Enantioseparation of Tröger's Base Derivatives by Capillary Electrophoresis Using Cyclodextrins as Chiral Selectors

Enantioseparation and Determination of Mephedrone and Its Metabolites by Capillary Electrophoresis Using Cyclodextrins as Chiral Selectors

Mephedrone, a psychoactive compound derived from cathinone, is widely used as a designer drug. The determination of mephedrone and its metabolites is important for understanding its possible use in medicine. In this work, a method of capillary electrophoresis for the chiral separation of mephedrone and its metabolites was developed. Carboxymethylated β-cyclodextrin was selected as the most effective chiral selector from seven tested cyclodextrin derivates. Based on the simplex method, the optimal composition of the background electrolyte was determined: at pH 2.75 and 7.5 mmol·L^-1 carboxymethylated β-cyclodextrin the highest total resolution of a mixture of analytes was achieved. For mephedrone and its metabolites, calibration curves were constructed in a calibration range from 0.2 to 5 mmol·L^-1; limits of detection, limits of quantification, precision, and repeatability were calculated, and according to Mandel's fitting test, the linear calibration ranges were determined.

Cyclodextrins in capillary electrophoresis: recent developments and new trends

Despite the fact that extensive research in the field of separations by capillary electrophoresis (CE) has been carried out and many reviews have been published in the last years, a specific review on the use and future potential of cyclodextrins (CDs) in CE is not available. This review focuses the attention in the CD-CE topic over the January 2013-February 2014 period (not covered by previous more general CE-reviews). Recent contributions (reviews and research articles) including practical uses (e.g. solute-CD binding constant estimation and further potentials; 19% of publications), developments and applications (mainly chiral and achiral analysis; 38 and 24% of publications, respectively) are summarized in nine comprehensive tables and are commented. Statistics and predictions related to the CD-CE publications are highlighted in order to infer the current and expected research interests. Finally, trends and initiatives on CD-CE attending to real needs or practical criteria are outlined.