Effect of pomegranate pretreatment on the oral bioavailability of buspirone in male albino rabbits

Background and the Purpose of the study: Many drug substances and variety of naturally occurring dietary or herbal components are capable of interaction with the CYP enzyme system. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of pomegranate juice pretreatment on the bioavailability of buspirone in rabbits. Methods: White New Zealand rabbits weighing 2.1±0.13 Kg were selected for study. The bioavailability of buspirone after pre-treatment with pomegranate juice (10 ml Kg-1 for seven days) was compared with an oral solution of 10 mg kg-1 of buspirone in distilled water. Animals were allowed free access to food and water, until night prior to dosing and were fasted for 10 hrs. In the first phase oral solution (10 mg kg-1) was administered through feeding tube followed by rinsing with 10 ml of water. In the second phase, the group was pretreated with pomegranate juice for 7 days and study was conducted after 15 days of washout period. Results and conclusion: The results showed that there was a significant (p<0.05) difference in the bioavailability of buspirone after pre-treatment with pomegranate juice.This increase in bioavailability might be due to inhibition of CYP3A4. Further studies are required to prove this mechanism in humans.