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Varfaj I, Protti M, Di Michele A, Gonzalez-Rodriguez J, Carotti A, Sardella R, Mercolini L. Chromatographic enantioresolution and stereochemical characterization of synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists with Whelk-O®1 chiral stationary phases under mass spectrometry compatible reversed-phase conditions: A study case with seized samples. Anal Chim Acta 2024; 1317:342901. [PMID: 39030005 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2024.342901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 06/03/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Ina Varfaj
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123, Perugia, Italy
| | - Michele Protti
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBiT), Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Alessandro Di Michele
- Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, Via Pascoli 1, 06123, Perugia, Italy
| | - Jose Gonzalez-Rodriguez
- School of Chemistry, Joseph Banks Laboratories, University of Lincoln, Green Lane, LN6 7DL, UK
| | - Andrea Carotti
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123, Perugia, Italy.
| | - Roccaldo Sardella
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123, Perugia, Italy.
| | - Laura Mercolini
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBiT), Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126, Bologna, Italy
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Hubner EM, Schützinger S, Molnárová K, Schmid MG. Screening of Astec® CHIRALDEX™ G-PN and LIPODEX™ D gas chromatography columns for enantioseparation of amphetamine derivatives. Chirality 2024; 36:e23676. [PMID: 38736271 DOI: 10.1002/chir.23676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2023] [Revised: 02/17/2024] [Accepted: 04/22/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Among different substance classes, New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) comprise chiral amphetamines for stimulant and empathic effects. There is little knowledge in terms of clinical studies about possibly different effects of the two enantiomers of novel amphetamine derivatives. For this reason, there is a big demand for enantioseparation method development of this new substance class. Regarding gas chromatography, cyclodextrins proved to be effective for enantioseparation of NPS. In our attempt, an Astec® Chiraldex™ G-PN column containing 2,6-di-O-pentyl-3-propionyl-γ-cyclodextrin and a Lipodex™ D column containing heptakis-(2,6-di-O-pentyl-O-acetyl)-β-cyclodextrin as chiral selector served as stationary phases in a Shimadzu GCMS-QP2010 SE system. Because of the special coating, maximum temperature is limited to 200 °C isothermal or 220 °C in programmed mode. To ensure detection, trifluoroacetic anhydride (TFAA) was used to increase sample volatility.1 As a result, 35 amphetamines were tested as their TFAA-derivatives. A screening method with a temperature gradient from 140 °C to 200 °C at a heating ramp of 1 °C per minute and final time of 5 min, showed baseline separation for seven and partial separations for 16 trifluoro acetylated amphetamines using the Chiraldex™ G-PN column. Six baseline and nine partial separations were observed with the Lipodex™ D column, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva-Maria Hubner
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Sophie Schützinger
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Katarína Molnárová
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University of Prague, Praha 2, Czech Republic
| | - Martin G Schmid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
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3
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Ioannou KA, Ioannou GD, Christou A, Stavrou IJ, Schmid MG, Kapnissi-Christodoulou CP. The potential of the use of deep eutectic solvents and amino acid-based ionic liquids to enhance the chiral discrimination ability of different chiral selectors in capillary electrophoresis. J Chromatogr A 2023; 1705:464152. [PMID: 37327715 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2023.464152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 06/08/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The effect of the combined use of amino acid-based ionic liquids (AAILs) and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) with either cyclodextrin- (CD) or cyclofructan- (CF) based chiral selectors for the chiral separation of amphetamine derivatives was investigated in the present study. A non-significant improvement in enantiomeric separation of target analytes was observed when AAILs were combined with either CF or CD. On the other side, a markedly improved chiral separation of enantiomers was obtained using the dual carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin/DES system, highlighting the existence of a synergistic effect. After the addition of 0.5% v/v of choline chloride-ethylene glycol, the resolution of the enantiomers of amphetamine, methamphetamine and 3-fluorethamphetamine, increased from 1.4, 1.1, 1.0 to 1.8, 1.8, and 1.5 min, and the analysis times increased from 19.54, 20.48, 18.71 to 35.71, 35.78 and 32.90 min, respectively. This was not the case for the CF/DES dual system, in which the separation of amphetamines worsened, indicating an antagonistic effect. In conclusion, DESs are a very promising additive in capillary electrophoresis that can improve the separation of chiral molecules in combination with CDs but not CFs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Ioannis J Stavrou
- Department of Life Sciences, European University Cyprus, 2404 Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Martin G Schmid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, 8010 Graz, Austria
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4
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Affiliation(s)
- David Love
- United States Drug Enforcement Administration, Special Testing and Research Laboratory, USA
| | - Nicole S. Jones
- RTI International, Applied Justice Research Division, Center for Forensic Sciences, 3040 E. Cornwallis Road, Research Triangle Park, NC, 22709-2194, USA
- 70113 Street, N.W., Suite 750, Washington, DC, 20005-3967, USA
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5
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Ioannou KA, Christou A, Stavrou IJ, Schmid MG, Kapnissi-Christodoulou CP. Evaluation of cyclodextrin- and cyclofructan-based chiral selectors for the enantioseparation of psychoactive substances in capillary electrophoresis. Electrophoresis 2022; 43:2392-2401. [PMID: 36189902 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202200182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
During this study, a simple and easy-to-prepare electrophoretic method was developed for the enantioseparation of amphetamine and cathinone derivatives. Different types of β-cyclodextrin and cyclofructan-based chiral selectors (CSs), both native and derivatized, were utilized, and the most effective ones, in terms of resolution and analysis time, were identified. In addition, several electrophoretic parameters, such as background electrolyte concentration and pH, and CS concentration, were examined to optimize the separation conditions. Under the optimal electrophoretic conditions, 10 psychoactive substances were enantiomerically separated using 1 mM sulfated cyclofructan-6 (SCF-6) for the amphetamine derivatives and 1 mM sulfated cyclofructan-7 (SCF-7) for the cathinone derivatives dissolved in an aqueous solution of 20-mM monobasic sodium phosphate at pH 2.5, a temperature of 25°C, and an applied voltage of 25 kV. In addition, the method was validated by estimating the intra- and interday precision.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ioannis J Stavrou
- Department of Life Sciences, European University Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Martin G Schmid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
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6
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Ao Q, Zhao H, Tong T, Peng Y, He Z. Enantioseparation of basic drugs by reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography system using carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin as chiral mobile phase additive. Chirality 2022; 34:1128-1139. [PMID: 35574700 DOI: 10.1002/chir.23470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 04/26/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
A rapid and efficient method was developed for enantioseparation of basic drugs, using carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CM-β-CD) as chiral mobile phase additive, rather than involving costly chiral column in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system. Four of the six basic drug enantiomers investigated were successfully separated. The highest resolution reaches 2.15 for threo-(1S,2S)-2-amino-l-p-nitrophenyl-1,3-propanediol. The effects of the organic modifier, pH value, concentration of chiral additive, column temperature, and flow rate of mobile phase on the enantioseparation of analytes were researched. The apparent formation constants of inclusion and the thermodynamic parameters were evaluated to explain the mechanism of chiral recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiong Ao
- School of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Hongliang Zhao
- School of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Tianzhong Tong
- School of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Yangfeng Peng
- School of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhaoyang He
- School of Chemical Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
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Belenguer-Sapiña C, Sáez-Hernández R, Pellicer-Castell E, Armenta S, Mauri-Aucejo A. Simultaneous determination of third-generation synthetic cannabinoids in oral fluids using cyclodextrin-silica porous sorbents. Microchem J 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2021.106915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
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Simultaneous Determination of 16 Kinds of Synthetic Cathinones in Human Urine Using a Magnetic Nanoparticle Solid-Phase Extraction Combined with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry. SEPARATIONS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/separations9010003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
A specific and sensitive approach using magnetic nanoparticle solid-phase extraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was carried out and applied in the simultaneous determination of 16 kinds of synthetic cathinones in human urine. The functionalized extraction material (Fe3O4/NH2-MWCNTs) was synthesized and factors affecting the extraction efficiency were all tested. Under the optimized conditions of magnetic nanoparticle solid-phase extraction, the determination of synthetic cathinones in human urine was carried out with GC-MS. Good linear relationships of 16 kinds of synthetic cathinones were obtained in the range of 0.005–5.00 μg/mL with the correlation coefficients (r) ranging from 0.9901 to 0.9979, the limits of detection were in the range between 0.005 and 0.01 μg/mL, and the limits of quantitation were between 0.01 and 0.02 μg/mL. Furthermore, the average intra-day precisions were below 8.90%, the average inter-day precisions were less than 9.52%, and the average recoveries were between 87.03% and 99.13%, respectively. The results show the advantages of the approach in the determination of trace synthetic cathinones in complex matrixes, such as environmentally friendly, fast detection, high efficiency and sensitivity. The practical application indicated that this method could provide scientific basis for the determination of drugs of abuse in forensic laboratories.
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Fanali C, D'Orazio G, Gentili A, Fanali S. Potentiality of miniaturized techniques for the analysis of drugs of abuse. Electrophoresis 2021; 43:190-200. [PMID: 34148240 DOI: 10.1002/elps.202100150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Revised: 06/13/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Capillary electromigration (CE) and liquid chromatographic techniques (CLC/nano-LC) are miniaturized techniques offering distinct advantages over conventional ones in the field of separation science. Among these, high efficiency, high chromatographic resolution, and use of minute volumes of both mobile phase and sample volumes are the most important. CE and CLC/nano-LC have been applied to the analysis of many compounds including peptides, proteins, drugs, enantiomers, ions, etc. Over the years, the methods described here have also been used for the analysis of compounds of clinical, forensic, and toxicological interest. In this review article, the main features of the mentioned techniques are summarized. Their potentiality for the analysis of drugs of abuse are discussed. Some selected applications in this field in the period of 2015-present are also reported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Fanali
- Faculty of Science, University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni D'Orazio
- Institute for the Biological Systems, National Research Council, Monterotondo, Italy
| | | | - Salvatore Fanali
- Teaching Committee of Ph.D. School in Natural Science and Engineering, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
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Varfaj I, Protti M, Cirrincione M, Carotti A, Mercolini L, Sardella R. Original enantioseparation of illicit fentanyls with cellulose-based chiral stationary phases under polar-ionic conditions. J Chromatogr A 2021; 1643:462088. [PMID: 33784502 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2021.462088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Fentanyl analogues used in therapy and a range of highly potent non-pharmaceutical fentanyl derivatives are subject to international control, as the latter are increasingly being synthesized illicitly and sold as 'synthetic heroin', or mixed with heroin. A significant number of hospitalizations and deaths have been reported in the EU and USA following the use of illicitly synthesized fentanyl derivatives. It has been unequivocally demonstrated that the enantiomers of fentanyl derivatives exhibit different pharmaco-toxicological profiles, which makes crucial to avail of suitable analytical methods enabling investigations at a "stereochemical level". Chromatographic methods useful to discriminate the enantioseparation of fentanyls and their derivatives are still missing in the literature. This is the first study in which the enantioseparation of four fentanyl derivatives, that is, (±)-trans-3-methyl norfentanyl, (±)-cis-3-methyl norfentanyl, β-hydroxyfentanyl, and β-hydroxythiofentanyl, has been obtained under polar-ionic conditions. Indeed, the use of ACN-based mobile phases with minor amounts of either 2-propanol or ethanol (plus diethylamine and formic acid as ionic additives) allowed obtaining enantioseparation and enantioresolution factors up to 1.83 and 7.02, respectively. For the study, the two chiral stationary phases cellulose tris(3-chloro-4-methylphenylcarbamate) and cellulose tris(4-chloro-3-methylphenylcarbamate) were used, displaying a remarkably different performance towards the enantioseparation of (±)-cis-3-methyl norfentanyl. Chiral LC analyses with a high-resolution mass spectrometry detector were also carried out in order to confirm the obtained data and demonstrate the suitability and compatibility of the optimized mobile phases with mass spectrometric systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ina Varfaj
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Michele Protti
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBiT), Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126 Bologna
| | - Marco Cirrincione
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBiT), Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126 Bologna
| | - Andrea Carotti
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Laura Mercolini
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBiT), Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Via Belmeloro 6, 40126 Bologna.
| | - Roccaldo Sardella
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Via Fabretti 48, 06123 Perugia, Italy; Center for Perinatal and Reproductive Medicine, University of Perugia, Santa Maria della Misericordia University Hospital, 06132 Perugia, Italy.
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11
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Huang F, Zhuang S, Liu W, Lin L, Sun L. Computational investigation on the chiral differentiation of D- and L-penicillamine by β-cyclodextrin. SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA. PART A, MOLECULAR AND BIOMOLECULAR SPECTROSCOPY 2021; 248:119277. [PMID: 33310611 DOI: 10.1016/j.saa.2020.119277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The identification of chiral penicillamine (Pen) is of great significance for clinical medication safety. The host-guest systems formed by enantiomers and macromolecule can be applied to differentiate the chiral drugs and enable the drug delayed release. We hereby performed the dispersion corrected density functional theory (DFT-D) calculation on the complex formed by β-cyclodextrin(β-CD) and D/L-penicillamine (D/L-Pen). The diverse encapsulation configurations with different interaction energy show that both D-Pen and L-Pen tend to longitudinally embedded into the narrow aperture of β-CD with the front part of the sulfur group and the methyl group, and the interaction energy between L-Pen and β-CD is 5.47 kJ/mol(M062XD3) lower than that between D-Pen and β-CD. Based on the computed vibration frequency of host, guest, and the most stable complex, it is found that the featured peaks attributed to the vibration of the carboxyl group of guest and the skeleton vibration of complex are the most significant spectral standard to distinguish the β-CD-D/L-Pen and β-CD. Moreover, the peaks resulted from the skeleton vibration in terahertz spectra can be also used to distinguish the complex of β-CD with chiral Pen. Through the topological analysis and the Independent Gradient Model (IGM) analysis, the O-H…O hydrogen bond in β-CD-D-Pen is stronger than that in β-CD-L-Pen, and the van der Waals interactions such as C-H…O,C-H…N,C-H…S, O…S and C-H…C-H have the most contributions to the intermolecular interaction in β-CD-D/L-Pen. It is also noted that the H(-OH) in D-Pen and S in L-Pen contribute the most to the intermolecular interaction with β-CD in comparison with other atoms in Pen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Huang
- Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, PR China
| | - Shulei Zhuang
- Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, PR China
| | - Weiwei Liu
- Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, PR China
| | - Lie Lin
- Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, PR China
| | - Lu Sun
- Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, PR China; Key Laboratory for Chemistry and Molecular Engineering of Medicinal Resources, Guangxi, PR China.
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12
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Folprechtová D, Kalíková K, Kadkhodaei K, Reiterer C, Armstrong DW, Tesařová E, Schmid MG. Enantioseparation performance of superficially porous particle vancomycin-based chiral stationary phases in supercritical fluid chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography; applicability for psychoactive substances. J Chromatogr A 2020; 1637:461846. [PMID: 33387915 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2020.461846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2020] [Revised: 12/09/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) are synthetic compounds that have been designed to produce the physiological and psychological effects of known recreational drugs, while circumventing current drug control laws and scheduling guidelines. Such "designer drugs" pose problems in detection and prevention of use, and they are no less dangerous than known controlled substances. Among the various classes of NPS, many are chiral. As they are synthetic products, most are racemates. Not unexpectedly, there is limited information about different the pharmacological and toxicological properties of their pure enantiomers. Hence, fast and reliable enantioselective methods are of great interest. In this work, superficially porous particle (SPP) vancomycin-based chiral stationary phases were used for development of fast enantioselective separation methods for various classes of NPS in supercritical fluid chromatography and liquid chromatography. The NPS tested included pyrovalerones, benzofurans, phenidines and phenidates. The effect of mobile phase composition on the retention and resolution of NPS in supercritical fluid chromatography was examined. The amount as well as the ratios of additives used is crucial for enantioseparation efficiency. Results showed the high enantioselective potential of vancomycin-based columns in both chromatographic techniques; 88% of NPS tested were enantioseparated in supercritical fluid chromatography and 69% of NPS tested were enantioseparated in liquid chromatography. Moreover, under optimized conditions, simultaneous enantioseparations of some NPS were achieved, which indicates great suitability of vancomycin-based columns for this purpose. The proposed methods can serve as guides for method development and for enantioseparation of further upcoming NPS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denisa Folprechtová
- Department of Physical and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Květa Kalíková
- Department of Physical and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Kian Kadkhodaei
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Cornelia Reiterer
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Daniel W Armstrong
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, United States
| | - Eva Tesařová
- Department of Physical and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Martin G Schmid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
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Hägele JS, Hubner E, Schmid MG. Determination of the chiral status of different novel psychoactive substance classes by capillary electrophoresis and β-cyclodextrin derivatives. Chirality 2020; 32:1191-1207. [PMID: 32671883 PMCID: PMC7496848 DOI: 10.1002/chir.23268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2020] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Besides the abuse of well‐known illicit drugs, consumers discovered new synthetic compounds with similar effects but minor alterations in their chemical structure. Originally, these so‐called novel psychoactive substances (NPS) have been created to circumvent law of prosecution because of illicit drug abuse. During the past decade, such compounds came up in generations, the most popular compound was a synthetic cathinone derivative named mephedrone. Cathinones are structurally related to amphetamines; to date, more than 120 completely new derivatives have been synthesized and are traded via the Internet. Cathinones possess a chiral center; however, only little is known about the pharmacology of their enantiomers. However, NPS comprise further chiral compound classes such as amphetamine derivatives, ketamines, 2‐(aminopropyl)benzofurans, and phenidines. In continuation of our project, a cheap and easy‐to‐perform chiral capillary zone electrophoresis method for enantioseparation of cathinones presented previously was extended to the aforementioned compound classes. Enantioresolution was achieved by simply adding native β‐cyclodextrin, acetyl‐β‐cyclodextrin, 2‐hydroxypropyl‐β‐cyclodextrin, or carboxymethyl‐β‐cyclodextrin as chiral selector additives to the background electrolyte. Fifty‐one chiral NPS served as analytes mainly purchased from online vendors via the Internet. Using 10 mM of the aforementioned β‐cyclodextrins in a 10 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 2.5), overall, 50 of 51 NPS were resolved. However, chiral separation ability of the selectors differed depending on the analyte. Additionally, simultaneous enantioseparations, the determination of enantiomeric migration orders of selected analytes, and a repeatability study were performed successfully. It was proven that all separated NPS were traded as racemic mixtures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes S. Hägele
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical SciencesUniversity of GrazGrazAustria
| | - Eva‐Maria Hubner
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical SciencesUniversity of GrazGrazAustria
| | - Martin G. Schmid
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Institute of Pharmaceutical SciencesUniversity of GrazGrazAustria
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