# Statin Lipophilicity as a Determinant of Drug Airway Distribution: A Pilot Study to Identify the Most Potent Statin(s) for the Treatment of Severe Asthma.

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2020 · $78,500

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
We have identified the statin drugs (`statins') as a potential adjunctive therapy for patients with severe asthma.
Statins exert potent anti-inflammatory and immune modulatory effects in many different animal disease models
including asthma. Mevalonate (MA) is the immediate product of HMG-CoA reductase (HMGCR) which is
metabolized to essential metabolites for cell signaling and diverse cellular functions. All statins inhibit HMGCR,
the rate-limiting step in cholesterol biosynthesis. Using our asthma mouse model, we showed that blockade of
MA production with a statin abrogates allergen-induced eosinophilia, goblet cell metaplasia, and airway
hyperreactivity. Multiple retrospective clinical studies have shown a positive correlation between statin use and
improved asthma outcomes, including steroid-sparing effects. However, several small randomized clinical trials
(RCTs) using statins have yielded conflicting results. Differences in study design, statin class (lipophilic vs.
hydrophilic), lack of asthma phenotyping, and short treatment durations may account for these inconclusive
findings. The choice of statin based on drug lipophilicity is an underappreciated variable in designing asthma
trials, and may be a key determinant regarding which statin achieves the highest concentrations in the airway
compartment. If statins are to have a clinical benefit in asthma, they must first reach the airways in high
enough concentrations (i.e. “airway distribution”) to be therapeutic. Given that statins' extrahepatic peripheral
tissue distribution can vary according to drug lipophilicity, the most lipophilic statins like simvastatin are
predicted to achieve higher peripheral tissue levels than the hydrophilic statins such as rosuvastatin. However,
we do not know if this phenomenon occurs in the human lung and airways since it has never been measured.
Our preliminary data show that the greater the statin lipophilicity, (i) the greater the airway epithelial drug
concentration in severe asthmatics, and (ii) the greater its anti-inflammatory potency in vivo. Therefore, our
central hypothesis is that lipophilic statins will achieve significantly higher airway epithelial concentrations and
greater therapeutic efficacy than the hydrophilic statins. We will test this hypothesis with two Aims: Aim 1: To
determine which class of statins has the greatest airway distribution in a prospective pilot study of
human subjects undergoing elective bronchoscopy. Aim 2: To determine which class of statins has the
greatest efficacy in a mouse model of chronic allergen-induced asthma. Accomplishing this work will
allow us to select the right statin(s), and therefore, directly inform the rational design of forthcoming statin
clinical trials for the treatment of severe asthma. This knowledge may also extend to other lung or airway
diseases that could potentially benefit from treatment with statins.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9900756
- **Project number:** 5R03AI139648-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Amir A. Zeki
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $78,500
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-01 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9900756

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9900756, Statin Lipophilicity as a Determinant of Drug Airway Distribution: A Pilot Study to Identify the Most Potent Statin(s) for the Treatment of Severe Asthma. (5R03AI139648-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9900756. Licensed CC0.

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