Purpose: We tested five different angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) as mitigators of experimental radiation nephropathy at drug doses calibrated to the plasma renin activity (PRA). This was done to determine whether all ACEI had the same efficacy as mitigators of radiation nephropathy when used at drug doses that gave equivalent suppression of the renin angiotensin system.
Method: 10 Gy total body irradiation with bone marrow transplantation was used to cause radiation nephropathy in barrier-maintained rats. Equivalent ACEI doses were determined based on their effect to inhibit angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and raise the PRA in unirradiated animals.
Results: PRA-equivalent doses were found for captopril, lisinopril, enalapril, ramipril and fosinopril. These doses overlap the human doses of these drugs on a body surface area basis. All ACE inhibitors, except fosinopril, mitigated radiation nephropathy; captopril was a somewhat better mitigator than lisinopril, enalapril or ramipril.
Conclusions: Most, but not all, ACEI mitigate radiation nephropathy at doses that overlap their clinically-used doses (on a body surface area basis). Fosinopril is known to be an ineffective mitigator of radiation pneumonitis, and it also does not mitigate radiation nephropathy. These pre-clinical data are critical in planning human studies of the mitigation of normal tissue radiation injury.
Keywords: ACE inhibitors; captopril; mitigation; plasma renin activity; radiation nephropathy; total body irradiation.