The optical enantiomers of modafinil have similar pharmacological actions in animals. Two major metabolites of modafinil, modafinil acid and modafinil sulfone, do not appear to contribute to the CNS-activating properties of modafinil.
Modafinil is a 1:1 racemic compound, whose enantiomers have different pharmacokinetics (e.g., the half-life of R-modafinil is approximately three times that of S-modafinil in adult humans). The enantiomers do not interconvert. At steady state, total exposure to R-modafinil is approximately three times that for S-modafinil. The trough concentration (C min,ss) of circulating modafinil after once daily dosing consists of 90% of R-modafinil and 10% of S-modafinil. The effective elimination half-life of modafinil after multiple doses is about 15-hours. The enantiomers of modafinil exhibit linear kinetics upon multiple dosing of 200 mg/day to 600 mg/day once daily in healthy volunteers. Apparent steady states of total modafinil and R-modafinil are reached after 2-days to 4-days of dosing.
Absorption
Modafinil is readily absorbed after oral administration, with peak plasma concentrations occurring at 2-hours to 4-hours. The bioavailability of modafinil tablets is approximately equal to that of an aqueous suspension. The absolute oral bioavailability was not determined due to the aqueous insolubility (< 1 mg/mL) of modafinil, which precluded intravenous administration. Food has no effect on overall modafinil bioavailability; however, time to reach peak concentration (t max) may be delayed by approximately one hour if taken with food.
Distribution
Modafinil has an apparent volume of distribution of approximately 0.9 L/kg. In human plasma, in vitro, modafinil is moderately bound to plasma protein (approximately 60%), mainly to albumin. The potential for interactions of modafinil with highly protein-bound drugs is considered to be minimal.
Metabolism and Elimination
The major route of elimination is metabolism (approximately 90%), primarily by the liver, with subsequent renal elimination of the metabolites. Urine alkalinization has no effect on the elimination of modafinil.
Metabolism occurs through hydrolytic deamidation, S-oxidation, aromatic ring hydroxylation, and glucuronide conjugation. Less than 10% of an administered dose is excreted as the parent compound. In a clinical study using radiolabeled modafinil, a total of 81% of the administered radioactivity was recovered in 11-days post-dose, predominantly in the urine (80% vs. 1% in the feces). The largest fraction of the drug in urine was modafinil acid, but at least six other metabolites were present in lower concentrations. Only two metabolites reach appreciable concentrations in plasma, i.e., modafinil acid and modafinil sulfone. In preclinical models, modafinil acid, modafinil sulfone, 2-[(diphenylmethyl)sulfonyl]acetic acid and 4-hydroxy modafinil, were inactive or did not appear to mediate the arousal effects of modafinil.
In adults, decreases in trough levels of modafinil have sometimes been observed after multiple weeks of dosing, suggesting auto-induction, but the magnitude of the decreases and the inconsistency of their occurrence suggest that their clinical significance is minimal. Significant accumulation of modafinil sulfone has been observed after multiple doses due to its long elimination half-life of 40-hours. Auto-induction of metabolizing enzymes, most importantly cytochrome P-450 CYP3A4, has also been observed in vitroafter incubation of primary cultures of human hepatocytes with modafinil and in vivoafter extended administration of modafinil at 400 mg/day.
A slight decrease (approximately 20%) in the oral clearance (CL/F) of modafinil was observed in a single dose study at 200 mg in 12 subjects with a mean age of 63-years (range 53-years to 72-years), but the change was considered not likely to be clinically significant. In a multiple dose study (300 mg/day) in 12 patients with a mean age of 82-years (range 67-years to 87-years), the mean levels of modafinil in plasma were approximately two times those historically obtained in matched younger subjects. Due to potential effects from the multiple concomitant medications with which most of the patients were being treated, the apparent difference in modafinil pharmacokinetics may not be attributable solely to the effects of aging. However, the results suggest that the clearance of modafinil may be reduced in the elderly [see Dosage and Administration ( 2.4) and Use in Specific Populations ( 8.5)] .
Gender
The pharmacokinetics of modafinil are not affected by gender.
Race
The influence of race on the pharmacokinetics of modafinil has not been studied.
Renal Impairment
In a single dose 200 mg modafinil study, severe chronic renal failure (creatinine clearance ≤ 20 mL/min) did not significantly influence the pharmacokinetics of modafinil, but exposure to modafinil acid (an inactive metabolite) was increased 9-fold.
Hepatic Impairment
The pharmacokinetics and metabolism of modafinil were examined in patients with cirrhosis of the liver (6 men and 3 women). Three patients had stage B or B+ cirrhosis and 6 patients had stage C or C+ cirrhosis (per the Child-Pugh score criteria). Clinically 8 patients of 9 patients were icteric and all had ascites. In these patients, the oral clearance of modafinil was decreased by about 60% and the steady state concentration was doubled compared to normal patients [see Dosage and Administration ( 2.3) and Use in Specific Populations ( 8.6)] .
Drug Interactions
In vitrodata demonstrated that modafinil weakly induces CYP1A2, CYP2B6, and possibly CYP3A activities in a concentration-related manner and that CYP2C19 activity is reversibly inhibited by modafinil. In vitrodata also demonstrated that modafinil produced an apparent concentration-related suppression of expression of CYP2C9 activity. Other CYP activities did not appear to be affected by modafinil.
Potential Interactions with Drugs That Inhibit, Induce, or Are Metabolized by Cytochrome P450 Isoenzymes and Other Hepatic Enzymes
The existence of multiple pathways for modafinil metabolism, as well as the fact that a non-CYP-related pathway is the most rapid in metabolizing modafinil, suggest that there is a low probability of substantive effects on the overall pharmacokinetic profile of modafinil due to CYP inhibition by concomitant medications. However, due to the partial involvement of CYP3A enzymes in the metabolic elimination of modafinil, co-administration of potent inducers of CYP3A4/5 (e.g., carbamazepine, phenobarbital, rifampin) or inhibitors of CYP3A4/5 (e.g., ketoconazole, erythromycin) could alter the plasma concentrations of modafinil.
The Potential of modafinil to Alter the Metabolism of Other Drugs by Enzyme Induction or Inhibition