High-throughput determination of atrasentan in human plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

Atrasentan (A-147627) is an endothelin antagonist receptor being developed at Abbott Laboratories for the treatment of prostate cancer. A quick and sensitive method for the determination of atrasentan in human plasma has been developed and validated using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. A dual-column, single mass spectrometer system is used to provide a reliable and routine means to increase sample throughput. The analytical method involves liquid-liquid extraction and internal standard (A-166790). The plasma samples and internal standard are acidified with 0.3 M hydrochloric acid prior to being extracted into 1:1 (v/v) hexanes--methyl t-butyl ether. The organic extract was evaporated to dryness using heated nitrogen stream and reconstituted with mobile phase. Atrasentan and internal standard were separated with no interference in a Zorbax SB-C(18) analytical column with 2.1 x 50 mm, 5 microm, and a Zorbax C(8) guard column using a mobile phase consisting of 50:50 (v:v) acetonitrile--0.05 M ammonium acetate, pH 4.5, at a flow rate of 0.30 mL/min to provide 4 min chromatograms. For a 250 microL plasma sample volume, the limit of quantitation was approximately 0.3 ng/mL. The calibration was linear from 0.30 to 98.0 ng/mL (r(2) > 0.995). A significant advantage of the method is the ability to employ parallel HPLC separations with detection by a single MS/MS system to provide sensitivity and selectivity sufficient to achieve robust analytical results with a lower limit of quantitation of 0.30 ng/mL and high throughput.     

Simultaneous determination of leflunomide and its active metabolite,A77 1726, in human plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography

The isoxazol derivative leflunomide [N-(4'-trifluoromethylphenyl)-5-methylisoxazole-4-carboxamide] is an inhibitor of de novo pyrimidine synthesis used for the treatment of rheumatoid artrithis. In the present study, a liquid-liquid extraction-based reversed-phase HPLC method with UV detection was validated and applied for the analysis of leflunomide and its active metabolite, A77 1726, in human plasma. The analytes were separated using a mobile phase, consisting of acetonitrile, water and formic acid (40/59.8/0.2, v/v), at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min, and UV detection at 261 nm. The retention times for A77 1726, leflunomide and warfarin (internal standard) were 8.2, 16.2 and 12.2 min, respectively. The validated quantification range of the method was 0.05-100 micro g/mL for leflunomide and 0.1-100 micro g/mL for A77 1726. The developed procedure was applied to assess steady-state plasma concentrations of A77 1726 in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated with 10 or 20 mg leflunomide per day.     

Rapid high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for simultaneous measurement of venlafaxine and O‐desmethylvenlafaxine in human plasma and its application in comparative bioavailability study

A rapid high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method has been developed and validated for simultaneous measurement of venlafaxine and O‐desmethylvenlafaxine in human plasma using fluoxetine as an internal standard. In the liquid–liquid extraction method, compounds and internal standard were extracted from plasma using methyl tertiary butyl ether as an extraction solvent. The HPLC separation of the analytes was performed on a Zorbax SB‐C₁₈, 50 × 4.6 mm, 5 µm column, using a isocratic elution program using a mobile phase consisting of HPLC‐grade methanol: 5 mm ammonium acetate (80:20 v/v) at a flow‐rate of 1.0 mL/min with a total runtime of 3.0 min. The proposed method has been validated with a linear range of 4–400 ng/mL for venlafaxine and 5–500 ng/mL for O‐desmethyl venlafaxine. The method was applied for a bio‐equivalence study of 75 mg tablets formulation in 32 Indian male healthy subjects under fasting conditions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High performance liquid chromatographic method for the determination and pharmacokinetic studies of oxyresveratrol and resveratrol in rat plasma after oral administration of Smilax china extract

A sensitive and simple HPLC method has been developed and validated for the determination of oxyresveratrol (trans-2,4,3',5'-tetrahydroxystilbene, OXY) and resveratrol (trans-3,5,4'-trihydroxystilbene, RES) in rat plasma. The plasma samples were extracted with ethyl acetate and analyzed using HPLC on an Aglient Zorbax SB-C(18) column (250 x 4.6 mm, 5 microm) at a wavelength 320 nm, with a linear gradient of (A) acetonitrile and (B) 0.5% aqueous acetic acid (v/v), at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. The method was linear over the range of 0.1265-25.3 microg/mL for OXY and 0.117-23.4 microg/mL for RES. The extraction recovery for OXY, RES and internal standard ranged from 71.1 to 88.3%. The intra- and inter-day precisions were better than 10%, and the accuracy ranged from 89 to 108%. The validated method was used to study the pharmacokinetic profiles of OXY and RES in rat plasma after oral administration of Smilax china root extract.     

Determination of atrasentan by high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection in human plasma.

Atrasentan is an endothelin antagonist selective for the ET(A) receptor in development at Abbott Laboratories for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and cell proliferation disorders. A simple and sensitive chromatographic method for the determination of atrasentan in human plasma has been developed and validated. The analytical method involves acidification of the plasma samples with 0.3 N HCl prior to extraction with 1:1 (v:v) hexane/tert-butylmethylether. The organic extract was evaporated to dryness, reconstituted with 20:80 (v:v) acetonitrile/0.05 M K(2)HPO(4) and washed with 75:25 (v:v) hexane/tert-butylmethylether. The organic layer was discarded and the aqueous layer was injected into the HPLC. Atrasentan and internal standard (ABT-790) were separated from interference using a 250 x 4.6 mm, 5 microm, 120 A Phenomenex Spherisorb C(8) analytical column with a 50 x 4.6 mm, Alltech Absorbosphere 5 microm CN guard cartridge using a mobile phase consisting of 25:15:5:55 (v:v:v:v) acetonitrile/isopropanol/methanol/0.05 M K(2)HPO(4), pH 7.0, at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. Fluorescence detection was achieved using lambda(ex) 278 nm and lambda(em) 322 nm. For a 1.0 mL plasma sample volume, the limit of quantitation was approximately 200 pg/mL. The method was linear from 0.2 to 1300 ng/mL (r(2) = 0.9986). Inter- and intra-day assay RSD (n = 6) were less than 10%. Mean accuracy determinations showed the quality control samples to range between 94 and 99% of the theoretical concentration.     

Determination of calycosin-7-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside in rat plasma and urine by HPLC

A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) assay for calycosin-7-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside in rat plasma and urine with solid-phase extraction (SPE) was developed. Rutin was employed as an internal standard. The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile-water (16:84, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. Detection was set at 280 nm. The limit of quantitation of calycosin-7-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside was 0.2 microg/mL in both plasma and urine. The standard curve was linear from 0.2 to 10.0 microg/mL in plasma, and 0.2 to 5.0 microg/mL in urine. Both intra- and inter-day precision of the calycosin-7-O-beta-d-glucopyranoside were determined and their RSD did not exceed 10%. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of samples obtained from a basic pharmacokinetic study, in which calycosin-7-O-beta-d-glucopyranoside was administered orally to rats.     

Validated assay for the simultaneous quantification of total vincristine and actinomycin‐D concentrations in human EDTA plasma and of vincristine concentrations in human plasma ultrafiltrate by high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry

A sensitive, specific and efficient high‐performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) assay for the simultaneous determination of total vincristine and actinomycin‐D concentrations in human plasma and an assay for the determination of unbound vincristine are presented. Electrospray ionization (ESI), atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) and heated electrospray ionization (H‐ESI) were tested as ionization interfaces. For reasons of robustness ESI was chosen followed by tandem mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS/MS). For the plasma assay a 30 µL aliquot was protein precipitated with acetonitrile/methanol (50:50, v/v) containing the internal standard vinorelbine and 10 µL volumes were injected onto the HPLC system. To determine unbound vincristine, ultrafiltrate was produced from plasma using 30 kDa centrifugal filter units. The plasma ultrafiltrate was mixed with methanol (50:50, v/v), internal standard vinorelbine was added and 20 µL aliquots were injected onto the HPLC system. Separation was achieved on a 50 × 2.1 mm i.d. Xbridge C₁₈ column using 1 mM ammonium acetate/acetonitrile (30:70, v/v) adjusted to pH 10.5 with ammonia, run in a gradient with methanol at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. HPLC run time was 6 min. The assay quantifies in plasma vincristine from 0.25 to 100 ng/mL and actinomycin‐D from 0.5 to 250 ng/mL using plasma sample volumes of only 30 µL. Vincristine in plasma ultrafiltrate can be quantified from 1 to 100 ng/mL. Validation results demonstrate that vincristine and actinomycin‐D can be accurately and precisely quantified in human plasma and plasma ultrafiltrate with the presented methods. The assays are now in use to support clinical pharmacological studies in children treated with vincristine and actinomycin‐D. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The bioanalysis of vinorelbine and 4‐O‐deacetylvinorelbine in human and mouse plasma using high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with heated electrospray ionization tandem mass–spectrometry

A sensitive, specific and efficient high‐performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry assay for the simultaneous determination of vinorelbine and its metabolite 4‐O‐deacetylvinorelbine in human and mouse plasma is presented. Heated electrospray ionization was applied followed by tandem mass spectrometry. A 50 µL plasma aliquot was protein precipitated with acetonitrile–methanol (1:1, v/v) containing the internal standard vinorelbine‐d3 and 20 µL volumes were injected onto the HPLC system. Separation was achieved on a 50 × 2.1 mm i.d. Xbridge C₁₈ column using isocratic elution with 1 mm ammonium acetate–ammonia buffer pH 10.5–acetonitrile–methanol (28:12:60, v/v/v) at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. The HPLC run time was 5 min. The assay quantifies both vinorelbine and 4‐O‐deacetylvinorelbine from 0.1 to 100 ng/mL using sample volumes of only 50 µL. Mouse plasma samples can be quantified using calibration curves prepared in human plasma. Validation results demonstrate that vinorelbine and 4‐O‐deacetylvinorelbine can be accurately and precisely quantified in human and mouse plasma with the presented method. The assay is now in use to support (pre‐)clinical pharmacologic studies with vinorelbine in humans and mice. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of doxazosin in human plasma for bioequivalence study of controlled release doxazosin tablets

A highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic quantification method with fluorescence detection was developed and validated for the determination of doxazosin in human plasma. The developed method employed one-step extraction of doxazosin from plasma matrix with ethyl acetate using propranolol as an internal standard. Chromatographic separation was obtained within 8.0 min using a reverse-phase Capcell-Pak C(18) column (150 x 4.6 mm i.d., 5 microm) and the mobile phase consisted of methanol-water containing 10 mM perchloric acid and 1.8 mM sodium heptane sulfonic acid (50:50, v/v) and was set at a flow rate of 1.5 mL/min. The calibration curve constructed was linear in the range of 0.3-50.0 ng/mL. The proposed method achieved a lower limit of quantification of 0.3 ng/mL, better than the reported HPLC methods. Average recoveries of doxazosin and the internal standard from human plasma matrix were 87.0 and 85.9%, respectively. The present method was validated by evaluating the precision and accuracy for inter- and intraday variation in the concentration range 0.3-50 ng/mL. The precision values expressed as relative standard deviations in the inter- and intraday validation were 1.17-6.29 and 0.84-5.94%, respectively. This method was successfully applied to the bioequivalence study of two doxazosin controlled release tablets in healthy, male human subjects.     

高效液相色谱法测定大鼠血浆中的原儿茶酸

建立了大鼠血浆中原儿茶酸含量测定的高效液相色谱方法。采用的色谱柱为DiamondsilTM C18 柱(150 mm×4.6 mm,5 μm);流动相为乙腈-水(体积比为9∶91,用H3PO4 调pH至2.5);流速1.2 mL/min;检测波长260 nm;内标为对羟基苯甲酸。原儿茶酸的线性范围为0.050~3.20 mg/L,线性相关系数为0.9978，最低定量限为0.050 mg/L,日内和日间测定的精密度（以相对标准偏差表示）均低于7.0%,准确度（以相对误差表示）为-1.4%～2.6%；在0.050,0.40,3.20 mg/L低、中、高3个添加浓度水平下，血浆样品的提取回收率分别为83.4%,87.3%,91.1%。该方法简便,灵敏,准确,适用于大鼠体内原儿茶酸的药物动力学研究。     

Determination of ribavirin in human serum and plasma by capillary electrophoresis

The electrophoretic separation of ribavirin and 5-methylcytidine (internal standard) by capillary electrophoresis was examined. Separation was achieved using reverse polarity in a 100 mM borate electrolyte, pH 9.1, with 5 mM spermine added to reduce the electroosmotic flow. Sample preparation based on acetonitrile protein precipitation was found to be unsuitable for ribavirin analysis in patient samples due to insufficient sensitivity and interferences. Solid-phase extraction employing phenyl boronic acid cartridges provided cleaner separations. Using this approach with 500 microL sample and reconstitution of the dried extract into 100 microL of 33% v/v 100 mM phosphate buffer, pH 6.4 / 67% v/v acetonitrile, the detection and quantitation limits were determined to be 0.05 and 0.10 microg/mL, respectively, a sensitivity that is suitable for therapeutic drug monitoring of ribavirin in human plasma and serum samples. The method was validated and compared to a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method, showing excellent agreement between the two for a set of samples that stemmed from patients being treated with ribavirin and interferon-alpha-2b for a hepatitis C virus infection.     

HPLC analysis and pharmacokinetic study of quercitrin and isoquercitrin in rat plasma after administration of Hypericum japonicum thunb. extract

A simple HPLC method was developed for determination of quercitrin and isoquercitrin in rat plasma. Reversed-phase HPLC was employed for the quantitative analysis using kaempferol-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside-7-O-alpha-L-rhamnoside as an internal standard. Following extraction from the plasma samples with ethyl acetate-isopropanol (95:5, v/v), these two compounds were successfully separated on a Luna C(18) column (250 x 4.6 mm, 5 microm) with isocratic elution of acetonitrile-0.5% aqueous acetic acid (17:83, v/v) as the mobile phase. The flow-rate was set at 1 mL/min and the eluent was detected at 350 nm for both quercitrin and isoquercitrin. The method was linear over the studied ranges of 50-6000 and 50-5000 ng/mL for quercitrin and isoquercitrin, respectively. The intra- and inter-day precisions of the analysis were better than 13.1 and 13.2%, respectively. The lower limits of quantitation for quercitrin and isoquercitrin in plasma were both of 50 ng/mL. The mean extraction recoveries were 73 and 61% for quercitrin and isoquercitrin, respectively. The validated method was successfully applied to pharmacokinetic studies of the two analytes in rat plasma after the oral administration of Hypericum japonicum thunb. ethanol extract.     

HPLC determination and pharmacokinetic study of tenatoprazole in dog plasma after oral administration of enteric-coated capsule

A simple, sensitive and selective high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method with UV detection (306 nm) was developed and validated for determination of tenatoprazole, a novel proton-pump inhibitor, in dog plasma. Tenatoprazole and internal standard (pantoprazole) were extracted into diethyl ether and separated using an isocratic mobile phase of 10 mm phosphate buffer (pH4.7)-acetonitrile (70:30, v/v) on a Diamonsil C(18) column (150 x 4.6 mm, 5 microm). The retention times for tenatoprazole and internal standard were 7.1 and 12.3 min, respectively. No endogenous interferences were observed. This HPLC method was fully validated. The lower limit of quantitation was 20 ng/mL, with a relative standard deviation of less than 20%. A linear range of 0.02-5.0 microg/mL was established. The interday and intraday precisions were within RSD 13.4-10.1 and 4.6-1.4%, respectively. This method developed can be easily applied to the pharmacokinetic study of tenatoprazole in dog plasma after oral administration of an enteric-coated capsule. The plasma concentration of tenatoprazole from six dogs showed a mean C(max) of 2.63 microg/mL at T(max) of 1.89 h. The bioavailability of tenatoprazole was improved by administration of enteric-coated capsule.     

Establishment of a HPLC method for preclinical pharmacokinetic study of the novel anti-Parkinson's disease candidate drug FLZ in rats

An HPLC method was established and validated for the determination of compound FLZ, a synthetic novel anti-Parkinson's disease candidate drug, in rat plasma. FLZ and the internal standard bicyclol were extracted from plasma by solid-phase extraction method and analyzed on a Restek C18 column (4.6 x 250 mm, 5 microm) with a mobile phase consisting of methanol and water (60:40, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min. The detection wavelength was set at 320 nm. The calibration curve was linear within the concentration range from 25 to 500 ng/mL (r2 > 0.999), the limit of quantitation was 25 ng/mL and the average recovery was 92.0% with the RSD less than 5.9%. The relative standard deviation for intra- and inter-day precision was less than 3.8 and 6.9%, respectively. The established HPLC method was validated to be a simple, rapid and reliable procedure and applied to study the preclinical pharmacokinetics of FLZ in rat plasma, and it was the first time that the pharmacokinetics of FLZ had been investigated.     

Quantitative determination of imatinib in human plasma with high-performance liquid chromatography and ultraviolet detection

A simple and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed to quantitate imatinib in human plasma. Imatinib and the internal standard dasatinib were separated using a mobile phase of 0.5% KH(2)PO(4) (pH3.5)-acetonitrile-methanol (55:25:20, v/v/v) on a CAPCELL PAK C18 MG II column (250 mm × 4.6 mm) at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min and measurement at UV 265 nm. Analysis required 100 μL of plasma and involved a solid phase extraction with an Oasis HLB cartridge, which gave recoveries of imatinib from 73% to 76%. The lower limit of quantification for imatinib was 10 ng/mL. The linear range of this assay was between 10 and 5000 ng/mL (regression line r(2) > 0.9992). Inter- and intra-day coefficients of variation were less than 11.9% and accuracies were within 8.3% over the linear range. The plasma concentrations of imatinib obtained by our present method were almost the same as those assayed by an LC-MS-MS method at the Toray Research Center, Inc. This method can be applied effectively to measure imatinib concentrations in clinical samples.     

Development and validation of an HPLC/MS/MS method for determining the thiazolidinone PG15 in rat plasma

A rapid, sensitive, and simple HPLC/MS/MS method was developed and validated for the determination of (5Z,E)-3-[2-(4-chlorophenyl)-2-oxoethyl]-5-(1H-indol-3-ylmethylene)-thiazolidine-2, 4-dione (PG15) in rat plasma using chlortalidone as an internal standard (IS). Analyses were performed using a C18 column and isocratic elution with acetonitrile-water (90 + 10, v/v) containing 10 mM ammonium hydroxide (pH 8.0) as the mobile phase pumped at 0.3 mL/min. Detection was performed by MS with negative ion mode electrospray ionization. Rat plasma samples were prepared by deproteinizing with acetonitrile. Detected fragments were 395.1 > 171.9 for PG15 and 337.3 > 189.9 for the IS. Calibration curves were linear from 10 to 1000 ng/mL, with the determination coefficient > 0.99. The intraday and interday precisions were less than 12.2 and 11.3%, respectively. The applicability of the HPLC/MS/MS method for pharmacokinetic studies was tested using plasma samples obtained after oral administration of PG15 to rats, and it provided the necessary sensitivity, linearity, precision, accuracy, and specificity.     

A new HPLC method with fluorescence detection for the determination of memantine in human plasma

A sensitive, selective, simple and fast HPLC method based on the formation of derivative with fluorescamine was developed for the determination of memantine (ME) in human plasma. Separation was achieved on a CN column (200 mm×4.6 mm) using acetonitrile-10 mM orthophosphoric acid containing 1 mL/L triethylamine (45:55, v/v) at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Emission and excitation wavelengths were 480 and 380 nm, respectively. Amantadine was used as an internal standard. Calibration graphs were rectilinear over the range of 1.0-100.0 ng/mL. Limit of detection and limit of quantification were found to be 0.3 and 1.0 ng/mL, respectively. Intra-day and inter-day relative standard deviation values were found to be <2.03%. Average recovery was also found to be around 94%. Proposed method was applied for the pharmacokinetic study in a healthy volunteer after a single oral administration of 20 mg of ME.     

HPLC analysis and pharmacokinetics of icariin in rats

As a prerequisite to the determination of pharmacokinetic parameters of icariin in rats, an HPLC method using UV detection was developed and validated. Icariin and the internal standard, quercetin, were extracted from plasma samples using ethyl acetate after acidification with 0.05 mol/L NaH2PO4 solution (pH 5.0). Chromatographic separation was achieved on an Agilent XDB Cls column (250 x 4.6 mm id, 5 microm) equipped with a Shim-pack GVP-ODS C18 guard column (10 x 4.6 mm id, 5 microm) using a mobile phase of ACN/water/acetic acid (31:69:0.4 v/v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/ min. Detection was at 277 nm. The calibration curve was linear from 0.05 to 100.0 microg/mL with 0.05 microg/mL as the lower LOQ (LLOQ) in plasma. The intra- and interday precisions in terms of RSD were lower than 5.7 and 7.8% in rat plasma, respectively. The accuracy in terms of relative error (RE) ranged from -1.6 to 3.2%. The extraction recoveries of icariin and quercetin were 87.6 and 80.1%, respectively. The main pharmacokinetic parameters for rats were determined after a single intravenous administration of 10 mg/kg icariin: t1/2, 0.562 +/- 0.200 h; AUC0-infinity, 8.73 +/- 2.23 microg x h/mL; CLToT, 20.10 +/- 5.80 L/kg x h; Vz, 1.037 +/- 0.631 L/kg; MRT0-infinity, 0.134 +/- 0.040 h; and Vss, 0.170 +/- 0.097 L/kg.     

Direct-injection high performance liquid chromatography ion trap mass spectrometry for the quantitative determination of olanzapine,clozapine and N-desmethylclozapine in human plasma

A specific and sensitive direct-injection high performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-MS/MS) method has been developed for the rapid identification and quantitative determination of olanzapine, clozapine, and N-desmethylclozapine in human plasma. After the addition of the internal standard dibenzepin and dilution with 0.1% formic acid, plasma samples were injected into the LC/MS/MS system. Proteins and other large biomolecules were removed during an online sample cleanup using an extraction column (1 x 50 mm i.d., 30 microm) with a 100% aqueous mobile phase at a flow rate of 4 mL/min. The extraction column was subsequently brought inline with the analytical column by automatic valve switching. Analytes were separated on a 5 microm Symmetry C18 (Waters) analytical column (3.0 x 150 mm) with a mobile phase of acetonitrile/0.1% formic acid (20:80, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. The total analysis time was 6 min per sample. The inter- and intra-assay coefficients of variation for all compounds were <11%. By eliminating the need for extensive sample preparation, the proposed method offers very large savings in total analysis time.     

Determination of didanosine in maternal plasma, amniotic fluid, fetal and placental tissues by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid and efficient high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of didanosine concentrations in maternal rat plasma, amniotic fluid, placental and fetal tissue samples has been developed and validated. Tissue samples were homogenized in optima water and centrifuged. The supernatant was subjected to solid-phase extraction (SPE) prior to analysis. Plasma and amniotic fluid samples were extracted without pretreatment. An Agilent 1100 Series HPLC coupled with a Micromass Quattro II triple quadrupole mass spectrometer was used for all analyses. Chromatographic resolution was achieved on a Nova-Pak phenyl analytical column (2.0 x 150 mm, 4 microm particle size) equipped with a Phenomenex Security-guard phenyl guard cartridge (2.0 x 4.0 mm) using 60% methanol in 10 mm ammonium acetate buffer mobile phase for all matrices at a flow rate of 0.15 mL/min. The method yields retention times of 2.9 min for didanosine and 3.0 min for the internal standard, stavudine. Limits of detection were 1 ng/mL for all matrices. Recoveries were 70% or greater for both compounds in the different matrices. Within- and between-run precision (%RSD) and accuracy (%error) was less than 15% for all matrices.