Development and validation of a highly rapid and sensitive LC–MS/MS method for determination of SZ-685C, an investigational marine anticancer agent, in rat plasma – Application to a pharmacokinetic study in rats

Quantification of thonningianin a in rat plasma by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

CONTEXT

Thonningianin A is an ellagitannin substance and displays multiple pharmacological activities.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the pharmacokinetic characteristics of thonningianin A after oral administration in rats using a fully validated liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A sensitive and selective LC-MS/MS assay was developed for quantifying thonningianin A. Eighteen Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 6), which were given at a single dose of 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg thonningianin A by gavage. Blood samples (200 µL) were collected from the orbit vein at designated time points and analyzed using the LC-MS/MS method to measure the levels of thonningianin A.

RESULTS

Thonningianin A and internal standard (IS) were eluted at 1.5 and ∼3.0 min, respectively. The selected reaction mode transitions monitored were m/z 873.2 > 300.3 and 819.3 > 610.6 for thonningianin A and the IS, respectively. The calibration range was 10-1200 ng/mL. The intra- and the inter-day accuracy and precision met the acceptance criteria. No carryover and matrix effect were observed. The plasma concentrations of thonningianin A increased rapidly after oral administration of three dosages and reached the mean peak concentrations (C_max) within 0.61-0.83 h. Meanwhile, AUC_0-t/AUC_0-∞ of the three dosage groups was more than 89.0% (10 mg/kg), 95.7% (20 mg/kg), and 97.0% (40 mg/kg).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The present method is the first report in terms of the simple precipitation procedure, high sensitivity, and high-throughput efficiency. This validated assay was successfully applied to determine the pharmacokinetic behaviours of thonningianin A in rats. This study should be helpful for providing references for understanding the action mechanism and further application of Penthorum chinense.

Metabolites profiling and pharmacokinetics of troxipide and its pharmacodynamics in rats with gastric ulcer

Troxipide is widely used to treat gastric ulcer (GU) in the clinic. However, a lack of systematic metabolic, pharmacokinetic and pharmacological studies limits its clinical use. This study aimed to firstly explore the metabolic, pharmacokinetic and pharmacological mechanisms of troxipide in rats with GU compared to normal control (NC) rats. First, metabolic study was perormed by a highly selective, high-resolution mass spectrometry method. A total of 45 metabolites, including 9 phase I metabolites and 36 phase II metabolites, were identified based on MS/MS spectra. Subsequently, the pharmacokinetics results suggested that the Cmax, Ka, t1/2, AUC(0-t) and AUC(0-∞) of troxipide were significantly increased in rats with GU compared with NC rats. The Vz, K10 and absolute bioavailability of troxipide were obviously decreased in rats with GU compared with NC rats, and its tissue distribution (in the liver, lung and kidney) was significantly different between the two groups of rats. Additionally, the pharmacodynamic results suggested that the levels of biochemical factors (IL-17, IL-6, TNF-α, IFN-γ, AP-1, MTL, GAS, and PG-II) were significantly increased, the PG-Ӏ level was obviously decreased, and the protein expression levels of HSP-90, C-Cas-3 and C-PARP-1 were markedly increased in rats with GU compared with NC rats. The above results suggested that the therapeutic mechanisms underlying the metabolic, pharmacokinetic and pharmacological properties of troxipide in vivo in rats deserve further attention based on the importance of troxipide in the treatment of GU in this study, and these mechanisms could be targets for future studies.

A Review on Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Methods for Rapid Quantification of Oncology Drugs

In the last decade, the tremendous improvement in the sensitivity and also affordability of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has revolutionized its application in pharmaceutical analysis, resulting in widespread employment of LC-MS/MS in determining pharmaceutical compounds, including anticancer drugs in pharmaceutical research and also industries. Currently, LC-MS/MS has been widely used to quantify small molecule oncology drugs in various biological matrices to support preclinical and clinical pharmacokinetic studies in R&D of oncology drugs. This mini-review article will describe the state-of-the-art LC-MS/MS and its application in rapid quantification of small molecule anticancer drugs. In addition, efforts have also been made in this review to address several key aspects in the development of rapid LC-MS/MS methods, including sample preparation, chromatographic separation, and matrix effect evaluation.