Analysis of pharmaceutical adulterants in plant food supplements by UHPLC-MS/MS.

Analysis of pharmaceutical adulterants in plant food supplements by UHPLC-MS/MS. Eur J Pharm Sci. 2016 Dec 24;: Authors: Paíga P, Rodrigues MJ, Correia M, Amaral JS, Oliveira MB, Delerue-Matos C Abstract A method based on the Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe (QuEChERS) extraction and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was successfully developed and validated for the analysis of 26 pharmaceutical compounds belonging to different therapeutic classes (anorexics, stimulants, anxiolytics, antidepressants and laxatives), which are all prone to be illegally added into weight-loss plant food supplements (PFS) for their pharmacological activity. Internal standard calibration with six isotopically labelled compounds rendered good linearity in the range of 5 to 1000μg/l, depending on the compound, and good sensitivity with limits of quantification in the range of 0.02-9.80μg/l. Recoveries were assessed for all the 16 samples analysed and were found between 70% and 120% for over 90% of the analytes. The average recovery value was 90.8%, for the different studied matrices (liquids, liquid ampoules, tablets and capsules), with RSD values lower than 10% for all forms. The changes introduced to the QuEChERS procedure maintained the good performance characteristics of the extraction method while preserving the chromatographic system for the introduction of unwanted matrix c...
Source: European Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: Tags: Eur J Pharm Sci Source Type: research