Effect of Gum Acacia on the Pharmacokinetics of Metformin and Lisinopril in Mice

Gum acacia (GA) is widely used as a complementary and alternative medicine for the treatment of diseases and experimentally for the amelioration of diabetes, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease.However, its effect on the pharmacokinetics of commonly used drugs has not yet been explored.The objective of this study was to examine the effects of GA on the pharmacokinetic profile of metformin and lisinopril in mice.Male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into two equal groups; the control group received metformin (150 mg/kg) or lisinopril (10 mg/kg) via oral gavage, whereas the intervention group received GA via oral gavage at 15% w/v followed by the same dose of drugs 15 minutes later.Mice were then anaesthetized, and blood samples were collected at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 h after drug administration.Validated LC-MS/MS methods were used to determine metformin and lisinopril plasma concentrations.GA significantly increased metformin half-life (2.98 vs. 4.38 h, p = 0.026) and mean residence time (3.96 vs. 7.41 h, p = 0.0029), and decreased lisinopril half-life (2.76 vs. 2.24 h, p = 0.038).This study demonstrated that GA can alter the extent of metformin absorption without a major impact on lisinopril absorption.The clinical implications of this interaction on blood sugar control warrant further research.