rhGH Therapy on Hepatic Drug Metabolism

Growth Hormone (GH) deficiency is a prominent cause of short stature, affecting approximately 14,000 children in the US. Although a single study has demonstrated reduces CYP1A2 activity following Gh replacement therapy, the effect of GH on the most abundant phase 1 biotransformation pathways (e.g. CYP2D6 and CYP3A4) remain largely uncharacterized. This information gap exists largely due to the lack of sufficiently safe, specific and non-invasive methods appropriate for the longitudinal evaluation of enzyme activity in young children. We can overcome these problems by employing validated phenotyping methods using caffeine, a commonly ingested dietary substance and dextromethorphan, a safe, non-sedating over the counter anti-tussive agent. Application of these methods will permit us to identify, characterize and describe the isoform-specific effects of rhGH on major phase 1 hepatic drug biotransformation pathways, thereby addressing this information gap with minimal risk to children.