title: Pharmacokinetics of germanium after po beta-carboxyethylgermanium sesquioxide in 24 Chinese volunteers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the pharmacokinetics after po different doses of beta-carboxyethylgermanium sesquioxide (Ge-132).
  
  
  METHODS
  An atomic absorption spectrophotometric system was used to measure germanium concentrations in plasma and urine samples after po Ge-132 1 (low dose, LD), 2.5 (medium dose, MD), and 4 (high dose, HD) g.m-2 in 24 healthy volunteers (one dose per 8 subjects).
  
  
  RESULTS
  T1/2 alpha (LD, 1.2 +/- 0.7 h; MD, 1.1 +/- 0.6 h; HD, 1.2 +/- 0.5 h), T1/2 beta (LD, 5.2 +/- 1.2 h; MD, 5.8 +/- 2.5 h; HD, 5.5 +/- 1.4 h) and Cl/F (LD, 33 +/- 12 L.h-1; MD, 35 +/- 10 L.h-1; HD, 33 +/- 11 L.h-1) were not dose-related. Tmax was between 0.75 h and 2 h. Cmax (LD, 5.3 +/- 2.2 mg.L-1; MD, 13 +/- 5 mg.L-1; HD 18 +/- 8 mg.L-1, HD) and AUC (LD, 31 +/- 13 mg.h.L-1; MD, 60 +/- 16 mg.h.L-1; HD, 79 +/- 42 mg.h.L-1) were positive correlation to the dose of Ge-132. Urine-eliminated germanium within 24 h accounted for 11 +/- 3% of LD, 9 +/- 3% of MD, and 6 +/- 5% of HD (calculated from Ge/F) and showed a negative correlation to the dose.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  1) Intracorporal process of Ge after po Ge-132 coincided with the first-order absorption and elimination with two-compartment kinetic model; 2) The amount of germanium eliminated in urine was below 11%.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Sun Yat-Sen University of Medical Sciences, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Q C
authors.initials: QC
authors.lastname: Long
authors.forename: G X
authors.initials: GX
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: X L
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D019540:Area Under Curve; D005260:Female; D005857:Germanium / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D006801:Humans; D007369:Interferon Inducers / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D008297:Male; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D011422:Propionates; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D007369:Interferon Inducers; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D011422:Propionates; D005857:Germanium; C066750:propagermanium