Assessment of chemical purity of 10B-enriched p-boronophenylalanine by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled on-line with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry

A dual-detection technique, consisting of a combination of reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and on-line detection of elemental boron in the column effluents by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry, was tested for drug analysis. The method was applied to assessing the chemical purity of p-boronophenylalanine (BPA), isotopically enriched in ¹⁰B. This compound is employed as a fructose complex solution for biodistribution studies in laboratory and clinical trials of boron neutron capture therapy. Besides the determination of the content of BPA, required for chemical quality controls of solutions of the complex used for infusions, resolution of mixtures of BPA and two usually accompanying residual impurities (phenylalanine and tyrosine) was achieved with UV detection. The limits of detection (in solution) were 1.5 and 0.6 ng ml⁻¹, respectively. In addition, by monitoring a sensitive-element emission wavelength it was possible to jointly observe the elution of boron-containing compounds that may be transparent to UV radiation or to confirm the presence of boron in potential impurities accompanying the drug. Those impurities may arise from the BPA synthesis or may be produced by degradation during the aging of the solutions. Chromatographic peaks corresponding to the amino acids and also to a related inorganic compound were detected in BPA–fructose complex solutions that were stored for different times and under different conditions. An increase in the areas of the peaks attributed to tyrosine and phenylalanine was observed for BPA–fructose solutions stored refrigerated for 1 month to 1 year, suggesting that degradation processes able to reduce the amount of bioavailable BPA could be active. In memoriam Dr. Daniel Batistoni.     

UHPLC Study on the Degradation Profiles of Olopatadine Hydrochloride in Eye Drops Subjected to Heat and Filtration Methods of Sterilisation

A validated ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) method has been proposed, validated and used for the determination of olopatadine hydrochloride degradation products in olopatadine 1 mg mL^?1 eye drops solution under the influence of two different sterilisation methods, heating and filtration, with good precision and accuracy. We found that the heat sterilization method yields a higher content of olopatadine hydrochloride degradation products in eye drops compared to unsterilized drug product or drug product sterilized by filtration, except for α-hydroxy olopatadine impurity, which remains stable with time and applied sterilization method. Contents of olopatadine related compound B shows a higher increase (from <0.005 to 0.044 %) when sterilised by heating than when subjected to aging and sterilization by filtration (increase up to 0.011 %). Similarly, total amount of all impurities is also increased from 0.13 to 0.49 % when the drug product is sterilised by heating instead of filtration (up to 0.39 %). Content of olopatadine related compound B and of all impurities is increased by aging, probably through thermal and oxidative degradation. Forced degradation studies were correlated with the sterilisation study and possible degradation pathways were identified. Olopatadine shows strong degradation under oxidative and moderate degradation under photolytic environment, with the olopatadine related compound B as the main degradation product. Sterilization of eye drops solution by filtration is recommended.     

Separation of Pesticides and Impurities by Countercurrent Chromatography

Abstract

Countercurrent chromatography (CCC) was chosen for study as an isolation technique for pesticides and the impurities found with them, because its high capacity makes possible comparatively large batches of purified materials and because its mild operating conditions minimize the danger of degradation during the separation. Technical grade fenthion, an organophosphorus insecticide, showed traces of six impurities. The principal one found in an analytical standard fenthion was identified as 3-methyl-4-(methylthio)anisole, well separated from the fenthion. The n-octyl ester of the herbicide 2,4,5-T was easily separated from the methyl ester impurity.     

MSn,LC‐MS‐TOF and LC‐PDA studies for identification of new degradation impurities of bupropion

Three new degradation impurities of bupropion were characterized through high performance liquid chromatography coupled to photodiode array detection and to time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry. Bupropion was subjected to the ICH prescribed stress conditions. It degraded to seven impurities (I–VII) in alkaline hydrolytic conditions which were optimally resolved on an XTerra C₁₈ column (250 × 4.6 mm, 5 µm) with a ternary mobile phase comprising ammonium formate (20 mm , pH 4.0), methanol and acetonitrile (75:10:15, v/v). The degradation impurities (III–V and VII) were characterized on the basis of mass fragmentation pattern of drug, accurate mass spectral and photodiode array data of the drug and degradation impurities. Compound V was found to be a known degradation impurity [1‐hydroxy‐1‐(3‐chlorophenyl)propan‐2‐one], whereas III, IV and VII were characterized as 2‐hydroxy‐2‐(3′‐chlorophenyl)‐3,5,5‐trimethylmorpholine, (2,4,4‐trimethyl‐1,3‐oxazolidin‐2‐yl)(3‐chlorophenyl)‐methanone and 2‐(3′‐chlorophenyl)‐3,5,5‐trimethylmorphol‐2‐ene, respectively. Compound III was a known metabolite of the drug. This additional information on the degradation impurities can help in the development of a new stability‐indicating assay method to monitor the stability of the drug product during its shelf‐life as well as in development of a drug product with increased shelf‐life. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous quantification of (E) and (Z) isomers of rilpivirine and four degradation products in bulk and tablets by reversed-phase ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography and confirmation of all by molecular weight

The (E)-isomer of rilpivirine is an approved antiretroviral drug used to treat human immunodeficiency virus. A simple, fast, accurate, and precise analytical method is required to confirm the quality, purity, efficacy, and safety of drug substances and drug products containing rilpivirine. This research article offers a comprehensive ultra-high performance liquid chromatography method for the simultaneous separation and quantification of (E) and (Z) isomers of rilpivirine, including two amide impurities, one nitrile impurity, and one dimer impurity, in both bulk and tablet forms. After complete validation, the proposed reversed-phase ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography method has proven to be simple, fast, linear, accurate, and precise, with a lower limit of quantification and detection of 0.05 and 0.03 μg/ml, respectively, for all six analytes. Separation was achieved on a Waters Acquity ethylene bridged hybrid Shield RP18 (150 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) column maintained at 35.0°C using a gradient elution of acetonitrile and 0.05% formic acid in 10 mM ammonium formate at a flow rate of 0.30 ml/min. A systematic forced degradation study on the undissolved rilpivirine revealed the formation of acid-base hydrolyzed amide impurities (Impurity-A and Impurity-B), oxidative nitrile impurities (Impurity-C), and Z-isomer and dimer impurities of rilpivirine (Impurity-D and Impurity-E) due to alkaline hydrolysis and photodegradation. The proposed method is primarily appropriate for applications requiring the precise determination of desired and undesired isomers of rilpivirine and its degradation products, such as those involving the safety, efficacy, and quality roles of rilpivirine in bulk and tablet forms. Additionally, the proposed ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography method in combination with a mass spectrometer and photo-diode array detector is helpful for the confirmation and correct identification of all analytes.     

Identification,characterization, and high‐performance liquid chromatography quantification of process‐related impurities in vonoprazan fumarate

High‐performance liquid chromatography analysis of vonoprazan fumarate, a novel proton pump inhibitor drug revealed six impurities. These were identified by liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry. Further, the structures of the impurities were confirmed by synthesis followed by characterization by mass spectrometry, NMR spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. On the basis of these data and knowledge of the synthetic scheme of vonoprazan fumarate, the previously unknown impurity was identified as 1‐[5‐(2‐fluorophenyl)‐1‐(pyridin‐3‐ylsulfonyl)‐1H‐pyrrol‐3‐yl]‐N‐methyldimethylamine, which is a new compound. The possible mechanisms by which these impurities were formed were also discussed. A high‐performance liquid chromatography method was optimized in order to separate, selectively detect, and quantify all process‐related impurities of vonoprazan fumarate. The presented method has been validated in terms of linearity, limits of detection, and quantification, and response factors and, therefore, is highly suitable for routine analysis of vonoprazan fumarate related substances as well as stability studies.     

Stress Degradation Studies on Aripiprazole and Development of a Validated Stability Indicating LC Method

The present paper describes the development of a stability indicating reversed phase column liquid chromatographic method for aripiprazole in the presence of its impurities and degradation products generated from forced decomposition studies. The drug substance was subjected to stress conditions of aqueous hydrolysis, oxidative, photolytic and thermal stress degradation. The degradation of aripiprazole was observed under acid hydrolysis and peroxide. The drug was found to be stable to other stress conditions attempted. Successful separation of the drug from the synthetic impurities and degradation products formed under stress conditions was achieved on an Inertsil phenyl column using a mixture of 0.2% trifluoroacetic acid and acetonitrile (55:45, v/v). The developed LC method was validated with respect to linearity, accuracy, precision, specificity and robustness. The assay method was found linear in the range of 25–200 μg mL^?1 with a correlation coefficient of 0.9999 and the linearity of the impurities were established from LOQ to 0.3%. Recoveries of the assay and impurities were found between 97.2 and 104.6%. The developed LC method for the related substances and assay determination of aripiprazole can be used to evaluate the quality of regular production samples. It can also be used to test the stability samples of aripiprazole. To the best of our knowledge, the validated stability indicating LC method which separates all the impurities disclosed in this investigation was not published elsewhere.     

Hyphenation of liquid chromatography to ion trap mass spectrometry to identify minor components in polypeptide antibiotics

The application of liquid chromatography–ion trap mass spectrometry for the characterization of linear and cyclic polypeptide antibiotics was investigated. The aim was on-line identification of impurities in those antibiotic complexes without recourse to time-consuming isolation and purification procedures. Hyphenated techniques, such as liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry, are ideally suited for this purpose. Characterization was performed with an ion trap mass spectrometer offering MSⁿ capability; this enables more structural information to be obtained. Liquid chromatography in combination with ion trap mass spectrometry was successfully applied for the characterization of impurities in gramicidin, polymyxin B, polymyxin E, and bacitracin and the study of the degradation products of polymyxins B and E.     

High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Assay of Verapamil Hydrochloride in Dosage Formsk

Abstract

A stability indicating high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for determining verapamil hydrochloride in dosage forms is described. The assay affords baseline separation of the drug from its synthesis impurities and from photolytic degradation products, as well as from formulation excipients. The drug was extracted in 0.05 N hydrochloric acid, chromatographed on a C₁₈ reverse-phase column, eluted with methanol-water-acetic acid-triethylamine (55:44:1:0.1) and the effluent was detected at 280 nm. Linearity studies were carried out using peak height or peak area measurements and the detector response to the concentration of verapamil hydrochloride was confirmed. Excellent interlaboratory precision and recovery data were obtained by the spiked placebo method. This procedure was rapid and selective for the assay of the cardiotonic drug. Application of the method for the assay of verapamil hydrochloride in representative dosage forms is described.     

Preservation of Biological LH and FSH Activity after Application on HPLC. Comparison between Cation-Exchange and Reverse-Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography

Abstract

A cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography procedure is described for the separation of bioactive lutropin from follitropin in a human urinary gonadotropin standard preparation (1st IRP 70/45). The results clearly demonstrate that recovered protein retained most of its biological activity following the chromatography. Due to a lack of efficient and quick methods for purifying pituitary or urinary gonadotropins, this method could prove to be valuable for this purpose. This method has also been shown to be quick (less than 20 min) and efficient for separation of impurities or degradation products from bovine follitropin with 92% preservation of its biological activity. Our results suggest that ion exchange HPLC procedure will play a powerful role in the isolation of gonadotropins and other biologically active compounds.     

HPLC analysis of aspartame and saccharin in pharmaceutical and dietary formulations

Summary A reversed-phase HPLC method has been developed suitable for a reliable quality control of pharmaceutical and dietary formulations containing the synthetic sweeteners aspartame and saccharin. The proposed method is able to separate acesulfame, aspartame and saccharin, and their impurities such as 5-benzyl-3,6-dioxo-2-piperazineacetic acid (the major degradation product of aspartame) and 4-sulphamoylbenzoic acid,o- andp-toluenesulphonamides (the synthesis impurities of saccharin). A convenient solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure using C-18 sorbent, was also developed for the determination of potential saccharin impurities.     

Identification of Chlorinated Phenyl and Phenoxy Substituted Dibenzodioxin,Dibenzofuran, and Diphenyl Ether Homologs in Commercial Grade Pentachlorophenol

Abstract

As part of a bioassay study by the National Toxicology Program, technical grade pentachlorophenol (PCP) was analyzed for chlorinated impurities using capillary gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Several high molecular weight impurities eluting after octachlorodibenzodioxin were detected during the analysis of this material. These impurities were tentatively identified according to structural classes as chlorinated triphenyl ethers, dibenzodioxin phenyl ethers, phenyldibenzodioxins, and dibenzofuran phenyl ethers.     

Development and Validation of a New Analytical Method for the Determination of Related Components in Tolterodine Tartarate Using LC

A novel liquid chromatographic method has been developed, and validated for the determination of tolterodine tartarate, for its potential three impurities in drug substances and drug products. Efficient chromatographic separation was achieved on a C8 stationary phase (150 × 4.6 mm, 3.5 μm particles) with a simple mobile phase combination delivered in an isocratic mode at a flow rate of 0.8 mL min^?1 and quantitation was carried out using ultraviolet detection. Microwave assisted degradation procedure was employed for stress testing studies in addition to the conventional way of a refluxing method. The results of both studies were compared. In the developed LC method, the resolution between tolterodine and its three potential impurities was found to be greater than 2.0. Regression analysis shows an r value (correlation coefficient) greater than 0.999 for tolterodine and for its three impurities. This method was capable to detect all three impurities of tolterodine at a level below 0.0038% with respect to a test concentration of 0.5 mg mL^?1 for a 10 μL injection volume. The inter- and intra-day precisions for all three impurities and for tolterodine were found to be within 1.1% RSD at its specification level. The method has shown good, consistent recoveries for tolterodine (98.9–101.6%) and for its three impurities (94.5–103.0%). The test solution was found to be stable in the diluent for 48 h. The drug was subjected to stress conditions of hydrolysis, oxidation, photolysis and thermal degradation, as prescribed by ICH. Degradation was found to occur in alkaline stress condition, while the drug was stable to water hydrolysis, acid hydrolysis, oxidative stress, photolytic and thermal stress. The assay of stressed samples was calculated against a qualified reference standard and the mass balance was found close to 99.5%. Microwave degradations were very fast and comparable to the conventional way of the refluxing method. Robustness studies were carried out and suggested that system suitability parameters were unaffected by small changes in critical factors. The validated method was successfully applied for the determination of tolterodine tartarate in drug substances and drug products.     

Chemometrics‐assisted chromatographic fingerprinting: An illicit methamphetamine case study

The volatile chemical constituents in complex mixtures can be analyzed using gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. This analysis allows the tentative identification of diverse impurities of an illicit methamphetamine sample. The acquired two‐dimensional data of liquid–liquid extraction was resolved by multivariate curve resolution alternating curve resolution to elucidate the embedded peaks effectively. This is the first report on the application of a curve resolution approach for chromatogram fingerprinting to identify particularly the embedded impurities of a drug of abuse. Indeed, the strong and broad peak of methamphetamine makes identifying the underlying peaks problematic and even impossible. Mathematical separation instead of conventional chromatographic approaches was performed in a way that trace components embedded in methamphetamine peak were successfully resolved. Comprehensive analysis of the chromatogram, using multivariate curve resolution, resulted in elution profiles and mass spectra for each pure compound. Impurities such as benzaldehyde, benzyl alcohol, benzene, propenyl methyl ketone, benzyl methyl ketone, amphetamine, N‐benzyl‐2‐methylaziridine, phenethylamine, N ,N ,α‐trimethylamine, phenethylamine, N ,α,α‐trimethylmethamphetamine, N‐acetylmethamphetamine, N‐formylmethamphetamine, and other chemicals were identified. A route‐specific impurity, N‐benzyl‐2‐methylaziridine, indicating a synthesis route based on ephedrine/pseudoephedrine was identified. Moreover, this is the first report on the detection of impurities such as phenethylamine, N ,α,α‐trimethylamine (a structurally related impurity), and clonitazene (as an adulterant) in an illicit methamphetamine sample.     

The Purification of Xanthene Dyes by Reverse Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography

Abstract

A reliable method for the separation of fluorescein dyes from their impurities was developed using high performance liquid chromatography and involved a μBondapak C₁₈ reverse phase column and mixtures of methanol and ammonium acetate buffer. This technique was used to verify the purity of commercial products as well as to aid in the development of an empirical theory related to retention of halogenated fluorescein dyes by reverse phase columns.     

A Stability Indicating LC Method for Amtolmetin Guacyl

A simple, sensitive gradient RP-LC assay method has been developed for the quantitative determination of amtolmetin guacyl in bulk drug, used as anti-inflammatory drug. The developed method is also applicable for related substances determination. Efficient chromatographic separation was achieved on a C18 stationary phase with simple mobile phase combination delivered in a gradient mode and quantification was carried out using ultraviolet detection at 313 nm at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min^?1. In the developed LC method the resolution between Amtolmetin Guacyl and its three potential impurities was found to be greater than 2.0. Regression analysis shows an r value (correlation coefficient) greater than 0.99 for amtolmetin guacyl and its three impurities. This method was capable to detect all three impurities of amtolmetin guacyl at a level of 0.002% with respect to test concentration of 0.5 mg mL^?1 for a 10 μL injection volume. The inter- and intra-day precision values for all three impurities and for amtolmetin guacyl was found to be within 2.0% RSD at its specification level. The method has shown good and consistent recoveries for amtolmetin guacyl (99.2–101.5%) and its three impurities (94.5–104.8%). The test solution was found to be stable in diluent for 48 h. The drug was subjected to stress conditions of hydrolysis, oxidation, photolysis and thermal degradation. Considerable degradation was found to occur in oxidative stress conditions. The stress samples were assayed against a qualified reference standard and the mass balance was found close to 99.6%. The developed RP-LC method was validated with respect to linearity, accuracy, precision and robustness.     

Identification and characterization of the degradation products of prasugrel hydrochloride tablets using LC-MS technique

New high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed for the determination of prasugrel HCl-related substances. Impurity profile of prasugrel HCl was established by studying the degradation profile of it as an active pharmaceutical ingredient, for the first time, in the tablet form. Two significant unknown degradation products (impurities) were detected and characterized, to the best of our knowledge; these impurities have not been previously reported in the literature. The first one resulted from acidic, basic, and neutral hydrolyses of prasugrel; it was nominated as impurity 1 (5-(2-cyclopropyl-1-(2-fluorophenyl)-2-oxoethyl)-4,5,6,7-tetrahydrothieno[3,2-c]pyridin-2(3H)-one), its structure was proposed using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry technique. The second degradant was nominated as impurity 2 (5-(2-cyclopropyl-1-(2-fluorophenyl)-2-oxoethyl)-7a-hydroxy-5,6,7,7a-tetrahydrothieno[3,2-c]pyridin-2(4H)-one) that formed upon neutral hydrolysis of prasugrel with magnesium stearate; this impurity was identified using nuclear magnetic resonance and LC-MS techniques. Based on these findings, other lubricant materials should be used in prasugrel tablets instead of magnesium stearate to avoid formation of such impurity. Prasugrel HCl was susceptible to hydrolytic and oxidative degradation, whereas it was stable under these conditions.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Process Related Impurities of (±)‐Milnacipran

Milnacipran is a cyclopropane derivative, used as an anti depressant drug. During the process development of milnacipran, four process related potential impurities were detected in high performance liquid chromatography. All these impurities were identified, synthesized and subsequently characterized by their respective spectral data (IR, LC‐MS, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR) as described in this article.     

Synthesis of potential impurities of dabigatran etexilate

The present work describes the origin, control, and synthesis of two potent impurities of dabigatran etexilate 1, dabigatran dimer 2, and dabigatran n-propyl ester 3 from the commercially available raw materials 2-[(4-cyanophenyl)amino]acetic acid (4) and N-[3-amino-4-(methylamino)benzoyl]-N-2-pyridinyl-β-alanine ethyl ester (5). These impurities are the process-related impurities and may affect the quality of drug substance, during its manufacturing in large scale. These impurities are not only the crucial components in determining the quality and safety of the drug substance 1 but also provide a better understanding of impurity profiling.     

A Stability-Indicating LC Method for Rimonabant

A simple, inexpensive and rapid isocratic LC method has been developed for the quantative determination of Rimonabant, an anti-obesity drug. The method can also be employed for the determination of Rimonabant and its impurities in the bulk drug. Degradation studies were performed on the bulk drug by heating to 60 °C, exposure to UV light at 254 nm, acid (0.5 N hydrochloric acid), base (0.5 N sodium hydroxide) and aqueous hydrolysis and oxidation with 3.0% v/v hydrogen peroxide. Considerable degradation was observed under oxidation conditions. Good resolution between the peaks corresponding to impurities produced during synthesis, degradation products and the analyte was achieved on a Phenomenex Gemini C18 LC column using a mobile phase consisting of a mixture of aqueous potassium dihydrogen phosphate (pH 3.0) and acetonitrile. The degradation samples were assayed against the reference standard of Rimonabant and the mass balance in each case was close to 99.5%. Validation of the method was carried out as per ICH requirements.