Rapid and Sensitive RP-LC Method for the Quantification and Pharmacokinetic Study of p-Hydroxyphenethyl Anisate in Rat Plasma

A rapid, sensitive and specific reversed-phase liquid chromatographic method was developed and validated for the quantification of p-hydroxyphenethyl anisate (HPA), which is one of the main constituents of Notopterygium Radix (underground parts of Notopterygium incisum and N. forbesii), in rat plasma, and study its pharmacokinetics after the intravenous administration of 40 mg kg^?1 HPA to rats. The method involves a plasma clear-up step using liquid–liquid extraction by ethyl acetate, followed by RP-LC separation and detection. Separation of HPA was performed on an analytical Diamonsil ODS C₁₈ column equipped with a Dikma ODS C₁₈ EasyGuard column using a mobile phase consisting of MeOH–H₂O (75:25, v/v) at a flow-rate of 1.0 mL min^?1. The UV detection was performed at a wavelength of 256 nm. The linear calibration curves were obtained in the concentration range of 0.05–5.0 μg mL^?1 (r = 0.9992, n = 5) in rat plasma with the lower limit of detection of 0.01 μg mL^?1 and the lower limit of quantification of 0.04 μg mL^?1, and the extraction recovery of HPA was calculated to be the range of 82.01–86.66%. The intra- and inter-day precisions in terms of % relative standard deviation were lower than 2.33 and 3.99% in rat plasma, respectively, with accuracies ranging from 91.22 to 110.5%. The developed method was suitable for the determination and pharmacokinetic study of HPA in rat plasma.     

LC Method for Quantification of Lutein in Rat Plasma: Validation, and Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A reversed-phase LC method has been developed for quantitative analysis of lutein in rat plasma and applied to a study of the pharmacokinetics of lutein in rats. From a variety of compounds and solvents tested, astaxanthin was selected as the internal standard. n-Hexane was found to be the best solvent for extracting lutein from plasma. LC analysis of the extracts was performed on a C₁₈ column equipped with a guard pre-column. Linearity was good (r > 0.99) over the range 10–100 ng mL^?1. Recovery from plasma was 82.7–92.9% the intra-day and inter-day precision were always better than 3%. The limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) were 2.5 and 8.3 ng mL^?1, respectively. The LC method was used to quantify lutein and zeaxanthin in rat plasma in a 36-h pharmacokinetic study in which experimental rats received a single oral dose of lutein (20 mg kg^?1). The results are presented.     

Sensitive and Selective LC-MS-MS Assay for the Quantification of Palonosetron in Human Plasma and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A highly sensitive and selective liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for the determination of palonosetron in human plasma samples. Chromatographic conditions and mass spectral parameters were optimized in order to achieve a limit of quantification of approximately 0.03 ng mL^?1. Palonosetron and citalopram (internal standard) were extracted by liquid–liquid extraction under alkaline conditions using saturated sodium bicarbonate. Separation was achieved with a Hanbon Lichrospher C₁₈ column and detection was carried out by tandem mass spectrometry using positive electrospray ionization in selected reaction monitoring mode. The target ions of palonosetron and citalopram were to m/z 297.00 → 297.00 and 325.00 → 325.00 respectively. Calibration curves were linear over the range of approximately 0.03–10 ng mL^?1. Precision and accuracy of this method was acceptable. The method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study with healthy Chinese volunteers after intravenous administration of a single dose of 0.125, 0.25 or 0.5 mg palonosetron hydrochloride.     

Eco-Friendly,Simple, Fast,and Sensitive UPLC-MS/MS Method for Determination of Pexidartinib in Plasma and Its Application to Metabolic Stability

Pexidartinib is the first drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration specifically to treat the rare joint tumor tenosynovial giant cell tumor. In the current study, a validated, selective, and sensitive UPLC-MS/MS assay was developed for the quantitative determination of pexidartinib in plasma samples using gifitinib as an internal standard (IS). Pexidartinib and IS were extracted by liquid-liquid extraction using methyl tert-butyl ether and separated on an acquity BEH C₁₈ column kept at 40 °C using a mobile phase of 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile: 0.1% formic acid in de-ionized water (70:30). The flow rate was 0.25 mL/min. Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) was operated in electrospray (ESI)-positive mode at the ion transition of 418.06 > 165.0 for the analyte and 447.09 > 128.0 for the IS. FDA guidance for bioanalytical method validation was followed in method validation. The linearity of the established UPLC-MS/MS assay ranged from 0.5 to 1000 ng/mL with r > 0.999 with a limit of quantitation of 0.5 ng/mL. Moreover, the metabolic stability of pexidartinib in liver microsomes was estimated.     

Rapid Quantification of Astilbin in Rat Plasma by Liquid Chromatography-tandem Mass Spectrometry and Its Application to Pharmacokinetic Study

Astilbin is a potential immunosuppressive agent with minor cytotoxicity. Its oral bioavailability is supposed to be rather low and therefore a sensitive analytical method is required for its pharmacokinetic study after oral administration. A simple, sensitive and rapid liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry（LC-MS/MS） method was developed and validated for the determination of astilbin in rat plasma. Plasma samples were subjected to liquid-liquid extraction with ethyl acetate and separated by reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography（HPLC） with methanol-0.01%（volume fraction） formic acid（50：50, volume ratio） as mobile phase. Quantitive determination was achieved on negative LC-MS/MS by a multiple reaction moitoring method with transitions m/z 449.1→150.9（quantifier） and m/z 449.1→284.9（qualifier） for astilbin and m/z 128.9→42.0 for internal standard（IS）. A lower limit of quantification（LLOQ） of ng/mL was achieved within a short cycle time of 3.4 min. The method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study involving oral and intravenous administrations of 6 mg/kg astilbin to six rats.     

A Simple UPLC/MS-MS Method for Simultaneous Determination of Lenvatinib and Telmisartan in Rat Plasma,and Its Application to Pharmacokinetic Drug-Drug Interaction Study

Lenvatinib is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor that inhibits tumor angiogenesis, but hypertension is the most common adverse reaction. Telmisartan is an angiotensin receptor blocker used to treat hypertension. In this study, a simple ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for the simultaneous determination of lenvatinib and telmisartan, and it was applied to the pharmacokinetic drug interaction study. Plasma samples were treated with acetonitrile to precipitate protein. Water (containing 5 mM of ammonium acetate and 0.1% formic acid) and acetonitrile (0.1% formic acid) were used as the mobile phases to separate the analytes with gradient elution using a column XSelect HSS T3 (2.1 mm × 100 mm, 2.5 μm). Multiple reaction monitoring in the positive ion mode was used for quantification. The method was validated and the precision, accuracy, matrix effect, recovery, and stability of this method were reasonable. The determination of analytes was not interfered with by other substances in the blank plasma, and the calibration curves of lenvatinib and telmisartan were linear within the range of 0.2–1000 ng/mL and 0.1–500 ng/mL, respectively. The results indicate that lenvatinib decreased the systemic exposure of telmisartan. Potential drug interactions were observed between lenvatinib and telmisartan.     

Measurement of Free and Glucuronidated Cardamonin in Rat Plasma and Bile Using UPLC-MS/MS and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic and Bile Excretion Study

A rapid and accurate ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry(UPLC-MS/MS) method was established and validated for the measurement of two forms of cardamonin, i.e., free and glucuronidated, in the plasma and bile of rats. Cardamonin and an internal standard (1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone) were extracted from plasma and bile with ethyl ether via liquid-liquid extraction. The analytes in the extracts were separated by an Agilent Zorbax Stable Bond-C₁₈ column(2.1 mm×50 mm, 1.8 μm) under isocratic elution conditions[acetonitrile(A) and 0.1% ammonium formate in water(B), 40:60(volume ratio)] with a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min, and mass spectrometry in negative ion MRM mode was implemented for analysis. Good linearity over the wide ranges of 0.01-5 μg/mL for plasma and 0.025-10 μg/mL for bile samples was acquired. Method validation was performed according to the FDA guidelines for bioanalytical methods.     

A Simple and Sensitive LC Method for Quantification of Cefteram in Human Plasma

A simple and sensitive liquid chromatographic method was developed for quantification of cefteram in human plasma. Amoxicillin was used as an internal standard. The present method used protein precipitation for extraction of cefteram from human plasma. Separation was carried out on a reversed-phase C₁₈ column. The column effluent was monitored by UV detection at 262 nm. The mobile phase was a mixture of methanol and water containing 0.3% v/v triethylamine and 0.6% v/v glacial acetic acid (35:65:0.3:0.6 v/v) at a flow rate of 0.30 mL min^?1. The column temperature was 20 °C. This method was linear over the range of 47.5–4,750.0 ng mL^?1 with determination coefficient greater than 0.99. The mean extraction recovery of cefteram and IS was ≥76.82 and ≥76.49%, respectively, and the method was found to be precise, accurate, and specific during the study. The method was successfully applied for a pharmacokinetic study of cefteram in human.     

An Efficient UPLC-MS/MS Method for the Determination of Pyrroloquinoline Quinone in Rat Plasma and Its Application to a Toxicokinetic Study

Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) is a powerful antioxidant coenzyme existing in diet, benefiting growth, development, cognition function, and the repair of damaged organs. However, a method for detecting PQQ in vivo was rarely described, limiting the research on the bioanalysis and metabolic properties of PQQ. In this study, a novel, simple, and efficient ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated to quantify the concentration of PQQ in rat plasma. Detection through mass spectrometry was operated by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) in negative electrospray ionization mode with ion transitions m/z 328.99→197.05 for PQQ and m/z 280.04→195.04 for the internal standard. The calibration curves were linear up to 10,000 ng/mL, with a lower limit of quantitation of 10 ng/mL. Inter-run and intra-run precision ranged from 1.79% to 10.73% and accuracy ranged from −7.73% to 7.30%. The method was successfully applied to a toxicokinetic study in Sprague–Dawley rats after the oral administration of PQQ disodium salt at doses of 250 mg/kg, 500 mg/kg, and 1000 mg/kg. The toxicokinetic parameters were subsequently analyzed, which may provide valuable references for the toxicokinetic properties and safety evaluation of PQQ.     

Establishment of an LC-Based Assay to Determine Caffeic Acid Tetramer in Rat Plasma and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A facile, sensitive, and accurate liquid chromatographic method with ultraviolet detection was developed for the determination of caffeic acid tetramer in rat plasma. Chromatographic separation was performed on an YMC C18 10 μm column (250 × 4.6 mm) using acetonitrile and phosphate buffer (19:81, v/v) as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1 mL min^?1. The UV detection wavelength was set at 252 nm. The method showed good linearity in the range of 1–150 μg mL^?1 with a satisfactory correlation coefficient (r) of 0.997. The limit of detection was 20 ng mL^?1 while inter- and intra-day precisions were less than 5.39 and 5.48%, respectively. Furthermore, the accuracy ranged from 98.27 to 103.76% with high extraction recoveries of caffeic acid tetramer from plasma greater than 88.0%. This practical methodology opens a facile and effective pathway for a pharmacokinetic study.     

Sensitive HPLC Assay for Ketoprofen in Human Plasma and its Application to Pharmacokinetic Study

Abstract

A selective and sensitive HPLC method was developed for the analysis of ketoprofen in human plasma. The assay involves an extraction of the drug and the internal standard (piroxicam) into diethyl ether from acidified plasma and then back-extracted into a small volume of alkaline aqueous solution before injection onto the HPLC column. A microbore column (2 mm I.D. × 10 cm) packed with a C18 reversed-phase material (5 pm ODS Hypersil) was used. The chromatographic separation was accomplished with a mobile phase comprising a mixture of acetonitrile-methanol-water (15 :20 : 65, v/v) containing 10 mM Na2HP04 buffer, pH 4. The mobile phase was pumped at a flow rate of 0.5 dmin. The eluant was monitored at 258 nm. With this procedure coefficients of variation were less than 10%. The detectionlimit was 0.05 μg/ml (i.e., 50 ng/ml) of plasma. The highly sensitive nature of this method was applied successfully to the dewmination of ketoprofen in human plasma for phmacokinetic studies.     

Development and Validation of an HPLC–UV Method for the Determination of Insulin in Rat Plasma: Application to Pharmacokinetic Study

A simple, sensitive high performance liquid chromatographic method with UV detection was developed and validated for determination of insulin in rat plasma, using methyl paraben as an internal standard. Insulin was extracted from plasma by a liquid–liquid extraction with a mixture of dichloromethane and n-hexane (1:1, v/v) followed by an acidic back extraction. Chromatographic separation was achieved isocratically with a Phenomenex® C₁₈ analytical column (150 × 4.6 mm ID, 5 μm) at ambient room temperature. The calibration curves were linear within a concentration range of 0.7–8.4 μg mL^?1 (r ² = 0.9994). The inter-day and intra-day accuracy and precision were ≤3.33 and ≤5.55%. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 0.35 and 0.7 μg mL^?1. The average recovery was 87.86% for insulin and 83.52% for methyl paraben. Insulin containing plasma samples were stable at ?20 °C for 7 days. Validated HPLC method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of insulin in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats.     

Fast and Sensitive HPLC-ESI-MS/MS Method for Etoricoxib Quantification in Human Plasma and Application to Bioequivalence Study

Etoricoxib is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to treat pain and inflammation. The objective of the current study was to develop a sensitive, fast and high-throughput HPLC-ESI-MS/MS method to measure etoricoxib levels in human plasma using a one-step methanol protein precipitation technique. A tandem mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray ionization (ESI) source operated in a positive mode and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) were used for data collection. The quantitative MRM transition ions were m/z 359.15 > 279.10 and m/z 363.10 > 282.10 for etoricoxib and IS. The linear range was from 10.00 to 4000.39 ng/mL and the validation parameters were within the acceptance limits of the European Medicine Agency (EMA) and Food and Drug Analysis (FDA) guidelines. The present method was sensitive (10.00 ng/mL with S/N > 40), simple, selective (K prime > 2), and fast (short run time of 2 min), with negligible matrix effect and consistent recovery, suitable for high throughput analysis. The method was used to quantitate etoricoxib plasma concentrations in a bioequivalence study of two 120 mg etoricoxib formulations. Incurred sample reanalysis results further supported that the method was robust and reproducible.     

LC Method for the Determination of Rhaponticin in Rat Plasma, Faeces and Urine for Application to Pharmacokinetic Studies

A simple liquid chromatography (LC) method has been developed and validated to determine rhaponticin in rat plasma, faeces and urine. Chromatographic separation was achieved through mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and water at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min^?1. Rhaponticin was quantified using UV detection at 324 nm. The assay was linear over the concentration range of 50–4,000 ng mL^?1 for plasma, faeces and urine. The intra- and inter-day RSD were less than 10%. The plasma, faeces and urine rhaponticin levels were monitored in rats after oral administration. This simple LC method appears to be useful in the pharmacokinetic investigation of rhaponticin.     

Simultaneous Quantification of 3′- and 6′-Sialyllactose in Rat Plasma Using Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

Sialyllactose (SL), an acidic oligosaccharide, has immune-protective effects against pathogens and helps with the development of the immune system and intestinal microorganisms. To elucidate the pharmacokinetic characterization after oral administration to rats, the simultaneous quantification method for 3′-SL and 6′-SL in rat plasma was validated, using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in an electrospray ionization (ESI) mode. Several types of columns [C18, amide, and hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) phase] were used to separate the peaks of 3′-SL and 6′-SL, which improved chromatographic selectivity. Ultimately, the HILIC phase column had a good peak shape and quick resolution, with a mobile phase comprising ammonium acetate buffer and acetonitrile obtained by gradient elution. In addition, the simultaneous quantification of 3′-SL and 6′-SL in rat plasma samples were adequately applied to pharmacokinetic study.     

Simple, Sensitive and Rapid LC–ESI–MS Method for the Quantitation of Olprinone in Rat Plasma

Olprinone is a phosphodiesterase (PDE)-3 inhibitor. This paper describes a simple, selective and sensitive method for the quantification of olprinone in rat plasma using a liquid–liquid extraction procedure followed by liquid chromatography mass spectrometric (LC–MS) analysis. The method had an advantage of high sensitivity. Analyses were conducted at a flow rate of 0.25 mL min⁻¹ by a gradient elution. The detection utilized selected ion monitoring in the positive ion mode at m/z 251.0 and 344.0 for the protonated molecular ions of olprinone and the internal standard, respectively. The quantitation limit for olprinone in rat plasma was 0.5 ng mL⁻¹. The linearity was also excellent over the concentration range of 0.5–100 ng mL⁻¹ of olprinone. The intra- and inter-day precision (relative standard deviation (RSD) %) was lower than 10%, and accuracy ranged from 90 to 110%. This developed method was successfully applied to analysis of olprinone in biological fluids.     

Determination of Chlorzoxazone in Rat Plasma by LC-ESI-MS/MS and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A sensitive LC-ESI-MS/MS method for determination of chlorzoxazone in rat plasma has been developed. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Zorbax SB-C₁₈ column, with 45:55 (v/v) acetonitrile–water as the mobile phase. A LC-ESI-MS/MS was performed in a multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode using target ions m/z 167.5→131.6 for chlorzoxazone and m/z 230.7→185.6 for phenobarbital (internal standard). The calibration plots were linear over the range of 10.0–2,000 ng/mL. Intra-day and inter-day precisions were better than 5.1% and 6.8%, respectively. The validated method was successfully used to analyze the drug in samples of rat plasma for pharmacokinetic study.     

LC-MS/MS Method for the Quantitation of Cefotetan in Human Plasma and Its Application to Pharmacokinetic Study

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry（LC-MS/MS） method for the de- termination of cefotetan in human plasma was developed and validated. After the protein precipitation of sample with acetonitrile, the analyte and internal standard（IS）, tramadol, were separated on a Zorbax XDB C8 column using ace- tonitrile/1%（volume fraction） formic acid（volume ratio 35：65, pH=2.5） as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min with a 1 ： 1 split. The detection was performed by electrospray ionization with positive ion mode, followed by multiple reaction monitoring of the transitions for cefotetan at m/z 576.3→460.2（quantifier） and m/z 576.3→432.2（qualifier） and for IS at m/z 264.1→58.1. Cefotetan and IS were eluted at 1.86 and 1.87 rain, respectively. The assay was linear over the concentration range of 0.1-100 gg/mL for 20 μL of human plasma only with intra- and inter-day preci- sions（expressed as the relative standard deviation） of less than 6.62% and accuracies（as relative error） of ＋1.31%. The method was applied to the pharmacokinetic study of a l-h intravenous infusion of 1.0 g of cefotetan disodium for human volunteers（n=6）.     

LC Method for Determination of Ginkgolic Acids in Mice Plasma and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A sensitive and simple LC method for the quantification of ginkgolic acids in mice plasma has been developed. Following acetonitrile deproteinization, samples were separated on a SinoChrom ODS-AP C₁₈ column. The mobile phase was 3% (v/v) acetic acid water solution–methanol (8:92, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min⁻¹. Detection was at 310 nm. Calibration curve was linear over the range of 0.25–50 μg mL⁻¹ with intra- and inter-day precisions (RSD%) of less than 9.5%. The extraction recovery ranged from 87.0 to 90.2% (RSD 2.4–6.4%) for ginkgolic acids. The method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of ginkgolic acids in mice after oral dosing of 1.0 g kg⁻¹.

     

A GC-SIM-MS Method for the Determination of Butylidenephthalide in Rat Plasma and Tissue: Application to the Pharmacokinetic and Tissue Distribution Study

Abstract

Butylidenephthalide is one of the major active components isolated from Rhizoma Chuanxiong. This paper describes a simple, rapid, specific and sensitive method for the quantification of butylidenephthalide in rat plasma and tissue distribution using a liquid-liquid extraction procedure followed by capillary gas chromatography-selected ion monitoring mode-mass spectrometry (GC-SIM-MS) analysis. The calibration curves were linear over the concentration ranging from 0.02–10.0 µg/mL (r > 0.99) for plasma samples and 0.18–7.25 µg/g (r > 0.99) for the tissue samples. The limit of quantification (LOQ) was 1.0 ng/mL or 1.0 ng/g (ten times signal/noise ratio). Within- and between-day precisions expressed as the relative standard deviation (RSD) for the method were 2.39–2.98% and 2.97–4.26%, respectively. The methods of recovery for all samples were greater than 80% at the low, medium, and high concentrations. The method has been successfully applied to a pharmacokinetics study in rats after an oral administration of Butylidenephthalide with a dose of 20.0 mg/kg. The main pharmacokinetic parameters obtained were T _max  = (0.22 ± 0.06) h, C _max = (3 ± 1) µg/mL, AUC = (32 ± 6) h?µg/mL, and K _a  = (8.5 ± 0.8)/h. The results showed that the butylidenephthalide was easily absorbed. The concentrations of butylidenephthalide in rat kidney, lung, heart, and cerebellum were higher than those in other organs. To determine free fraction in serum, samples were filtered using ultrafiltration membranes with a molecular weight cut-off of 10,000 Da and extracted using liquid-liquid extraction. The extracts were evaporated and analyzed by GC-MS. The protein binding in rat plasma, human plasma, and human serum albumin were 83 ± 4%, 94 ± 3%, and 89 ± 3%, respectively.