Partitioning of oxaminiquine into brain tissue following intravenous administration to female Wistar rats.

Brain and plasma concentrations of oxaminiquine were determined following intravenous dosing (15 mg kg-1) in female Wistar rats. Maximum brain concentrations were achieved one hour after dosing and at all sampling times oxamniquine levels were higher in brain tissues compared to the corresponding plasma samples. It is concluded that the reported adverse neurological effects associated with the clinical use of oxaminiquine in man may be due to the passage of sufficiently large quantities of this drug into the CNS.