UPLC-MS-MS Method for the Determination of N-(2,6-Dimethoxypyridine-3-yl)-9-methylcarbazole-3-sulfonamide in Rat Plasma and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

The purpose of the study is first to develop a sensitive and rapid ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS-MS) method for the determination of a new synthesized tubulin ligand, N-(2,6-dimethoxypyridine-3-yl)-9-methylcarbazole-3-sulfonamide (IG-105), in rat plasma. The analyte and internal standard (carbamazepine) were extracted by liquid/liquid extraction with petroleum ether/diethyl ether (2:1, v/v). The chromatographic separation was performed on an Acquity UPLC BEH C₁₈ column with a mobile phase gradient consisting of methanol and water. The mass spectrometric detection was performed by triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) via an ESI source operating in positive ionization mode. The mass transitions m/z 398??153 and m/z 237??194 were used to assay the analyte and IS, respectively. The method demonstrated good linearity over a concentration range of 0.67?C333.33 ng mL^?1, and the lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) of IG-105 was 0.67 ng mL^?1. The intra- and inter-day precision (relative standard deviation) values were <6%, and the accuracy (relative error) was <5% at three quality control levels. The extraction recovery of IG-105 and IS was 84.45 and 88.5%, respectively. Finally, the validated method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of IG-105 in rat plasma.