Evaluating Dermal Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodymanic Effect of Soft Topical PDE4 Inhibitors: Open Flow Microperfusion and Skin Biopsies

Purpose To investigate the difference in clinical efficacy in AD patients between two topical PDE4 inhibitors using dermal open flow microperfusion and cAMP as a pharmacodynamic read-out in fresh human skin explants. Methods Clinical formulations were applied to intact or barrier disrupted human skin explants and both skin biopsy samples and dermal interstitial fluid was sampled for measuring drug concentration. Furthermore, cAMP levels were determined in the skin biopsies as a measure of target engagement. Results Elevated cAMP levels were observed with LEO 29102 while no evidence of target engagement was obtained with LEO 39652. In barrier impaired skin the dISF concentration of LEO 29102 was 2100 nM while only 33 nM for LEO 39652. For both compounds the concentrations measured in skin punch biopsies were 7–33-fold higher than the dISF concentrations. Conclusions Low unbound drug concentration in dISF in combination with minimal target engagement of LEO 39652 in barrier impaired human skin explants supports that lack of clinical efficacy of LEO 39652 in AD patients is likely due to insufficient drug availability at the target. We conclude that dOFM together with a pharmacodynamic target engagement biomarker are strong techniques for establishing skin PK/PD relations and that skin biopsies should be used with caution.