Idarucizumab, a Specific Antidote for Dabigatran, Cross-Reacts with Melagatran and May Also Interact with Other Benzamidine-Containing Compounds

Introduction: Dabigatran etexilate is a pro-drug which is used to prevent embolic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. This oral anticoagulant is also approved for other indications in Europe. As with all anticoagulants, there is a potential for serious hemorrhage with dabigatran usage which may require antidotes to control bleeding. Idarucizumab is an anti-dabigatran Fab fragment (Boehringer-Ingelheim) that binds to the benzamidine group on dabigatran and inhibits its anti-thrombin activity. Idarucizumab has recently been approved by the US FDA for the control of bleeding associated with dabigatran.

Materials and Methods: Such antithrombin agents as argatroban, melagatran, hirudin, and bivalirudin, human antithrombin, thrombomodulin, heparin cofactor II, and heparin-AT complex were commercially obtained. Anti-factor Xa agents (rivaroxaban, apixaban and DX-9065a were also obtained from various sources To test the specificity of the inhibitory effects of idarucizumab, each of these agents were supplemented to whole blood and citrated plasma at concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 100 µg/mL. Idarucizumab was added to each mixture at a concentration of 1 mg/mL and anticoagulant activities were assessed using PT, aPTT, thrombin time and chromogenic anti-IIa/Xa and flurometric thrombin generation assays.

Results: Idarucizumab itself did not produce any anticoagulant effects on whole blood or plasma clotting profile. However it showed a slight procoagulant effect in the whole blood and plasma based assays. It produced a strong concentration dependant inhibition of both dabigatran and melagatran. The antibody showed strong specificity for the inhibition of dabigatran amd melagatran and did not affect the anticoagulant and other effects of the other synthetic and natural thrombin and FXa inhibitors. The prolongation of the PT, APTT and thrombin time by melagatran was completely inhibited by idarucizumab. Idarucizumab more effectively inhibited the prolongation of thrombin time by dabigatran than the prolongation induced by melagatran.

Discussion: The cross-reactivity of idarucizumab with melagatran may result from the presence of a common benzamidine pharmacophore which is present in both of these anticoagulant agents. Since the benzamidine pharmacophore is present in a number of serine protease inhibitors as well as drugs such as pentamidine, propamidine and dibromopropamidine. These observations suggest that simultaneous administration of idarucizumab may compromise the pharmacodynamics profile of benzamidine derived drugs such as the anti-malarials, anti-psychotic, anti-fungal and other compounds. Thus there is a need for a systemic screening of idarucizumab for its potential interactions with drugs containing benzamidine based therapeutic agents.