Brief Overview of Frequently used Macrolides and Analytical Techniques for their Assessment

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.

A review of pretreatment and analysis of macrolides in food (Update Since 2010)

Macrolides are versatile broad-spectrum antibiotics whose activity stems from the presence of a macrolide ring. They are widely used in veterinary medicine to prevent and treat disease. However, because of their improper use and the absence of effective regulation, these compounds pose a threat to human health and the environment. Consequently, simple, quick, economical, and effective techniques are required to analyze macrolides in animal-derived foods, biological samples, and environmental samples. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the pretreatment and analytical methods used for macrolides in various sample matrices, focusing on the developments since 2010. Pretreatment methods mainly include liquid-liquid extraction, solid-phase extraction, matrix solid-phase dispersion, and microextraction methods. Detection and quantification methods mainly include liquid chromatography (coupled to mass spectrometry or other detectors), electrochemical methods, capillary electrophoresis, and immunoassays. Furthermore, a comparison between the pros and cons of these methods and prospects for future developments are also discussed.