Simultaneous determination of binary mixtures of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole or sulphamethoxypyridazine by the bivariate calibration spectrophotometric method

Application of Rank Annihilation Factor Analysis for Antibacterial Drugs Determination by Means of pH Gradual Change-UV Spectral Data

The main objective of this study was to develop a simple and efficient spectrophotometric technique combined with chemometrics for the simultaneous determination of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and trimethoprim (TMP) in drug formulations. Specifically, we sought: (i) to evaluate the potential use of rank annihilation factor analysis (RAFA) to pH gradual change spectrophotometric data in order to provide sufficient accuracy and model robustness; and (ii) to determine SMX and TMP concentration in drug formulations without tedious pre-treatments such as derivatization or extraction techniques which are time-consuming and require hazardous solvents. In the proposed method, the spectra of the sample solutions at different pH values were recorded and the pH-spectra bilinear data matrix was generated. On these data, RAFA was then applied to estimate the concentrations of SMX and TMP in synthetic and real samples. Applying RAFA showed that the two drugs could be determined simultaneously with concentration ratios of SMX to TMP varying from 1:30 to 30:1 in the mixed samples (concentration range is 1-30 µg mL^-1 for both components). The limits of detection were 0.25 and 0.38 µg mL^-1 for SMX and TMP, respectively. The proposed method was successfully applied to the simultaneous determination of SMX and TMP in some synthetic, pharmaceutical formulation and biological fluid samples. In addition, the means of the estimated RSD (%) were 1.71 and 2.18 for SMX and TMP, respectively, in synthetic mixtures. The accuracy of the proposed method was confirmed by spiked recovery test on biological samples with satisfactory results (90.50-109.80%).

Different techniques for overlapped UV spectra resolution of some co-administered drugs with paracetamol in their combined pharmaceutical dosage forms

Six simple, specific, accurate and precise spectrophotometric methods were developed for the first time analysis of some co-administered drugs with paracetamol in their mixture form without prior separation. Paracetamol & orphenadrine citrate were determined by using dual wavelength, bivariate, ratio difference, ratio derivative and mean centering of ratio spectra methods. Paracetamol & caffeine were determined by using ratio difference, ratio derivative and mean centering of ratio spectra methods. Paracetamol & diclofenac sodium were determined by using advanced absorption subtraction, ratio difference, ratio derivative and mean centering of ratio spectra methods. All of these methods were validated according to ICH guidelines where accuracy, precision, repeatability and robustness were found to be within the accepted limits. Advantages and limitations of each method are demonstrated and statistical comparison between the proposed methods was performed.

Evaluation of graphical and statistical representation of analytical signals of spectrophotometric methods

Simultaneous determination of miconazole (MIC), mometasone furaoate (MF), and gentamicin (GEN) in their pharmaceutical combination. Gentamicin determination is based on derivatization with of o-phthalaldehyde reagent (OPA) without any interference of other cited drugs, while the spectra of MIC and MF are resolved using both successive and progressive resolution techniques. The first derivative spectrum of MF is measured using constant multiplication or spectrum subtraction, while its recovered zero order spectrum is obtained using derivative transformation. Beside the application of constant value method. Zero order spectrum of MIC is obtained by derivative transformation after getting its first derivative spectrum by derivative subtraction method. The novel method namely, differential amplitude modulation is used to get the concentration of MF and MIC, while the novel graphical method namely, concentration value is used to get the concentration of MIC, MF, and GEN. Accuracy and precision testing of the developed methods show good results. Specificity of the methods is ensured and is successfully applied for the analysis of pharmaceutical formulation of the three drugs in combination. ICH guidelines are used for validation of the proposed methods. Statistical data are calculated, and the results are satisfactory revealing no significant difference regarding accuracy and precision.

H-point standard additions method for simultaneous determination of sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim in pharmaceutical formulations and biological fluids with simultaneous addition of two analytes

The applicability of H-point standard additions method (HPSAM) to the resolving of overlapping spectra corresponding to the sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim is verified by UV-vis spectrophotometry. The results show that the H-point standard additions method with simultaneous addition of both analytes is suitable for the simultaneous determination of sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim in aqueous media. The results of applying the H-point standard additions method showed that the two drugs could be determined simultaneously with the concentration ratios of sulfamethoxazole to trimethoprim varying from 1:18 to 16:1 in the mixed samples. Also, the limits of detections were 0.58 and 0.37 μmol L(-1) for sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim, respectively. In addition the means of the calculated RSD (%) were 1.63 and 2.01 for SMX and TMP, respectively in synthetic mixtures. The proposed method has been successfully applied to the simultaneous determination of sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim in some synthetic, pharmaceutical formulation and biological fluid samples.

Simultaneous determination of sulphamethoxazole and trimethoprim in powder mixtures by attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared and multivariate calibration

A partial least-squares calibration (PLS) procedure in combination with infrared spectroscopy has been developed for simultaneous determination of sulphamethoxazole (SMZ) and trimethoprim (TMP) in raw material powder mixtures used for manufacturing commercial pharmaceutical products. Multivariate calibration modeling procedures, interval partial least squares (iPLS) and synergy partial least squares (siPLS), were applied to select a spectral range that provided the lowest prediction error in comparison to the full-spectrum model. The experimental matrix was constructed using 49 synthetic samples and 15 commercial samples. The considered concentration ranges were 400-900 mg g(-1) SMZ and 80-240 mg g(-1) TMP. Spectral data were recorded between 650 and 4000 cm(-1) with a 4 cm(-1) resolution by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy coupled with attenuated total reflectance (ATR-FTIR) accessory. The proposed procedure was compared with conventional procedure by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) using 15 commercial samples containing SMZ and TMP. The results showed that PLS regression model combined to ATR-FTIR is a relatively simple, rapid and accurate procedure that could be applied to the simultaneous determination of SMZ and TMP in routine quality control of powder mixtures. A root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) of 13.18 mg g(-1) for SMZ and 6.03 mg g(-1) for TMP was obtained after selection of better intervals by siPLS. Using the proposed procedure it is possible to analyze each sample in less than 3 min considering two replicates (excluding the grinding step). Accuracy was checked by comparison to HPLC method and agreement better than 98.8% was achieved.

Seasonal variations of several pharmaceutical residues in surface water and sewage treatment plants of Han River, Korea

We collected influent and effluent samples from four sewage treatment plants (STPs) as well as surface water samples in Han River of Seoul, Korea, in three sampling events representing different flow conditions, i.e., April, June, and August, 2005, and analyzed for eleven pharmaceuticals including acetaminophen, caffeine, carbamazepine, cimetidine, diltiazem, trimethoprim, and five sulfonamide antibiotics, using LC-MS-ESI. Pharmaceuticals of high annual production amount were detected in higher level in STP influents. Levels of pharmaceutical residues in the influents were the highest for acetaminophen (average 27,089 ng/L), followed by caffeine (23,664 ng/L), cimetidine (8045 ng/L), and sulfamethoxazole (523 ng/L). Levels of acetaminophen and caffeine in STP effluents were very low compared to the influent concentrations. However cimetidine was detected in relatively high levels even in STP effluent samples. In effluent samples, cimetidine showed the highest level (5380 ng/L), followed by caffeine (278 ng/L), sulfamethoxazole (193 ng/L), and carbamazepine (111 ng/L). The concentration of cimetidine was also the highest in surface water samples (average 281 ng/L), which is the highest level reported from surface water worldwide to our knowledge. Caffeine (268.7 ng/L), acetaminophen (34.8 ng/L), and sulfamethoxazole (26.9 ng/L) were also detected in relatively high levels. Levels of pharmaceuticals detected in surface water samples upstream STPs were generally very low compared to the downstream samples, suggesting that the STPs potentially be a major source of the test pharmaceuticals into Han River. The hazard quotients (HQs) were calculated for the test pharmaceuticals based on their occurrences in surface water, and no pharmaceutical resulted in HQ greater than one, suggesting that their potential environmental impact may be low.

Aquatic toxicity of acetaminophen, carbamazepine, cimetidine, diltiazem and six major sulfonamides, and their potential ecological risks in Korea

Pharmaceuticals are manufactured and used for specific biological functions in veterinary and human medicine. Their detection in the environment and their bioactivity have resulted in concern for potential adverse effects on non-target species. Notwithstanding recent attention for their occurrence in the environment, there are significant research gaps for existing pharmaceuticals with regard to their potential ecological consequences. In this study, the four most abundantly used pharmaceuticals in Korea, namely acetaminophen, carbamazepine, cimetidine, and diltiazem, and six sulfonamide related antibiotics, including sulfamethoxazole, sulfachlorpyridazine, sulfathiazole, sulfamethazine, sulfadimethoxine, and trimethoprim were examined for their acute aquatic toxicity employing a marine bacterium (Vibrio fischeri), a freshwater invertebrate (Daphnia magna), and the Japanese medaka fish (Oryzias latipes). In general, Daphnia was the most susceptible among the test organisms. The most acutely toxic among the chemicals tested in this study was diltiazem, with a median lethal concentration of 8.2 mg/L for D. magna. The resulting acute toxicity of these pharmaceuticals was reasonably predicted by physicochemical descriptors such as pH-dependent distribution coefficient and EHOMO-ELUMO gap. Predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) derived for the test pharmaceuticals in Korea ranged between 0.14 and 16.5 microg/L. Hazard quotients derived from PECs and predicted no effect concentrations (PNECs) for sulfamethoxazole and acetaminophen were 6.3 and 1.8, respectively, suggesting potential environmental concerns and a need for further investigation.

Simultaneous determination and validation of antimicrobials in plasma and tissue of actinomycetoma by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array and fluorescence detection

A simple, precise, and reliable chromatographic method was developed for the simultaneous determination in plasma and infected tissue of five antimicrobials proposed for the treatment of actinomycotic mycetoma: amoxicillin, trimethoprim, linezolid, sulfamethoxazole and garenoxacin. Separation of the analytes was achieved on an Atlantis dC18 column (150 mm x 4.6 mm, ID 5 microm) with a mobile phase composed of acetonitrile and trifluoroacetic acid (ATF) 0.1% (v/v) using a gradient program. The detection was carried out using a diode array detector at 254 nm and in a fluorescence detector at wavelengths of excitation and emission of 292 nm and 392 nm for linezolid and sulfamethoxazole, and 292 nm and 408 nm for garenoxacin, respectively. The intraday precision was in the range of 0.7-15% of relative standard deviations (%R.S.D.) for plasma and 1-18% for tissue. Linearity range was from 2.4 to 20 microg/ml for amoxicillin, 0.3 to 20 microg/ml for trimethoprim, sulfamethoxazole and linezolid, and 0.3 to 10 microg/ml for garenoxacin. Acetonitrile was used to precipitate proteins from plasma. Recoveries in plasma ranged from 71% to 118% and in infected tissue from 78% to 122%. Limits of detection (LODs) were 1.2 and 0.5 microg/ml for amoxicillin in plasma and tissue, respectively and 0.15 and 1.2 microg/ml in plasma and tissue, respectively for the other antimicrobials. The method can be applied for individual or simultaneous determination of the antimicrobials in plasma and tissue of mouse infected with actinomycetoma.

Application of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for quantitative analysis of miconazole, metronidazole and sulfamethoxazole in pharmaceutical and urine samples

Specific, accurate and precise NMR methods were developed for determining miconazole, metronidazole and sulfamethoxazole antibiotic drugs in authentic, pharmaceutical and urine samples. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR) with maleic acid as an internal standard and DMSO-d6 as NMR solvent were used. 1H NMR signals at 9.0, 8.06, 7.50 and 6.26 ppm corresponding to miconazole, metronidazole, sulfamethoxazole and maleic acid were respectively used for calculating the concentrations of drugs per unit dose. Average percent recoveries of (97.54-101.10), (98.06-100.46) and (97.83-102.83) with average uncertainties of 1.02, 0.45 and 0.86 were respectively obtained for determining authentic samples of miconazole, metronidazole and sulfamethoxazole in the concentration range of 0.92-170 mg/0.6 ml DMSO-d6. In pharmaceutical formulations and urine samples, average percent recoveries in the ranges of 97.50-101.33 and 94.46-100.86 were respectively obtained. Relative standard deviations (R.S.D.)<or=2.68 were obtained for analyzing the three drugs in authentic, pharmaceutical and urine samples. Admixtures of the three drugs in authentic, pharmaceutical and urine samples were analyzed. Good precisions (0.79-2.99%) and recoveries (93.40-104.97%) were obtained indicating the high selectivity and resolving power of the developed NMR methods and no needs for separation steps. Applying statistical Student t-test revealed insignificant difference between the real and measured contents at the 95% confidence level. F-test revealed insignificant difference in precisions between the developed NMR methods and HPLC methods reported for analyzing miconazole, metronidazole and sulfamethoxazole.

Analysis of sulphonamide residues in edible animal products: A review

The methods of analysis for sulphonamide residues in edible animal products are reviewed. Sulphonamides are widely used for therapeutic and prophylactic purposes in both humans and animals, sometimes as growth promoters as additives in animal feed. As a result of their widespread use, there is concern about whether the levels used of these drugs can generate serious problems in human health, e.g., allergic or toxic reactions. Several methods for the determination of sulphonamides have been reported in the literature and this review considers high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS), gas chromatography (GC), thin-layer chromatography (TLC), high-performance capillary electrophoresis (HPCE), enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA), biosensor immunoassay (BIA) and microbiological methods. Specific aspects of analysing sulphonamides, such as sample handling, chromatographic conditions and detection methods are discussed. Methods for drug residue monitoring should be accurate, simple, economical in both time and cost, and capable of detecting residues below the maximum residue limits (MRL). The current sulphonamide detection technologies are based on chromatographic methods or bacteriological growth inhibition. The instrumental methods such as HPLC and GC are both sensitive and specific, but are laborious and expensive. Because of the labour-intensive processes, only a few cases of GC methods applied to residue analysis have been published. These methods are suitable for confirmation but not for screening of large numbers of samples. Microbiological methods do not require highly specialized and expensive equipment. They also use highly homogeneous cell populations for testing and thus result in better assay precision. Although HPCE has powerful separation ability, the precision is poor and the instrument still needs to be improved. To date, this technique has not been widely applied to routine analysis. Currently, TLC has been almost replaced by other instrumental analysis. A rapid, sensitive and specific assay is required to detect positive samples in routine analysis, which can then be confirmed for the presence of sulphonamides by HPLC. Immunochemical methods such as ELISA can be simple, rapid and cost-effective, with enough sensitivity and specificity to detect small molecules. This review can be considered as a basis for further research aimed at identifying the most efficient approaches.

Application of 2-acetylbutyrolactone to spectrofluorimetry: Fluorescence properties of Schiff bases derived from 2-acetylbutyrolactone and spectrofluorimetric determination of primary amine-containing compounds

2-Acetylbutyrolactone (ABL) has been characterized for use as a fluorogenic reagent for the spectrofluorimetric determination of primary amines. The reagent forms strongly fluorescent Schiff bases upon the reaction with primary amines in acid-catalized aqueous solutions or in dimethylformamide (DMF). Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and ampicillin sodium (AMP Na) were used as model amines of type ArNH(2) and RNH(2), respectively. The reaction conditions, fluorescence spectral properties and the stability of the derivatives have been investigated. The chemistry and the pathway of the reaction have been discussed. Calibration data, accuracy, precision, limits of detection, limits of quantification and other aspects of analytical merit were presented in the text. The utility of ABL for the analysis of the model drugs in pharmaceutical preparations was demonstrated. The results indicated that the proposed methods are equally accurate and precise as the official or other reported methods.

Ratio spectra derivative spectrophotometry for the determination of furosemide and spironolactone in a capsule formulation

The determination of furosemide and spironolactone in a capsule formulation has been investigated using techniques such as Vierordt's method and derivative spectroscopy dA/d lambda and d2A/d lambda2 applying the zero-crossing technique following reported methods. In our hands, using standard mixtures, these methods gave unreliable results. We have therefore investigated the use of ratio spectra derivative spectrophotometry for this determination. The technique of ratio spectra derivative spectrophotometry was developed in 1990, and has recently been used for a number of analyses of co-formulated products. The method was applied to the analysis of standard mixtures of the two drugs and the combined contents of 20 capsules resulting in values (mean +/- standard deviation) of 102.1 +/- 1.9% and 101.4 +/- 4.0% of the stated content for furosemide and spironolactone, respectively. Similarly, the analysis of individual capsules resulted in values of 101.5 +/- 1.6% and 102.2 +/- 1.4% of the stated content for furosemide and spironolactone, respectively.

Recent Developments of Derivative Spectrophotometry and Their Analytical Applications

Articles about the development of derivative spectrophotometric methods and analytical applications of derivative spectrophotometry (DS) published in the last nine years (since 1994) are reviewed.

Mathematical Algorithms Applied to the Multi-linear Regression Functions for the Multicomponent Determination of Pharmaceutical Dosage Form Containing Three-component Mixtures

In the presence of closely overlapping spectra, the quantitative multiresolution of ternary mixtures of three active compounds paracetamol (PAR), caffeine (CAF) and acetylsalycilic acid (ASP) in tablets, without using pretreatment such as separation step and graphical procedure of spectra was accomplished by the multivariate spectral calibration models, tri-linear regression calibration (TLRC), multi-linear regression calibration (MLRC) and Cramer's rule solution (CRS) of three linear equation functions in the matrix form. In the first two models, TLRC and MLRC are based on the use of the linear regression functions at selected wavelength sets in the spectral region of 210-300 nm. In the case of CRS model, A1(1) (1%, 1 cm) were used to obtain three linear equation functions and this linear equation system was resolved by the Cramer's rule for the prediction of PAR, CAF and ASP in samples. In the TLRC and CRS models, the selection of the appropriate wavelength set was performed by the Kaiser's technique. The algorithms of these mathematical calibration models were briefly described. The validation of TLRC, MLRC and CRS models was carried out by analyzing various synthetic ternary mixtures and by using the standard addition technique. These three calibration approaches were applied to the analysis of the real pharmaceutical tablets containing PAR, CAF and ASP. The obtained results were statistically compared with each other by using experimental and statistical tests. In the comparison of TLRC and MLRC models to the classical approach, CRS technique, the successful assay results were observed for the quantitative multiresolution of ternary mixture of the subject active compounds.

Chemometric and derivative methods as flexible spectrophotometric approaches for dissolution and assaying tests in multicomponent tablets

Two derivative spectrophotometric (ratio derivative spectra and algorithm bivariate calibration) and a chemometric methods (partial least squares, PLS) are proposed for the simultaneous determination of binary mixtures in tablet analysis and dissolutions tests, without prior separation. These approaches are successfully applied to quantify trimethoprim (TMP) combined with sulfamethoxazole (SMX) or sulfamethazine (SMZ) or sulfafurazole (SFZ) using the information in the absorption spectra of appropriate solutions. Beer's law was obeyed in the concentration range of 0.98-17.5 microg/ml for TMP, 0.95-17.2 microg/ml for SMX, 1.16-17.5 microg/ml for SMZ and 0.97-17.4 microg/ml for SFZ. The first derivative (1D) bivariate algorithm method involves the use of four calibration curves: two for each compound at two different wavelengths, selected by Kaiser's method. Similarly, the first derivative ratio spectrophotometry employs the linear relationship between the ratio spectra of the analytes and the concentration range. The results were compared with those obtained by PLS multivariate calibration. The calibration models from PLS were pre-treated by orthogonal signal correction and evaluated by cross-validation using the 'SIMCA-P 9' software. Synthetic mixtures of TMP and sulfonamides were used in five different sets for the validity of the calibrations. Mean recoveries for derivative ratio, derivative bivariate and PLS methods were found to be between 99.7% and 102.0% for TMP, 99.4% and 100.2% for SMX, 99.3% and 101.0% for SMZ and 98.1% and 102.3% for SFZ. The calibrations of the three methods were successfully applied to the assaying and dissolution of placebo and commercial tablets without any prior separation. More than 85% of TMP, SMX and SMZ were dissolved within 15 min. For SFZ, only 85% of the compound was dissolved after 60 min. In this study, the three spectrophotometric methods can be satisfactorily used for the quantitative analysis and for dissolution tests of multicomponent dosage forms.

Two derivative spectrophotometric methods for the simultaneous determination of lovastatin combined with three antioxidants

A zero crossing and an algorithm bivariate calibration derivative method for the simultaneous determination of lovastatin combined separately with three antioxidants (ascorbic acid, quercetin and gallic acid) in synthetic mixtures are described. The aqueous or methanolic solutions obeyed Beer's law in the concentration ranges of 3.20-17.36 microg/ml for lovastatin, 1.76-8.80 microg/ml for ascorbic acid, 1.41-7.04 microg/ml for gallic acid and 1.84-9.20 microg/ml for quercetin, for both methods, respectively. In the second derivative (2D) zero crossing method measurements were carried out at 238.4 nm for lovastatin and 265.6 nm for ascorbic acid, 247.7 nm for lovastatin and 281.1 nm for quercetin, 251.8 nm for lovastatin and 267.6 nm for gallic acid. In the first derivative (1D) bivariate spectrophotometric method an optimum pair of wavelengths was chosen for the determination of different binary mixtures. The proposed procedures were successfully applied to the simultaneous determination of lovastatin and different antioxidants in mixtures with high percentage of recovery, 98.3-100.4% for lovastatin, 98.3-98.6% for ascorbic acid, 99.0-99.8% for quercetin and 100.5-101.1% for gallic acid and good precision. In addition, the results from the above procedures were verified by using partial least-squares (PLS) multivariate calibration method.