Estimation of Tacrolimus Binding to Erythrocytes in Liver Transplant Patients in Saudi Arabia

Eqbal Qaddour*

Introduction: Tacrolimus is a macrolide immunosuppressant. Due to the serious side effects and narrow therapeutic window of Tacrolimus It is necessary to monitor the blood concentrations of tacrolimus. The trough concentration of the drug may also differ based on patients’ demographic data, protein binding, and erythrocyte binding. This study was conducted to estimate Tacrolimus binding to erythrocyte in liver transplant recipients in Saudi Arabia.
Method: Patients on tacrolimus, as the main immunosuppressant, who underwent liver transplant throughout 2012-2014 were retrospectively studied. Demographic characteristic, tacrolimus blood trough concentrations, liver, renal, biochemistry, and hematology lab results were all collected. Lab results and other factors like weight and age were examined to check their influence on the Tacrolimus blood concentrations.
Results: 184 liver transplant recipients met the criteria and were included in this study. The predicted Tacrolimus free plasma concentration averaged 239.3 ng/L and the estimated binding of Tacrolimus to erythrocyte was found to be 96.61 %. Conclusions: The percentage binding of tacrolimus to erythrocyte was estimated in Liver transplant patients. Further analysis is required to check whether this binding affect pharmacokinetics of Tacrolimus or not.