Separation of cinchona alkaloids, opium alkaloids, heroin, and related narcotics by dynamic-coating high-speed liquid chromaotgraphy

Detection and measurement of opium alkaloids and metabolites in urine of opium eaters by methane chemical ionization mass fragmentography

A gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric assay for eight opium alkaloids in human urine following opium ingestion is described. The compounds were extracted from urine with methylene chloride-isopropanol (7:3, v/v) at pH 9.5, evaporated, derivatized with Tri-Sil Z and analyzed by methane chemical ionization mass fragmentography. The method in sensitive to ca. 0.01 microgram/ml for morphine and codeine and ca. 0.05 microgram/ml for the other compounds. Adsorption problems on the gas chromatography column prevented obtaining reproducible results for the measurement of noscapine. Extraction efficiencies over the pH range of 8-11 for the eight compounds are reported. Retention times of the opium alkaloids were determined using five different liquid phases (3%) on Gas-Chrom Q (100-120 mesh) and two column lengths (36 cm and 183 cm). The 36-cm column packed with OV-210 was selected for use in the assay. Ions were selected for monitoring for each component from their methane chemical ionization spectrum to provide the needed sensitivity and specificity for analysis of a multi-component mixture. The assay was used for the analysis of an "opium eater's" urine. Morphine, codeine, nomorphine, norcodeine and noscapine were detected; however, no evidence was obtained for thebaine, papaverine or oripavine. Unconjugated morphine (0.64 microgram/ml) was present at nearly twice the concentration of codeine (0.37 microgram/ml) and normorphine and norcodeine were present in equal amounts (ca. 0.15 microgram/ml).

High-performance liquid chromatographic assay of codeine in acetaminophen with codeine dosage forms

An accurate, rapid, and specific high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) assay was developed for codeine in acetaminophen with codeine combination products. The internal standard (chlorpheniramine maleate), codeine, acetaminophen, and several other test compounds or impurities were well separated. A complete analysis took < 10 min. The relative standard deviations of the retention time, precision, and accuracy were 0.5, 0.4, and 0.5%, respectively. An excellent linear correlation was obtained between the HPLC and GLC methods.

High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of codeine in syrups using ion-pair formation

The chromatographic behavior of morphine, codeine, and ethylmorphine was examined using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and ion-pair formation. Alkyl sulfonates and sulfates significantly increased the retention times for these compounds. The carbon chain length of the pairing ions was linearly related to the log of the capacity factors of these amine drugs. A mechanism for the increased retention based on ion-pair formation in the mobile phase is proposed. The use of dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate as a pairing ion for codeine is described, and a method utilizing this pairing ion was developed for the quantitation of codeine in syrups. This method was applied successfully to various syrups containing codeine or codeine phosphate.

Quantitative analysis of d-tubocurarine chloride in curare by column liquid chromatography

An improved quantitative analysis of d-tubocurarine chloride in the plant extract curare is presented. Gradient high-performance liquid chromatography on a hydrophobic stationary phase was found to be very suitable for the analysis of quaternary ammonium bases such as the complex mixture of curare alkaloids. Owing to the residual free silanol groups on the modified silica surface, the curare alkaloids are eluted from a reversed-phase column only if an electrolyte is added to the mobile phase. In order to optimize the separation, the effects of pH, the nature of the cation in the buffer and the concentration of the buffer of the retention of the alkaloids were investigated. Using a tetramethylammonium phosphate buffer at pH 4 in a gradient of water-methanol, undesirable retardation effects on the reversed-phase column could be suppressed sufficiently. As a result, an accurate method for the determination of d-tubocurarine chloride in curare was obtained. The coefficient of variation of this analysis is only 1.3%.

Quantitative determination of thebaine in Papaver bracteatum by high-pressure liquid chromatography

A method is described for the quantitative analysis of thebaine from Papaver bracteatum, using a single high-pressure liquid chromatographic column. The procedure gives base-line separation of thebaine without the need for gradient elution equipment, and can be completed within 12 min. Thebaine isolated by this technique was shown to be pure, regardless of the age of plant or plant part from which it was obtained.

Applications of high-performance liquid chromatography in the pharmaceutical industry

A survey of the literature has been carried out, covering pharmaceutical applications of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) from 1972-1975. The abstracts are divided into seven groups, viz. alkaloids, antibiotics, nitrogen-containing compounds, steroids, sulphur-containing compounds, formulations, and general analytical techniques. A general resume of the development of HPLC in our own laboratory from 1969 onwards is given together with fourteen chromatograms covering the spectrum of our more novel activities in pharmaceutical analysis.

High-pressure liquid chromatography of drugs. An evaluation of an octadecylsilane stationary phase

The performance of a commonly used high-pressure liquid chromatographic stationary phase, octadecylsilane, has been evaluated for 30 compounds selected as representative of a wide variety of drug substances. Chromatographic behavior is found to be highly predictable on the basis of pKa and partition coefficient, and the stationary phase should be especially valuable for the separation of acidic and neutral drugs. For basic drugs, however, the column efficiency is poor, detracting from the overall usefulness.

Ligand-exchange chromatography of alkaloids

Alkaloids are separated by liquid chromatography on resins having functional carboxyl groups combined with copper (II) ions. The eluent is aqueous alcohol containing ammonia. Some resins retain alkaloids much better than others. Alkaloids studied included morphine, codeine, strychnine, atropine, papaverine, narcotine, cocaine, quinine, cinchonine and methadone.

Separation of tricyclic psychosedative drugs by high-speed ion-pair partition and liquid-solid adsorption chromatography

The application of high-speed ion-pair partition and liquid-solid adsorption chromatography to the separation of twenty common tricyclic tranquilizers and antidepressant drugs is described. In the ion-pair system, amine-perchlorate ion-pairs were extracted from an aqueous stationary phase supported on 10-mum silica gel by organic eluents containing a chloromethane and a higher aliphatic alcohol, and chromatographic parameters for elution by eight eluent mixtures are presented. Using 5 mm times 120 mm columns good separations, according to chemical class, were achieved. For adsorption chromatography, the components were eluted from 20-mum spherical alumina using eluents containing methylene chloride, n-hexane or n-pentane, and acetic acid. Chromatographic parameters are given for eight eluent compositions. Components differing little in structure are well separated by liquid-solid adsorption chromatography. Compared with ion-pair partition chromatography, adsorption chromatography is much more selective for compounds of the same chemical type. The two methods are therefore complementary. Both methods gave plate heights in the range of 0.1 to 0.3 mm.