Development and validation of an LC-MS/MS method for determination of hydroxychloroquine, its two metabolites, and azithromycin in EDTA-treated human plasma

Simultaneous LC-MS/MS method for the quantitation of Azithromycin, Hydroxychloroquine and its metabolites in SARS-CoV-2(-/ +) populations using dried blood spots

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) led to a global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Early in the pandemic, efforts were made to test the SARS-CoV-2 antiviral efficacy of repurposed medications that were already approved and available for other indications, including hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and azithromycin (AZI). To reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure for clinical-trial study participants and to conform with lockdowns and social distancing guidelines, biospecimen collection for HCQ and AZI included at-home dried blood spot (DBS) collection rather than standard venipuncture by trained clinicians. In this study, we developed and validated the first sensitive and selective simultaneous LC-MS/MS method to accurately quantitate the concentration of HCQ, HCQ metabolites (Desethylchloroquine [DCQ], Bisdesethylchloroquine [BDCQ], Monodesethylhydroxychloroquine [DHCQ]) and AZI extracted from DBS. The validated method was successfully applied for the quantification of over 2000 DBS specimens to evaluate the pharmacokinetic profile of AZI, HQC, and its metabolites. This new method has a small sample volume requirement (~ 10 µL), results in high sensitivity (1 ng/mL), and would facilitate remotely conducted therapeutic drug monitoring.

The In Vitro, In Vivo, and PBPK Evaluation of a Novel Lung-Targeted Cardiac-Safe Hydroxychloroquine Inhalation Aerogel

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) was repurposed for COVID-19 treatment. Subtherapeutic HCQ lung levels and cardiac toxicity of oral HCQ were overcome by intratracheal (IT) administration of lower HCQ doses. The crosslinker-free supercritical fluid technology (SFT) produces aerogels and impregnates them with drugs in their amorphous form with efficient controlled release. Mechanistic physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling can predict the lung's epithelial lining fluid (ELF) drug levels. This study aimed to develop a novel HCQ SFT formulation for IT administration to achieve maximal ELF levels and minimal cardiac toxicity. HCQ SFT formulation was prepared and evaluated for physicochemical, in vitro release, pharmacokinetics, and cardiac toxicity. Finally, the rat HCQ ELF concentrations were predicted using PBPK modeling. HCQ was amorphous after loading into the chitosan-alginate nanoporous microparticles (22.7±7.6 μm). The formulation showed a zero-order release, with only 40% released over 30 min compared to 94% for raw HCQ. The formulation had a tapped density of 0.28 g/cm3 and a loading efficiency of 35.3±1.3%. The IT administration of SFT HCQ at 1 mg/kg resulted in 23.7-fold higher bioavailability, fourfold longer MRT, and eightfold faster absorption but lower CK-MB and LDH levels than oral raw HCQ at 4 mg/kg. The PBPK model predicted 6 h of therapeutic ELF levels for IT SFT HCQ and a 100-fold higher ELF-to-heart concentration ratio than oral HCQ. Our findings support the feasibility of lung-targeted and more effective SFT HCQ IT administration for COVID-19 compared to oral HCQ with less cardiac toxicity. Graphical abstract.

Copper Nanoparticles and Reduced Graphene Oxide as an Electrode Modifier for the Development of an Electrochemical Sensing Platform for Chloroquine Phosphate Determination

This study describes the use of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) as an electrode modifier for the determination of chloroquine phosphate (CQP). The synthetized rGO-CuNPs composite was morphologically characterized using scanning electron microscopy and electrochemically characterized using cyclic voltammetry. The parameters were optimized and the developed electrochemical sensor was applied in the determination of CQP using square-wave voltammetry (SWV). The analytical range for the determination of CQP was 0.5 to 110 μmol L^-1 (one of the highest linear ranges for CQP considering electrochemical sensors), with limits of detection and quantification of 0.23 and 0.78 μmol L^-1, respectively. Finally, the glassy carbon (GC) electrode modified with rGO-CuNPs was used for quantification of CQP in tap water; a study was carried out with interferents using SWV and obtained great results. The use of rGO-CuNP material as an electrode modifier was thus shown to be a good alternative for the development of low-cost devices for CQP analysis.

Review of Analytical Methods for Evaluating Azithromycin in the Context of Green Analytical Chemistry

BACKGROUND

Azithromycin (AZT) is an antimicrobial available in different pharmaceutical forms and many people can have access to this medicine. Therefore, the existence of adequate and reliable analytical methods for evaluating the quality of AZT and AZT-based products is essential.

OBJECTIVE/METHODS

The purpose of this review is to discuss the analytical methods for evaluating AZT present in the literature and official compendia in the context of Green Analytical Chemistry (GAC).

RESULTS

Among the methods found in the literature for evaluating AZT, the most used method is HPLC (62%) followed by TLC (14%) and the microbiological method by agar diffusion (14%). Even pharmacopoeias recommend the analysis of AZT by HPLC or agar diffusion. Acetonitrile and methanol account for 35% of the most used solvents in the analyses, followed by buffer.

CONCLUSION

AZT lacks analytical methods in the context of GAC. Both physical-chemical and microbiological methods can contemplate the environmentally friendly way to analyze AZT and AZT-based products, depending only on the chosen conditions. Ethanol, purified water, acetic acid instead of methanol, acetonitrile, buffer, formic acid in the physical-chemical methods are excellent alternatives. However, in the microbiological method, turbidimetry is a great option instead of agar diffusion.

Deuterated Drugs and Biomarkers in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Initially identified in Wuhan (China) in December 2019, COVID-19 rapidly spread globally, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. Carriers of the SARS-CoV-2 can experience symptoms ranging from mild to severe (or no symptoms whatsoever). Although vaccination provides extra immunity toward SARS-CoV-2, there has been an urgent need to develop treatments for COVID-19 to alleviate symptoms for carriers of the disease. In seeking a potential treatment, deuterated compounds have played a critical role either as therapeutic agents or as internal MS standards for studying the pharmacological properties of new drugs by quantifying the parent compounds and metabolites. We have identified >70 examples of deuterium-labeled compounds associated with treatment of COVID-19. Of these, we found 9 repurposed drugs and >20 novel drugs studied for potential therapeutic roles along with a total of 38 compounds (drugs, biomarkers, and lipids) explored as internal mass spectrometry standards. This review details the synthetic pathways and modes of action of these compounds (if known), and a brief analysis of each study.

The ecological impact of liquid chromatographic methods reported for bioanalysis of COVID-19 drug, hydroxychloroquine: Insights on greenness assessment

Hydroxychloroquine is a drug that has been widely used during the early stages of COVID-19 pandemic. Different liquid chromatographic methods have been reported for the analysis of hydroxychloroquine in various biological matrices such as human plasma, serum, whole blood, oral fluid, rat plasma and tissues . In this comparative study, the most popular tools used for assessing the greenness profile: National Environmental Methods Index (NEMI), Eco-Scale Assessment (ESA), Green Analytical Procedure Index (GAPI) and Analytical Greenness metric (AGREE) were utilized to evaluate the ecological impact of eighteen liquid chromatographic methods developed for the bioanalysis of COVID-19 drug; hydroxychloroquine.

NEMI is the simplest tool for evaluating the greenness profile of developed methods, but it is the least informative approach as all the reported methods had the same NEMI pictograms. On the other hand, GAPI is a dependable tool providing a complete picture about the method greenness starting from sampling until the final determination. ESA and AGREE tools are digitally presented and more easily applied. Therefore, their utilization for greenness assessment is highly recommended. Selection of the highest eco-friendly analytical procedure is of a paramount importance for protecting human health and the environment. Considering the greenness of the analytical procedures is highly recommended before proceeding to routine use in order to minimize the chemical hazards to the environment. The most eco-friendly analytical procedures for the analysis of hydroxychloroquine in biological samples according to ESA, GAPI and AGREE tools will be highlighted and discussed.

Core shell stationary phase for a novel separation of some COVID-19 used drugs by UPLC-MS/MS Method: Study of grapefruit consumption impact on their pharmacokinetics in rats

A sensitive and selective UPLC-MS/MS method was developed for the synchronized determination of four drugs used in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), namely, azithromycin, apixaban, dexamethasone, and favipiravir in rat plasma. using a Poroshell 120 EC-C18 column (50 mm × 4.6 mm, 2.7 m) with a high-resolution ESI tandem mass spectrometer detection with multiple reaction monitoring. We used an Agilent Poroshell column, which is characterized by a stationary phase based on non-porous core particles. With a remarkable improvement in the number of theoretical plates and low column backpressure. In addition, the developed method was employed in studying the potential food-drug interaction of grapefruit juice (GFJ) with the selected drugs which affects their pharmacokinetics in rats. The LC-MS/MS operated in positive and negative ionization mode using two internal standards: moxifloxacin and chlorthalidone, respectively. Liquid- liquid extraction of the cited drugs from rat plasma was accomplished using diethyl ether: dichloromethane (70:30, v/v). The analytes were separated using methanol: 0.1 % formic acid in water (95: 5, v/v) as a mobile phase in isocratic mode of elution pumped at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. A detailed validation of the bio-analytical method was performed in accordance with US-FDA and EMA guidelines. Concerning the in vivo pharmacokinetic study, the statistical significance between the results of the test groups receiving GFJ along with the cited drugs and the control group was assessed demonstrating that GFJ increased the plasma concentration of azithromycin, apixaban, and dexamethasone. Accordingly, this food-drug interaction requires cautious ingestion of GFJ in patients using (SARS-CoV-2) medications as it can produce negative effects in the safety of the drug therapy. A potential drug-drug interaction is also suggested between those medications requiring a suitable dose adjustment.

Analytical Methods for the Determination of Major Drugs Used for the Treatment of COVID-19. A Review

At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak (end 2019 - 2020), therapeutic treatments based on approved drugs have been the fastest approaches to combat the new coronavirus pandemic. Nowadays several vaccines are available. However, the worldwide vaccination program is going to take a long time and its success will depend on the vaccine public's acceptance. Therefore, outside of vaccination, the repurposing of existing antiviral, anti-inflammatory and other types of drugs, have been considered an alternative medical strategy for the COVI-19 infection. Due to the broad clinical potential of the drugs, but also to their possible side effects, analytical methods are needed to monitor the drug concentrations in biological fluids and pharmaceutical products. This review deals with analytical methods developed in the period 2015 - July 2021 to detect potential drugs that, according to a literature survey, have been taken into consideration for the treatment of COVID-19. The drugs considered here have been selected on the basis of the number of articles published in the period January 2020-July 2021, using the combination of the keywords: COVID-19 and drugs or SARS-CoV-2 and drugs. A section is also devoted to monoclonal antibodies. Over the period considered, the analytical methods have been employed in a variety of real samples, such as body fluids (plasma, blood and urine), pharmaceutical products, environmental matrices and food.