Docking studies of piperine - iron conjugate with human CYP450 3A4.

Piperine, a major constituent of Piper nigrum (Black pepper), is one of the well known components in many Ayurvedic formulations. Piperine is most studied bioenhancer because it inhibits drug metabolizing enzymes in rodents and increases plasma concentrations of several drugs, including P-glycoprotein substrates. However, there areno evidences on piperine-iron conjugate to inhibit human CYP450 3A4. We therefore investigated the influence of piperine-Fe conjugate to study the metabolism of iron with CYP450 3A4. Our in silico results showed that Piperine when conjugated with iron, inhibited activity of CYP450 3A4. This improved the binding of piperine-Fe conjugate with CYP450 3A4 and increased bioavailability.