after SID treatment with firocoxib 5.3+/-0.34 mg/kg (FG) or lactose 1 mg/kg (LG) for 28 days, in a randomized crossover study. Gastrointestinal (GI) tract endoscopy was performed before treatment began and at 29 days. Lesions were scored from grade 0 to 6. Data were analyzed using anova and paired t-tests (P<0.05). None of the dogs presented adverse clinical effects. There were no significant changes in CBC, biochemical profiles within groups, or differences between groups. Pretreatment mean+/-SD bleeding time (LG, 70.7+/-32.1 sec; FG, 75.8+/-38.1 sec) and platelet aggregation (LG, 86.4+/-10.2%; FG, 85.6+/-9.2%) were not significantly different from readings at 29 days (LG, 95.2+/-25 sec; FG, 91.7+/-24 sec and LG, 73.2+/-15.1%; FG, 84+/-10.3%) nor the groups were different. None of the dogs had positive fecal occult blood tests, and endoscopic lesion scores were grade 0 both before treatment and at 29 days. Administration of firocoxib did not cause any adverse effects on GI, or hematological or serum biochemical variables and appears to have been well tolerated by dogs.

The primary objective of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetic profile of firocoxib, a novel second generation coxib, in horses. Horses were administered either a single oral or intravenous dose of firocoxib at 0.1 mg/kg in a two-period crossover study with 12 animals. The dosage was based on previously determined pharmacodynamic parameters. Oral firocoxib was well absorbed with an average bioavailability (absolute) of 79% and a Cmax of 75 ng/mL at 3.9 h. The average elimination half-life was 30 h. Following intravenous administration the average Cmax was 210 ng/mL and the elimination half-life was 34 h. The area under the curve [AUC(0-tlast)] was 1.8 microg.h/mL for the oral dose and 2.3 microg.h/mL for the intravenous dose. Firocoxib was widely distributed with a volume of distribution value of 1.7 L/kg for the intravenous dose. Biotransformation of firocoxib was via dealkylation and glucuronidation to inactive metabolites, namely descyclopropylmethylfirocoxib and its glucuronide conjugate. Urinary excretion was the major route of elimination, and the clearance rate was 37 mL/h/kg.