Quantitative NMR (qNMR) for pharmaceutical analysis: The pioneering work of George Hanna at the US FDA

In the last two decades, quantitative NMR (qNMR) has become increasingly important for the analysis of pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and natural products including dietary supplements. For the purpose of quality control and chemical standardization of a large variety of pharmaceutical, chemical, and medicinal products, qNMR has proven to be a valuable orthogonal quantification method and a compelling alternative to chromatographic techniques. This work reviews a fundamental component of the early development of qNMR, reflected in the pioneering work of the late George M. Hanna during the years between 1984 and 2006 at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Because Hanna performed the majority of his groundbreaking work on a 90‐MHz instrument, his legacy output connects with recent progress in low‐field benchtop NMR instrumentation. Hanna gradually established the utility of qNMR for the routine quality control analyses practiced in pharmaceutical and related operations well ahead of his peers. His work has the potential to inspire new developments in qNMR applied to small molecules of biomedical importance.     

定量核磁法测定CL-20标准物质中有机杂质的含量

采用定量核磁共振波谱法(qNMR)测定六硝基六氮杂异伍兹烷(CL-20)标准物质中有机杂质的含量。核磁谱图解析证明,主要有机杂质成分为残余溶剂乙酸乙酯和中间体五硝基-乙酰基六氮杂异伍兹烷(MPIW),以不含四甲基硅烷(TMS)的氘代丙酮为溶剂,将六甲基二硅醚的四氯化碳标准溶液加入待测液中作为内标,以其谱峰(δ=0.06)作为内标峰对两种有机杂质进行定量分析。考察了延迟时间和采样次数对准确定量的影响,结果显示为确保定量结果的准确性,延迟时间D_1应不小于20 s,采样次数为32次。采用优化后的实验参数进行纯度分析,测得CL-20标准物质中有机杂质乙酸乙酯和MPIW的质量分数分别为0.03516%和0.156 2%,相对标准偏差(RSD)分别为0.91%和0.86%。     

Quantitative determination and validation of octreotide acetate using 1H‐NMR spectroscopy with internal standard method

Quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) is a well‐established technique in quantitative analysis. We presented a validated ¹H‐qNMR method for assay of octreotide acetate, a kind of cyclic octopeptide. Deuterium oxide was used to remove the undesired exchangeable peaks, which was referred to as proton exchange, in order to make the quantitative signals isolated in the crowded spectrum of the peptide and ensure precise quantitative analysis. Gemcitabine hydrochloride was chosen as the suitable internal standard. Experimental conditions, including relaxation delay time, the numbers of scans, and pulse angle, were optimized first. Then method validation was carried out in terms of selectivity, stability, linearity, precision, and robustness. The assay result was compared with that by means of high performance liquid chromatography, which is provided by Chinese Pharmacopoeia. The statistical F test, Student's t test, and nonparametric test at 95% confidence level indicate that there was no significant difference between these two methods. qNMR is a simple and accurate quantitative tool with no need for specific corresponding reference standards. It has the potential of the quantitative analysis of other peptide drugs and standardization of the corresponding reference standards.     

Quantitative determination of (-)-epicatechin in cider apple juices by (1)H NMR

This paper reports a quantitative determination method of (−)-epicatechin in apple juices by measuring of its signal at 7.05 ppm in the ¹H NMR spectrum. It is a direct method that does not need any previous derivatization. 1,3,5-Benzenetricarboxylic acid was added to the juice as internal standard for the determination of the absolute concentration of (−)-epicatechin. Ascorbic acid was also added to avoid enzymatic oxidation of the phenolics and to adjust the pH at 2.74, since the chemical shift of some compounds varies with the pH. Standard addition method accomplished with the juices of two different varieties of apples gave recoveries between 95 and 109%. The precision of the method was tested for repeatability (n=5) and reproducibility (n=13) obtaining a coefficient of variation of 5.8 and 8.6%, respectively. Limit of detection, calculated from “3S_y/x+intercept”, is 24 mg l⁻¹.     

西藜芦生物硷~1H核磁共振谱的研究

本文研究了西藜芦生物硷的1~H核磁共振谱,归纳出一些确定酰基连接位置的初步规律。     

Direct Quantitation of Phytocannabinoids by One-Dimensional 1H qNMR and Two-Dimensional 1H-1H COSY qNMR in Complex Natural Mixtures

The widespread use of phytocannabinoids or cannabis extracts as ingredients in numerous types of products, in combination with the legal restrictions on THC content, has created a need for the development of new, rapid, and universal analytical methods for their quantitation that ideally could be applied without separation and standards. Based on previously described qNMR studies, we developed an expanded ¹H qNMR method and a novel 2D-COSY qNMR method for the rapid quantitation of ten major phytocannabinoids in cannabis plant extracts and cannabis-based products. The ¹H qNMR method was successfully developed for the quantitation of cannabidiol (CBD), cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), cannabinol (CBN), cannabichromene (CBC), cannabichromenic acid (CBCA), cannabigerol (CBG), cannabigerolic acid (CBGA), Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (Δ9-THCA), Δ8-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ8-THC), cannabielsoin (CBE), and cannabidivarin (CBDV). Moreover, cannabidivarinic acid (CBDVA) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabivarinic acid (Δ9-THCVA) can be distinguished from CBDA and Δ9-THCA respectively, while cannabigerovarin (CBGV) and Δ8-tetrahydrocannabivarin (Δ8-THCV) present the same ¹H-spectra as CBG and Δ8-THC, respectively. The COSY qNMR method was applied for the quantitation of CBD, CBDA, CBN, CBG/CBGA, and THC/THCA. The two methods were applied for the analysis of hemp plants; cannabis extracts; edible cannabis medium-chain triglycerides (MCT); and hemp seed oils and cosmetic products with cannabinoids. The ¹H-NMR method does not require the use of reference compounds, and it requires only a short time for analysis. However, complex extracts in ¹H-NMR may have a lot of signals, and quantitation with this method is often hampered by peak overlap, with 2D NMR providing a solution to this obstacle. The most important advantage of the COSY NMR quantitation method was the determination of the legality of cannabis plants, extracts, and edible oils based on their THC/THCA content, particularly in the cases of some samples for which the determination of THC/THCA content by ¹H qNMR was not feasible.     

The First Application of 1H NMR Spectroscopy for the Assessment of the Authenticity of Perfumes

The manufacture of counterfeit goods is one of the world’s largest underground businesses and is rapidly growing. Counterfeits can lead not only to the loss of profit for honest producers but also have a negative impact on consumers who pay excessive prices for poor quality goods that may result in health or safety problems. The perfume industry is constantly vulnerable to counterfeits, particularly in the fast developing market of “smell-alike” designer-inspired perfumes because these prompt the identification of the methods that classify their quality. In this paper, the application of proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) spectroscopy is employed for the first time to authenticate perfumery products. The molecular composition of several types of authentic brand fragrances for women was compared with cheap inspired equivalents and fakes. Our approach offers the prospect of a fast and simple method for detecting counterfeit perfumes using ¹H NMR spectroscopy.     

二维NMR确定吡喃酮衍生物C_9H_（12）O_4的结构

利用Ｈ－ＨＣＯＳＹ和Ｃ－ＨＣＯＳＹ谱实现对~１Ｈ和~（１３）Ｃ谱的指认和归属；利用ＨＭ－ＢＣ谱确定分子的骨架；根据~１Ｈ－~１Ｈ标量偶合常数的大小推出相邻碳原子上质子的相对位置；并结合其它谱学数据，确定了从天然产物分离得到的吡喃酮衍生物Ｃ_９Ｈ_（１２）－Ｏ_４的化学结构并命名为２－（１’，２’－环氧丙烷基）－４－羟基－５－甲基－２－戊烯－５－酸内酯。     

Benchmarking of density functionals for a soft but accurate prediction and assignment of 1H and 13C NMR chemical shifts in organic and biological molecules

A number of programs and tools that simulate ¹H and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shifts using empirical approaches are available. These tools are user‐friendly, but they provide a very rough (and sometimes misleading) estimation of the NMR properties, especially for complex systems. Rigorous and reliable ways to predict and interpret NMR properties of simple and complex systems are available in many popular computational program packages. Nevertheless, experimentalists keep relying on these “unreliable” tools in their daily work because, to have a sufficiently high accuracy, these rigorous quantum mechanical methods need high levels of theory. An alternative, efficient, semi‐empirical approach has been proposed by Bally, Rablen, Tantillo, and coworkers. This idea consists of creating linear calibrations models, on the basis of the application of different combinations of functionals and basis sets. Following this approach, the predictive capability of a wider range of popular functionals was systematically investigated and tested. The NMR chemical shifts were computed in solvated phase at density functional theory level, using 30 different functionals coupled with three different triple–ζ basis sets. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Assessment of the Extent of Starch Dissolution in Dimethyl Sulfoxide by 1H NMR Spectroscopy

Complete dissolution is needed for the separation, characterization, or homogeneous labeling of whole starch molecules. A method is presented to quantify the extent of starch dissolution in DMSO for the first time; it is validated on a commercial rice starch. It is used directly on starch dispersions containing possible undissolved or co‐dissolved species. High‐amylose maize starches, known to be digested slowly in vivo, only quantitatively dissolve in the presence of high concentrations of an H‐bond disrupter, LiBr, although they form clear dispersions at low LiBr concentrations. Starch quantitatively dissolves from waxy rice flours; non‐starch components partially co‐dissolve but do not interfere with the dissolution quantification.

     

用核磁共振方法表征芳香酯环状二聚体

用＾１Ｈ，＾１３ＣＮＭＲ方法研究了芳香酯环状二聚体的结构，并讨论了芳香酯环状二聚体的＾１Ｈ谱和＾１３Ｃ谱各谱峰的归属，为同类化合物的表征提供了一个依据。     

Purity determination of a new antifungal drug candidate using quantitative 1H NMR spectroscopy: Method validation and comparison of calibration approaches

Quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) is an analytical technique that offers numerous advantages in pharmaceutical applications including minimum sample preparation and rapid data collection times with no need for response factor corrections, being a powerful tool for assaying drug content in both drug discovery and early drug development. In the present work, we have applied qNMR, using both the internal standard and the electronic reference to access in vivo concentrations 2 calibration methods, to assess the purity of RI76, a novel antifungal drug candidate. NMR acquisition and processing parameters were optimized in order to obtain spectra with intense, well-resolved signals of completely relaxed nuclei. The analytical method was validated following current guidelines, demonstrating selectivity, linearity, accuracy, precision, and robustness. The calibration approaches were statistically compared, and no significant difference was observed when comparing the obtained results and their dispersion in terms of relative standard deviation. The proposed qNMR method may, therefore, be used for both qualitative and quantitative assessments of RI76 in early drug development and for characterization of this compound.     

Self‐diffusion and interactions in mixtures of imidazolium bis(mandelato)borate ionic liquids with polyethylene glycol: 1H NMR study

We used ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance pulsed‐field gradient to study the self‐diffusion of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and ions in a mixture of PEG and imidazolium bis(mandelato)borate ionic liquids (ILs) at IL concentrations from 0 to 10 wt% and temperatures from 295 to 370 K. PEG behaves as a solvent for these ILs, allowing observation of separate lines in ¹H NMR spectra assigned to the cation and anion as well as to PEG. The diffusion coefficients of PEG, as well as the imidazolium cation and bis(mandelato)borate (BMB) anion, differ under all experimental conditions tested. This demonstrates that the IL in the mixture is present in at least a partially dissociated state, while the lifetimes of the associated states of the ions and ions with PEG are less than ~30 ms. Generally, increasing the concentration of the IL leads to a decrease in the diffusion coefficients of PEG and both ions. The diffusion coefficient of the anion is less than that of the cation; the molecular mass dependence of diffusion of ions can be described by the Stokes–Einstein model. NMR chemical shift alteration analysis showed that the presence of PEG changes mainly the chemical shifts of protons belonging to imidazole ring of the cation, while chemical shifts of protons of anions and PEG remain unchanged. This demonstrated that the imidazolium cation interacts mainly with PEG, which most probably occurs through the oxygen of PEG and the imidazole ring. The BMB anion does not strongly interact with PEG, but it may be indirectly affected by PEG through interaction with the cation, which directly interacts with PEG. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

溶剂对氟烷基卤代烷^1^9FNMR 化学位移的影响

长期以来,溶剂对反应途径和反应物的影响及他们之间的关系是物理和有机化学家一个十分感兴趣的课题。溶剂影响氟烷基碘的~(19)F NMR 曾有文献报道。我们在研究氟烷基碘与铜反应中的溶剂作用时,发现,在配位能力较小的溶剂中反应经自由基中间体,而在配位能力较大的溶剂中反应是通过氟烷基铜中     

Monitoring of the insecticide trichlorfon by phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance (31P NMR) spectroscopy

Trichlorfon is an organophosphorus insecticide, which is extensively being used for protection of fruit crops. Trichlorfon is a thermal labile compound, which cannot be easily determined by gas chromatography (GC) and has no suitable group for sensitive detection by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). In this study, a ³¹P nuclear magnetic resonance (³¹P NMR) has been described for monitoring of trichlorfon without any separation step. The quantitative works of ³¹P NMR spectroscopy has been performed in the presence of an internal standard (hexamethylphosphoramide). Limit of detection (LOD) for this method has been found to be 55 mg L⁻¹, without any sample preparation, and the linear working range was 150-5500 mg L⁻¹. Relative standard deviation (R.S.D.%) of the method for three replicates within and between days was obtained ≤9%. The average recovery efficiency was approximately 99-112%. This method was applied for monitoring trichlorfon in a commercial insecticide sample and tomato sample.     

1H NMR determination of hypericin and pseudohypericin in complex natural mixtures by the use of strongly deshielded OH groups

The ¹H NMR spectra of the commercially available compounds hypericin and its derivative pseudohypericin in CD₃OH solutions indicate significantly deshielded signals in the region of 14-15 ppm. These resonances are attributed to the peri hydroxyl protons OH(6), OH(8) and OH(1), OH(13) of hypericins which participate in a strong six-membered ring intramolecular hydrogen bond with CO(7) and CO(14), respectively, and therefore, they are strongly deshielded. In the present work, we demonstrate that one-dimensional ¹H NMR spectra of hypericin and pseudohypericin, in Hypericum perforatum extracts show important differences in the chemical shifts of the hydroxyl groups with excellent resolution in the region of 14-15 ppm. The facile identification and quantification of hypericin and its derivative compound pseudohypericin was achieved, without prior HPLC separation, for two H. perforatum extracts from Greek cultivars and two commercial extracts: a dietary supplement, and an antidepressant medicine. The results were compared with those obtained from UV-vis and LC/MS measurements.     

无环醇~(13)C NMR化学位移与其结构参数的定量关系

用新颖的原子拓扑矢量Y_C、原子平衡电负性q_e、结构信息参数[N_H~i(i=α,β)]和γ校正参数对63个无环饱和脂肪醇的局部化学微环境进行了结构表征,并对化合物~(13)C NMR化学位移进行了QSSR研究.采用偏最小二乘回归得到模型的复相关系数R和标准偏差S分别为0.9915和2.4827;对353个碳原子~(13)C NMR化学位移的实验值与计算值的平均绝对误差仅为2.01×10~(-6).同时,采用留分法(Leave-molecule-out)和外检验方法测试模型的内部稳定性和外部预测能力.与文献结果比较,本研究所用参数少,且计算简便.     

Computational (DFT) and Experimental (NMR) Study of the Chelation of an Iridium Hyperpolarization Transfer Catalyst by Amino Acids

Non-hydrogenative Para-Hydrogen Induced Hyperpolarization (nhPHIP) is a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) hyperpolarization technique which has experimentally been used to analyze complex biological samples containing amino acids using the Ir-IMes hyperpolarization transfer catalyst. A computational study based on Density Function Theory (DFT) was performed on all relevant stereoisomers of [Ir(H)₂(IMes)(AA)(Py)] (with AA=glycine, alanine, valine; Py=pyridine), for which R/S chirality and orientation of the amino acid chelation (C/A) were considered. A total of 30 structures were calculated comprising of 6 stereoisomers for achiral glycine, and 12 stereoisomers for each of the chiral amino acids. The abundances derived from the DFT energies confirmed the trends observed in thermal (non-hyperpolarized) NMR experiments. Additionally, theoretical calculations of electronic (Wiberg bond indices, Natural Bond Orders, Frontier Orbital Analysis), bond dissociation energies, transition states, and activation energies related to interconversion between binding modes, and steric factors (Solid angle) were performed to provide detailed explanations for NMR experimental observations.     

Two Ways to Achieve the Same Goal—Two Validated Quantitative NMR Strategies for a Low-Abundance Natural Product in Standardized Extracts: The Case of Hepatodamianol in Turnera diffusa

The quantification of low-abundance secondary metabolites in plant extracts is an analytical problem that can be addressed by different analytical platforms, the most common being those based on chromatographic methods coupled to a high-sensitivity detection system. However, in recent years nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) has become an analytical tool of primary choice for this type of problem because of its reliability, inherent simplicity in sample preparation, reduced analysis time, and low solvent consumption. The versatility of strategies based on quantitative NMR (qNMR), such as internal and external standards and electronic references, among others, and the need to develop validated analytical methods make it essential to compare procedures that must rigorously satisfy the analytical well-established acceptance criteria for method validation. In this work, two qNMR methods were developed for the quantification of hepatodamianol, a bioactive component of T. diffusa. The first method was based on a conventional external standard calibration, and the second one was based on the pulse length-based concentration determination (PULCON) method using the ERETIC2 module as a quantitation tool available in TopSpin software. The results show that both procedures allow the content of the analyte of interest in a complex matrix to be determined in a satisfactory way, under strict analytical criteria. In addition, ERETIC2 offers additional advantages such as a reduction in experimental time, reagent consumption, and waste generated.