Ultra‐performance liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of febuxostat in dog plasma and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

A rapid, sensitive and selective ultra‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of febuxostat in dog plasma. Using paclitaxel as an internal standard (IS), a simple liquid–liquid extraction method with ethyl acetate was adopted for plasma sample pretreatment. Separation was carried out on an Acquity UPLC BEH C₁₈ column with a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and water (containing 0.2% formic acid). The assay was linear in the concentration ranged from 5 to 5000 ng/mL with a lower limit of quantification of 5 ng/mL for febuxostat. The single run analysis was as short as 2.0 min. Finally, the developed method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of febuxostat tablets following oral administration at a single dose of 40 mg in beagle dogs. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A rapid and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for quantification of donepezil and its active metabolite, 6-o-desmethyl donepezil in human plasma and its pharmacokinetic application

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometric (LC‐MS/MS) assay method has been developed and fully validated for simultaneous quantification of donepezil and its active metabolite, 6‐o‐desmethyl donepezil in human plasma. Analytes and the internal standard were extracted from human plasma by liquid–liquid extraction technique using a 30:70 v/v mixture of ethyl acetate and n‐hexane. The reconstituted samples were chromatographed on a C₁₈ column by using a 70:30 v/v mixture of acetonitrile and ammonium formate (5 mm , pH 5.0) as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.6 mL/min. The calibration curve obtained was linear (r ≥ 0.99) over the concentration range of 0.09–24.2 ng/mL for donepezil and 0.03–8.13 ng/mL for 6‐o‐desmethyl donepezil. The results of the intra‐day and inter‐day precision and accuracy studies were well within the acceptable limits. The proposed method was successfully applied for the estimation of the drug in real time plasma samples for pharmacokinetic studies. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sensitive method for the determination of rocilinostat in small volume mouse plasma by LC‐MS/MS and its application to a pharmacokinetic study in mice

A highly sensitive, specific and rapid LC‐ESI‐MS/MS method has been developed and validated for the quantification of rocilinostat in small volume mouse plasma (20 μL) using vorinostat as an internal standard (IS) as per regulatory guidelines. Sample preparation was accomplished through a protein precipitation procedure with acetonitrile. Chromatography was achieved on Prodigy ODS‐2 column using a binary gradient using mobile phase A (0.2% formic acid in water) and B (acetonitrile) at a flow rate of 0.38 mL/min. The total chromatographic run time was 4.1 min and the elution of rocilinostat and IS occurred at ~3.2 and 2.9 min, respectively. A linear response function was established in the concentration range of 0.28–1193 ng/mL in mouse plasma. The intra‐ and inter‐day accuracy and precisions were in the ranges of 3.12–8.93 and 6.41–11.6%, respectively. This novel method has been applied to a pharmacokinetic study in mice. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for quantification of lacosamide, an antiepileptic drug, in rat plasma and its application to pharmacokinetic study

A rapid, simple and sensitive liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) was developed for the determination of an antiepileptic drug, lacosamide, in rat plasma. The method involves the addition of acetonitrile and internal standard solution to plasma samples, followed by centrifugation. An aliquot of the supernatant was diluted with water and directly injected into the LC/MS/MS system. The separations were performed on column packed with octadecylsilica (5 µm, 2.0 × 50 mm) with 0.1% formic acid and acetonitrile as mobile phase, and the detection was performed on tandem mass spectrometry by the multiple‐reaction monitoring via an electrospray ionization source. The standard curve was linear over the concentration range from 0.3 to 1000 ng/mL. The lower limit of quantification was 0.3 ng/mL using 50 μL of rat plasma sample. The intra‐ and inter‐assay precision and accuracy were found to be less than 11.7 and 8.8%, respectively. The developed analytical method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of lacosamide in rats. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of an LC‐MS/MS method for quantification of kadsurenone in rat plasma and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

A sensitive and rapid LC‐MS/MS method was developed and validated for the determination of kadsurenone in rat plasma using lysionotin as the internal standard (IS). The analytes were extracted from rat plasma with acetonitrile and separated on a SB‐C₁₈ column (50 × 2.1 mm, i.d.; 1.8 µm) at 30 °C. Elution was achieved with a mobile phase consisting of methanol–water–formic acid (65:35:0.1, v/v/v) at a flow rate of 0.30 mL/min. Detection and quantification for analytes were performed by mass spectrometry in the multiple reaction monitoring mode with positive electrospray ionization m/z at 357.1 → 178.1 for kadsurenone, and m/z 345.1 → 315.1 for IS. Calibration curves were linear over a concentration range of 4.88–1464 ng/mL with a lower limit of quantification of 4.88 ng/mL. The intra‐ and inter‐day accuracies and precisions were <8.9%. The LC‐MS/MS assay was successfully applied for oral pharmacokinetic evaluation of kadsurenone using the rat as an animal model. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantification of methyllycaconitine,selective α7 nicotinic receptor antagonist,in rodent plasma and brain tissue by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry – application to neuropharmacokinetics of methyllycaconitine in rats

A sensitive high‐performance liquid chromatography–positive ion electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the quantification of methyllycaconitine (MLA) in rat plasma and brain tissue. Following acetonitrile protein precipitation, the analyte was separated using a gradient mobile phase on a reversed‐phase column and analyzed by MS/MS in the multiple reaction monitoring mode using the respective [M + H]⁺ ions, m/z 683–216 for MLA and m/z 260–116 for the internal standard. The assay exhibited a linear dynamic range of 0.5–250 ng/mL for MLA in rat plasma and brain tissue. The lower limit of quantification was 0.5 ng/mL. Acceptable precision (<12%) and accuracy (100 ± 6%) were obtained for concentrations over the standard curve range. The method was successfully applied to quantify MLA concentrations in a rodent pharmacokinetic and brain penetration study. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous determination of the bioactive components in rat plasma by UPLC‐MS/MS and application in pharmacokinetic studies after oral administration of radix Scutellariae extract

A highly sensitive and rapid ultraperformance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC‐MS/MS) method has been developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of the four main bioactive compounds, i.e. baicalin, baicalein, wogonoside and wogonin, in rat plasma after oral administration of Radix Scutellariae extract. Clarithromycin was used as an internal standard (IS). Plasma samples were processed by protein precipitation with methanol. The separation was performed on an Acquity BEH C₁₈ column (100 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min, using 0.1% formic acid–acetonitrile as mobile phase. The MS/MS ion transit ions monitored were 447.5 → 270.1 for baicalin, 270.1 → 168.1 for baicalein, 461.2 → 284.0 for wogonoside, 284.2 → 168.1 for wogonin and 748.5 → 158.1 for IS. Method validation was performed according to US Food and Drug Administration guidelines and the results met the acceptance criteria. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) achieved was 1.13 ng/mL for baicalin, 1.23 ng/mL for baicalein, 0.82 ng/mL for wogonoside and 0.36 ng/mL for wogonin. The calibration curves obtained were linear (r > 0.99) over the concentration range ~ 1–1000 ng/mL. The intra‐ and inter‐day precision was <15% and the accuracy was within ±14.7%. After validation, this method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of Radix Scutellariae extract.     

Simultaneous quantitative analysis of dextromethorphan,dextrorphan and chlorphenamine in human plasma by liquid chromatography–electrospray tandem mass spectrometry

A sensitive and accurate HPLC‐MS/MS method was developed for the simultaneous determination of dextromethorphan, dextrorphan and chlorphenamine in human plasma. Three analytes were extracted from plasma by liquid–liquid extraction using ethyl acetate and separated on a Kromasil 60‐5CN column (3 µm, 2.1 × 150 mm) with mobile phase of acetonitrile–water (containing 0.1% formic acid; 50:50, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.2 mL/min. Quantification was performed on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer in multiple reaction monitoring mode using positive electrospray ionization. The calibration curve was linear over the range of 0.01–5 ng/mL for dextromethorphan, 0.02–5 ng/mL for dextrorphan and 0.025–20 ng/mL for chlorphenamine. The lower limits of quantification for dextromethorphan, dextrorphan and chlorphenamine were 0.01, 0.02 and 0.025 ng/mL, respectively. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions were within 11% and accuracies were in the range of 92.9–102.5%. All analytes were proved to be stable during sample storage, preparation and analytic procedures. This method was first applied to the pharmacokinetic study in healthy Chinese volunteers after a single oral dose of the formulation containing dextromethorphan hydrobromide (18 mg) and chlorpheniramine malaeate (8 mg). Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determination of Ginsenoside Rg2 in Rat Plasma by High‐Performance Liquid Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry after Solid‐Phase Extraction

Abstract

A sensitive liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometric (LC/MS) method for the quantification of ginsenoside Rg2 (Rg2) in rat plasma was developed after solid‐phase extraction (SPE). Chromatographic separation was achieved on a reversed‐phase Kromasil C₁₈ column with the mobile phase of acetonitrile‐ammonium chloride (500 µM/L) and step gradient elution resulted in a total run time of about 9 min. The analytes were detected using electrospray negative ionization mass spectrometry in the selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. A good linear relationship was obtained in the concentration range (5–2500 ng/mL) (r=0.9999). Limit of quantification (LOQ) was 5 ng/mL and the limit of detection (LOD) was 2 ng/mL using 100 µL plasma sample. Average recoveries ranged from 72.43–84.73% in plasma at the concentrations of 20, 200, and 2000 ng/mL. Intra‐ and interday coefficients of variation for the assay were 4.93–10.87% and 4.06–7.84%, respectively. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of ginsenoside Rg2 in rat plasma. The applicability of this assay was examined in a preliminary pharmacokinetic study of ginsenoside Rg2 in rats.     

Stereoselective determination of ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 epimers in rat plasma by LC‐MS/MS: Application to a pharmacokinetic study

We developed and validated an accurate and sensitive LC–MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantitation of ginsenoside Rg3 and Rh2 epimers (R‐Rg3, S‐Rg3, R‐Rh2, and S‐Rh2) in rat plasma. Analytes were extracted from 0.1 mL aliquots of rat plasma by liquid–liquid extraction, using 2 mL of ethyl acetate. In this assay, dioscin (500 ng/mL) was used as an internal standard. Chromatographic separation was conducted using an Acclaim RSLC C₁₈ column (150 × 2.1 mm, 2.2 μm) at 40°C, with a gradient mobile phase consisting of 0.1% formic acid in distilled water and in acetonitrile, a flow rate of 0.35 mL/min, and a total run time of 20 min. Detection and quantification were performed using a mass spectrometer in selected reaction‐monitoring mode with negative electrospray ionization at m/z 783.4 → 161.1 for R‐Rg3 and S‐Rg3, m/z 621.3 → 161.1 for R‐Rh2 and S‐Rh2, and m/z 867.2 → 761.5 for the internal standard. For R‐Rg3 and S‐Rg3, the lower limit of quantification was 5 ng/mL, with a linear range up to 500 ng/mL; for R‐Rh2 and S‐Rh2, the lower limit of quantification was 150 ng/mL, with a linear range up to 6000 ng/mL. The coefficient of variation for assay precision was less than 10.5%, with an accuracy of 86.4–112%. No relevant cross‐talk or matrix effect was observed. The method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study after oral administration of 400 mg/kg and 2000 mg/kg of BST204, a fermented ginseng extract, to rats. We found that the S epimers exhibited significantly higher plasma concentrations and area under curve values for both Rg3 and Rh2. This is the first report on the separation and simultaneous quantification of R‐Rg3, S‐Rg3, R‐Rh2, and S‐Rh2 in rat plasma by LC‐MS/MS. The method should be useful in the clinical use of ginseng or its derivatives.     

Determination of bencycloquidium bromide in dog plasma by liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid, selective and sensitive liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) method was developed and validated for determining bencycloquidium bromide (BCQB) in beagle dog plasma. The plasma sample was deproteinized with methanol which contained l‐ethyl‐bencycloquidium bromide as internal standard, and supernantant was assayed by LC‐MS/MS. The chromatographic separation was performed on a Phenomenex C₁₈ column (100 × 2.0 mm, i.d., 3.0 μm) with a gradient programme mobile phase consisting of methanol and ammonium acetate (5 mm) containing 0.15% acetic acid and at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. Electrospray ionization in positive ion mode and selective reaction monitoring was used for the quantification of BCQB with a monitored transitions m/z 330.2 → 142.1 for BCQB and m/z 344.2 → 126.2 for IS. Validation results indicated that the lower limit of quantification was 0.05 ng/mL and the assay exhibited a linear range of 0.05–10.0 ng/mL and gave a correlation coefficient of 0.9998. The intra‐ and inter‐run precisions of the assay were 1.7–4.6 and 3.2–15.6%, respectively, and the intra‐ and inter‐day accuracies were ?8.8 to 1.1 and ?5.0 to 4.6%, respectively. The developed method was applied for the pharmacokinetic study of BCQB in beagle dogs following a single intranasal dose. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A rapid and sensitive method for quantification of ibrutinib in rat plasma by UPLC–ESI–MS/MS: validation and application to pharmacokinetic studies of a novel ibrutinib nanocrystalline

Ibrutinib has an excellent effect in the treatment of mantle cell lymphoma so it has attracted much attention. A novel ibrutinib nanocrystalline was exploited in our study to improve the bioavailability. A fast and reliable UPLC–MS/MS method was established for the accurate quantification of ibrutinib in rat plasma. The chromatographic separation was achieved by an Agilent zorbax SB-C₁₈ rapid solution HD column (2.1 × 50 mm, 1.8 μm). The mobile phase consisted of deionized water (containing 10 mm ammonium acetate and 0.1% formic acid) and pure acetonitrile. Isocratic elution (water–acetonitrile 10:90, v/v) was adopted and the flow rate was 0.4 mL/min. Column temperature was set to 40°C. Vilazodone was used as the internal standard in this analytical method. Multiple reaction monitoring mode with positive electrospray ionization was selected to detect ibrutinib and vilazodone. Acetonitrile was used to precipitate protein to extract plasma samples. There was no endogenous interference for both ibrutinib and vilazodone and the linear range of this method was 1–2000 ng/mL. The recoveries were 98.4, 97.4 and 102.7% at low, medium and high concentrations. Accordingly, the matrix effect was 96.6, 111.1 and 99.6%. The pharmacokinetic difference between ibrutinib crude and a novel ibrutinib nanocrystalline in rats was investigated by this validated method successfully. The peak concentration and area under the concentration–time curve showed significant differences in gender and the bioavailability was improved after oral administration of ibrutinib nanocrystalline.     

Simultaneous determination of sibutramine and its active metabolites in human plasma by LC‐MS/MS and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

A simple and sensitive liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐ESI‐MS/MS) technique was developed and validated for the determination of sibutramine and its N‐desmethyl metabolites (M1 and M2) in human plasma. After extraction with methyl t‐butyl ether, chromatographic separation of analytes in human plasma was performed using a reverse‐phase Luna C₁₈ column with a mobile phase of acetonitrile–10 mm ammonium formate buffer (50:50, v/v) and quantified by ESI‐MS/MS detection in positive ion mode. The flow rate of the mobile phase was 200 μL/min and the retention times of sibutramine, M1, M2 and internal standard (chlorpheniramine) were 1.5, 1.4, 1.3 and 0.9 min, respectively. The calibration curves were linear over the range 0.05–20 ng/mL, for sibutramine, M1 and M2. The lower limit of quantification was 0.05 ng/mL using 500 μL of human plasma. The mean accuracy and the precision in the intra‐ and inter‐day validation for sibutramine, M1 and M2 were acceptable. This LC‐MS/MS method showed improved sensitivity and a short run time for the quantification of sibutramine and its two active metabolites in plasma. The validated method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study in human. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

LC–MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of ethyl gallate and its major metabolite in rat plasma

A simple, rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectroscopy (LC–MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of ethyl gallate, a pharmacologically active constituent isolated from Lagerstroemia speciosa (Linn.) Pers. This method was used to examine the pharmacokinetics of ethyl gallate and its major metabolite gallic acid in rat plasma using propyl gallate as an internal standard. After precipitation of the plasma proteins with acetonitrile, the analytes were separated on a Zorbax SB‐C₁₈ column (3.5 μm, 2.1 × 50 mm) with an isocratic mobile phase consisted of methanol–acetonitrile–10 mM ammonium acetate (10 : 25 : 65, v/v/v) containing 0.1% formic acid at a flow rate of 0.25 mL/min. The Agilent G6410A triple quadrupole LC/MS system was operated under the multiple‐reaction monitoring mode using the electrospray ionization technique in negative mode. The lower limits of quantification of gallic acid and ethyl gallate of the method were 0.5 and 1.0 ng/mL. The intra‐day and inter‐day accuracy and precision of the assay were less than 8.0%. This method has been applied successfully to a pharmacokinetic study involving the intragastric administration of ethyl gallate to rats. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous quantification of two steroidal glycosides after oral gavage of Marsdenia tenacissima extract in rats using a LC‐MS/MS method

A specific, sensitive and accurate analytical LC‐MS/MS assay was developed for the simultaneous determination of two steroidal glycosides, tenacissoside H and tenacissoside I, in rat plasma. An Agilent ZORBAX SB‐C₁₈ column was used with an isocratic mobile phase system composed of methanol–water–formic acid (70:30:0.1, v/v/v) at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. The analysis was performed on a positive ionization electrospray mass spectrometer via selected reaction monitoring mode scan. One‐step protein precipitation with acetonitrile was chosen to extract the analytes from plasma. The lower limits of quantification were 0.9 ng/mL for tenacissoside H and tenacissoside I. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions were 2.03–11.56 and 3.76–11.62%, respectively, and the accuracies were <110.28% at all quality control levels. The validated method was applied to a pharmacokinetic study in rats after oral gavage of Marsdenia tenacissima extract. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A simple LC‐MS method for determination of cyasterone in rat plasma: application to a pilot pharmacokinetic study

A simple, specific, and sensitive liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC‐MS) method for determination of cyasterone in rat plasma was developed in our laboratory. Cucurbitacin B was used as an internal standard (IS). After protein precipitation with twofold volume of acetonitrile, the analyte and IS were separated on a Luna C₁₈ column (100 × 4.6 mm, i.d., 3.0 µm; Phenomenex) by isocratic elution with acetonitrile–water (80:20, v/v) as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. An electrospray ionization source was applied and operated in the positive ion mode; selected ion monitoring scan mode was used for quantification, and the target ions m/z 543.3 for cyasterone and m/z 581.3 for IS were chosen. Good linearity was observed in the concentration range of 0.40–400 ng/mL for cyasterone in rat plasma. Intra‐day and inter‐day precision were both <7.4%. This method was proved to be suitable for pharmacokinetic studies after oral (5.0 mg/kg) or intravenous (0.5 mg/kg) administration of cyasterone in rats. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantitative determination of enzalutamide,an anti‐prostate cancer drug,in rat plasma using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry,and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

This report details a method using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) that allows one to determine the concentration of an atypical anticancer drug, enzalutamide, in rat plasma. Specifically, this method involves the addition of an acetonitrile and bicalutamide (internal standard) solution to plasma samples. Following centrifugation of this mixture, an aliquot of the supernatant was directly injected into the LC‐MS/MS system. Separation was achieved using a column packed with octadecylsilica (5 µm, 2.1 × 50 mm) with 10 mM ammonium acetate in acetonitrile as the mobile phase; detection was accomplished using MS/MS by multiple‐reaction monitoring via an electrospray ionization source. This method demonstrated a linear standard curve (r = 0.997) over a concentration range of 0.001–1 µg/mL, as well as an intra‐ and inter‐assay precision of 2.7 and 5.1%, respectively, and an accuracy range from 100.8 to 105.6%. The lower limit of quantification was 1.0 ng/mL in 50 μL of rat plasma sample. We also demonstrated that this analytical method could be successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of enzalutamide in rats. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development and validation of a quantification method for oleanolic acid and hederagenin in rat plasma: application to the pharmacokinetic study

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) was developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of oleanolic acid and hederagenin in rat plasma. After the two analytes were extracted with liquid–liquid extraction, chromatographic separation was performed on a C₁₈ column with acetonitrile and water (85:15, v /v) as mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. Calibration curves exhibited good linearity (r > 0.995) over the ranges of 0.41–82.0 ng/mL for oleanolic acid and 0.32–64.0 ng/mL for hederagenin, respectively. The lower limit of quantifications (LLOQs) in plasma were 0.41 ng/mL for oleanolic acid and 0.32 ng/mL for hederagenin. The established LLOQs were within the concentration needed for the assay in plasma, which met the requirements to evaluate their pharmacokinetics of oleanolic acid and hederagenin. This developed assay was successfully applied in the pharmacokinetic study of oleanolic acid and hederagenin in rats after oral administration of Rhizoma Clematidis extract.     

A novel LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous quantification of tenofovir and lamivudine in human plasma and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

A new, rapid, sensitive and specific LC‐MS/MS method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous quantification of tenofovir and lamivudine in human plasma using abacavir as an internal standard. An API‐4000 LC‐MS/MS with electrospray ionization was operated in multiple‐reaction monitoring mode for the analysis. The analytes were extracted from plasma by solid‐phase extraction technique using an Oasis HLB cartridge. The reconstituted samples were chromatographed on a Chromolith ROD speed C₁₈ column using a mixture of 0.1% formic acid in water and acetonitrile (90:10 v/v) at a flow‐rate of 1 mL/min. The method was validated as per the FDA guidelines. The calibration curves were found to be linear in the range of 5–600 ng/mL for tenofovir and 25– 4000 ng/mL for lamivudine. The intra‐ and inter‐day precision and accuracy results were well within the acceptable limits. A run time of 2.8 min consumed for each sample made it possible to analyze more samples per day. The proposed assay method was found to be applicable to a pharmacokinetic study in human male volunteers. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Validated liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for quantification of ticagrelor and its active metabolite in human plasma

A rapid, simple and sensitive LC–MS/MS method was established and validated for simultaneous quantification of ticagrelor and its active metabolite AR‐C124910XX in human plasma. After plasma samples were deproteinized with acetonitrile, the post‐treatment samples were chromatographed on a Dikma C₁₈ column interfaced with a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer. Electrospray negative ionization mode and multiple reaction monitoring were adopted to assay ticagrelor and AR‐C124910XX. Acetonitrile and 5 mΜ ammonium acetate was used as the mobile phase with a gradient elution at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. The method was linear in the range of 0.781–800 ng/mL for both ticagrelor and AR‐C124910XX with a correlation coefficient ≥0.994. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions were within 12.61% in terms of relative standard deviation and the accuracy was within ±7.88% in terms of relative error. The LC–MS/MS method was fully validated for its sensitivity, selectivity, stability, matrix effect and recovery. This convenient and specific LC–MS/MS method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of ticagrelor and AR‐C124910XX in healthy volunteers after an oral dose of 90 mg ticagrelor.