Flucytosine conversion to fluorouracil in humans: does a correlation with gut flora status exist? A report of two cases using fluorine-19 magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Infection. 1991 May-Jun;19(3):178-80. doi: 10.1007/BF01643246.

Abstract

A relationship between the gut flora level, particularly gram-negative enterobacilli, and the in vivo flucytosine conversion to fluorouracil has been observed in humans from the fluorine-19 magnetic resonance spectroscopy analysis of urine from two patients treated with the flucytosine- (6 to 9 g/day) amphotericin B (1 mg/kg/day) combination. Indeed the percentage of fluorouracil metabolites was extremely low (less than 0.6% of total fluorinated compounds excreted) when the number of enterobacillary colonies was low (less than 10(3] and higher (3.5 to 8.8%) when enterobacillary colonies were under reconstitution or in the normal range (10(5) to 10(8]. The intestinal microflora assessment may therefore be of high interest to predict the risk of an additive flucytosine-induced myelotoxicity suspected to be due to fluorouracil during flucytosine chronic therapy.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Amphotericin B / therapeutic use
  • Drug Therapy, Combination
  • Enterobacteriaceae / metabolism*
  • Flucytosine / analogs & derivatives
  • Flucytosine / metabolism*
  • Flucytosine / therapeutic use
  • Flucytosine / urine
  • Fluorouracil / metabolism*
  • Fluorouracil / urine
  • Gram-Negative Bacteria / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Intestines / microbiology*
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Substances

  • Amphotericin B
  • Flucytosine
  • Fluorouracil