Natural Product-Drug Interaction Research: Digging Through the Intricacies to Uncover Mechanisms and Improve Pharmacotherapy 

College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Mary Paine is the recipient of the prestigious ASCPT & FDA William B. Abrams Award this year. Join her this week as she discusses her research on natural product-drug interaction.

Date: Wednesday, May 19, 2021
Time: 8:00 – 9:30 am PDT
Virtual Workshop: ADOBE Connect
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Lecture Description:
The marketing and sales of botanical and other natural products (NPs) for health and wellness benefits continue to thrive worldwide. NPs are often used to supplement prescribed pharmacotherapeutic regimens, increasing the risk for adverse NP-drug interactions. Common pharmacokinetic mechanisms underlying NP-drug interactions include inhibition and induction of drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters by the NP, leading to altered systemic and/or tissue drug exposure and potentially, negative health outcomes. Unlike for drug-drug interactions, there are no harmonized recommendations for assessing NP-drug interactions. Because NPs are inherently complex and variable chemical mixtures, a multidisciplinary effort involving clinical pharmacologists, NP chemists, biomedical informaticists, and health communications experts is needed for rigorous assessment and dissemination of the drug interaction liability of NPs. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health established the Center of Excellence for Natural Product Drug Interaction Research in 2015. One deliverable of the Center is a set of recommended approaches to guide researchers in the optimal conduct of NP-drug interaction studies. These recommendations are based on results generated from a series of completed and ongoing interaction projects examining methodically selected NPs as precipitants of potential clinically significant pharmacokinetic NP-drug interactions. The aggregate data are being entered into a repository, which is disseminated to researchers via a website (napdicenter.org). The efforts of the Center should lead to improved design of future NP-drug interaction research and ultimately, evidenced-based information for health care providers, educators, and consumers about how best to manage these complex interactions.