Simultaneous Quantification of Antidepressants and Metabolites in Urine and Plasma Samples by GC–MS for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring

A validated dilute-and-shoot LC-MS-MS urine screening for the analysis of 95 illicit drugs and medicines: Insights from clinical and forensic Brazilian cases

Urine toxicological analysis is a relevant tool in both clinical and forensic scenarios, enabling the diagnosis of acute poisonings, elucidation of deaths, verification of substance use in the workplace and identification of drug-facilitated crimes. For these analyses, the dilute-and-shoot technique associated with liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) is a promising alternative since it has demonstrated satisfactory results and broad applicability. This study developed and validated a comprehensive LC-MS-MS screening method to analyze 95 illicit drugs and medicines in urine samples and application to clinical and forensic Brazilian cases. The dilute-and-shoot protocol was defined through multivariate optimization studies and was set using 100 µL of sample and 300 µL of solvent. The total chromatographic run time was 7.5 min. The method was validated following the recommendations of the ANSI/ASB Standard 036 Guideline. The lower limits of quantification varied from 20 to 100 ng/mL. Within-run and between-run precision coefficient of variations% were <20%, and bias was within ± 20%. Only 4 of the 95 analytes presented significant ionization suppression or enhancement (>25%). As proof of applicability, 839 urine samples from in vivo and postmortem cases were analyzed. In total, 90.9% of the analyzed samples were positive for at least one substance, and 78 of the 95 analytes were detected. The most prevalent substances were lidocaine (40.2%), acetaminophen (38.0%) and benzoylecgonine (31.5%). The developed method proved to be an efficient and simplified alternative for analyzing 95 therapeutic and illicit drugs in urine samples. Additionally, the results obtained from sample analysis are essential for understanding the profile of Brazilian substance use, serving as a valuable database for the promotion of health and safety public policies.

A new approach with dried plasma spots: a rapid determination of antidepressants and antipsychotics by fast GC-MS

Background: The increasing prevalence of poisoning cases related to antidepressants and antipsychotics has raised concerns. Methods: To address this issue, a new adaptation of the dried plasma spot technique was developed using a 24-well plate and fast gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The method involves the optimization of extraction variables and sample preparation, and was successfully validated. Results: The limits of quantitation ranged from 20 to 60 ng/ml, and accuracy ranged from 87.8% to 112.2%. The technique was applied to 102 human plasma samples from suspected poisoning cases, with positivity of 90.2%. Conclusion: This method provides a cheap, easy to implement and fast approach, making it ideal for toxicological emergency laboratories and promoting valuable support for healthcare professionals managing poisoning cases involving antidepressants and antipsychotics.

Creatine@SiO2 @Fe3 O4 nanocomposite as an efficient sorbent for magnetic solid-phase extraction of escitalopram and chlordiazepoxide from urine samples through quantitation via HPLC-UV

An efficient, cost-effective, and fast-synthesis method is presented in the current study to prepare magnetic nanoparticles covered by cheap and nitrogen-rich creatine. The hydrothermal method was used for the synthesis of the magnetic core. The prepared magnetic core was then covered by SiO₂ and subsequently functionalized using creatine. The prepared creatine@SiO₂ @Fe₃ O₄ was utilized as a sorbent in the magnetic solid-phase extraction of the selected antidepressants including escitalopram and chlordiazepoxide as the model drugs. The extracted drugs were desorbed by a suitable organic solvent and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography equipped with an ultraviolet detection system. The influence of different variables on the magnetic solid-phase extraction method was examined by the Plackett-Burman and Box-Behnken designs for screening and optimization, respectively. Under the obtained optimum conditions, the linear ranges of the method were found to be in the range of 1-500 µg L^-1 . The limits of detection and limits of quantification were in the range of 0.27-0.63 µg L^-1 and 0.89-1.93 µg L^-1 for the selected analytes, respectively. Furthermore, the enrichment factors were found to be 79.8 and 92.7 for chlordiazepoxide and escitalopram, respectively. The method was successfully employed for the analysis of selected drugs in urine samples.

New Method for the Monitoring of Antidepressants in Oral Fluid Using Dried Spot Sampling

The increase in the consumption of antidepressants is a public health problem worldwide, as these are a class of compounds widely used in the treatment of several illnesses, such as depression and anxiety. This work aimed to develop and optimize a method for the quantification of a number of antidepressants and their metabolites (fluoxetine, venlafaxine, O-desmethylvenlafaxine, citalopram, sertraline, and paroxetine) in 100 µL of oral fluid using the dried saliva spots (DSS) sampling approach and gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). The method was validated, presenting linearity within the studied range, with detection and quantification limits ranging between 10 and 100 ng/mL, and coefficients of determination (R²) of at least 0.99 for all analytes. Recoveries were between approximately 13 and 46%. The analysis of precision and accuracy presented acceptable coefficients of variation and relative errors, considering the criteria usually accepted in the validation of bioanalytical procedures. The method herein described is the first to be reported using DSS for the extraction of antidepressants, proving to be a sensitive, simple, and fast alternative to conventional techniques, and capable of being routinely applied in clinical and forensic toxicology scenarios.

Application of Bar Adsorptive Microextraction for the Determination of Levels of Tricyclic Antidepressants in Urine Samples

This work entailed the development, optimization, validation, and application of a novel analytical approach, using the bar adsorptive microextraction technique (BAμE), for the determination of the six most common tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs; amitriptyline, mianserin, trimipramine, imipramine, mirtazapine and dosulepin) in urine matrices. To achieve this goal, we employed, for the first time, new generation microextraction devices coated with convenient sorbent phases, polymers and novel activated carbons prepared from biomaterial waste, in combination with large-volume-injection gas chromatography-mass spectrometry operating in selected-ion monitoring mode (LVI-GC-MS(SIM)). Preliminary assays on sorbent coatings, showed that the polymeric phases present a much more effective performance, as the tested biosorbents exhibited low efficiency for application in microextraction techniques. By using BAμE coated with C18 polymer, under optimized experimental conditions, the detection limits achieved for the six TCAs ranged from 0.2 to 1.6 μg L-1 and, weighted linear regressions resulted in remarkable linearity (r2 > 0.9960) between 10.0 and 1000.0 μg L-1. The developed analytical methodology (BAμE(C18)/LVI-GC-MS(SIM)) provided suitable matrix effects (90.2-112.9%, RSD ≤ 13.9%), high recovery yields (92.3-111.5%, RSD ≤ 12.3%) and a remarkable overall process efficiency (ranging from 84.9% to 124.3%, RSD ≤ 13.9%). The developed and validated methodology was successfully applied for screening the six TCAs in real urine matrices. The proposed analytical methodology proved to be an eco-user-friendly approach to monitor trace levels of TCAs in complex urine matrices and an outstanding analytical alternative in comparison with other microextraction-based techniques.

Glutathione-stabilized Fe3 O4 nanoparticles as the sorbent for magnetic solid-phase extraction of diazepam and sertraline from urine samples through quantitation via high-performance liquid chromatography

The synthesis and application of glutathione-coated magnetic nanocomposite were introduced with the purpose of developing a stable, cheap, operationally convenient, simple, fast, sensitive, and selective device for the microextraction of diazepam and sertraline for the first time. The prepared glutathione@Fe₃ O₄ nanocomposite was used as the sorbent in the form of magnetic solid-phase extraction. Afterward, the extracted analytes were desorbed by organic solvent and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection. Several influential variables such as desorption time, desorption volume, sample pH, extraction time, and sorbent amount were screened through Plackett-Burman design and then optimized via Box-Behnken design. The obtained results showed that the above-mentioned method enjoys a good linear range (0.2-500 μg/L) with the coefficient of determination higher than 0.9927, low limits of determination (0.07-0.24 μg/L), acceptable limits of quantification (0.22-0.93 μg/L), good enrichment factors (128 and 153), and good spiking recoveries (95-105%) for diazepam and sertraline under the obtained optimized condition. Analyzing the real samples results in the confirmation of the presented method and it can be applied for the analysis of various organic compounds in biological samples.

Simultaneous Determination of 34 Amino Acids in Tumor Tissues from Colorectal Cancer Patients Based on the Targeted UHPLC-MS/MS Method

A targeted ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was established and validated for the simultaneous determination of 34 amino acids in tissue samples from colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. The chromatographic separation was achieved on an Agilent ZORBAX SB-C₁₈ column (3.0 × 150 mm, 5 μm) with a binary gradient elution system (A, 0.02% heptafluorobutyric acid and 0.2% formic acid in water, v/v; B, methanol). The run time was 10 min. The multiple reaction monitoring mode was chosen with an electrospray ionization source operating in the positive ionization mode for data acquisition. The linear correlation coefficients were >0.99 for all the analytes in their corresponding calibration ranges. The sample was pretreated based on tissue homogenate and protein precipitation with a 100 mg aliquot sample. The average recovery and matrix effect for 34 amino acids and 3 internal standards were 39.00%∼146.95% and 49.45%∼173.63%, respectively. The intra- and interday accuracy for all the analytes ranged from -13.52% to 14.21% (RSD ≤8.57%) and from -14.52% to 12.59% (RSD ≤10.31%), respectively. Deviations of stability under different conditions were within ±15% for all the analytes. This method was applied to simultaneous quantification of 34 amino acids in tissue samples from 94 CRC patients.

A Systematic Review on Analytical Methods to Determine Chiral and Achiral Forms of Venlafaxine and its Metabolite O-desmethylvenlafaxine

Background:

Venlafaxine (VEN) is a bicyclic phenylethylamine derivative and possesses a marked structural difference from other antidepressant drugs present in the market. It works by eliciting the neurotransmitter action in CNS. It occurs in two enantiomeric forms i.e. R and S VEN. After the first pass metabolism, it gets metabolized into more active form O-desmethylvenlafaxine (ODV) which also exist in the enantiomeric forms. So it is important to develop a suitable analytical and bioanalytical method for the determination of VEN and its metabolite to quantify them accurately.

Methods and Results:

The current review summarizes methods to determine chiral and achiral forms of VEN and ODV. According to the literature, it is clear that most widely used method for the determination of VEN and ODV is liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy, other methods used for routine analysis include UV spectroscopy, reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography with PDA detector. For the determination of enantiomeric forms of VEN and ODV, different chiral columns have been utilized. Capillary electrophoresis with charged cyclodextrins is also used to determine the enantiomeric forms.

Conclusion:

Various analytical methods for determining VEN and its metabolite in different matrices have been discussed thoroughly in the present review.