Validation of capillary electrophoresis method for determination of N-methylpyrrolidine in cefepime for injection.

The present study relates to a new capillary electrophoresis method for the determination of N-methylpyrrolidine, an impurity considered to be toxic and also potential degradation impurity in cefepime hydrochloride drug substance. The newly developed capillary electrophoresis method for determining the content of N-methylpyrrolidine in cefepime for injection has been validated as per International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) guidelines to prove the selectivity, sensitivity, suitability, robustness, and ruggedness of the method. This simple, efficient, and rapid methodology may be used by pharmaceutical industry for routine analysis as well as during stability studies. The newly developed capillary electrophoresis method to determine the content of N-methylpyrrolidine in cefepime for injection requires 10 min for data acquisition, and uses an indirect UV photometry method to detect the analyte signal at 240 nm against the reference signal at 210 nm. The electrophoretic system is optimized to get stable base line, higher signal to noise ratio and peaks with narrow peak width. The method employs bare fused silica capillary with extended light path, effective length of capillary is 56 cm and inner diameter of capillary is 50 µm, 5 mmole of imidazole buffer adjusted to pH 5.1 with 3 molar acetic acid solution is used as background electrolyte. The sample is introduced in hydrodynamic mode employing pressure of 50 mbar for 5 s, and the desired separation is achieved with constant applied voltage of 25 kV at ambient temperature (~25°C).

Validation of a sensitive ion chromatography method for determination of monoethylsulfate in Indinavir sulfate drug substance.

The present study relates to the optimization of an ion chromatography method to determine the content of monoethylsulfate at very low levels in Indinavir sulfate drug substance, and subsequent validation of the method to prove its suitability, reliability and sensitivity. Monoethylsulfate is a potential impurity of Indinavir sulfate, and may forms during the preparation as well as during storage. The ion chromatography method was developed in such a way that to enhance the detection level by introducing suppressor, and minimizing acquisition time by using suitable buffer of 3.2 mmole of sodium carbonate and 1 mmole of sodium hydrogen carbonate in water as eluent. The retention time of monoethylsulfate was about 9.5 min and the total acquisition time was 25 min. The optimized method was validated to prove its performance characteristics by demonstrating selectivity, sensitivity (limit of detection and quantification), linearity, precision and accuracy. The established limit of detection and quantification of monoethylsulfate in Indinavir sulfate by this method was found to be 24 ng/ml and 74 ng/ml respectively, and the overall percent accuracy (recovery) of samples evaluated at different concentration levels was found to be 97.1, indicating the sensitivity and accuracy of this optimized ion chromatography method.

Paroxysmal cold haemoglobinuria caused by non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Paroxysmal cold haemoglobinuria is an autoimmune haemolytic anaemia characterized by a biphasic polyclonal IgG autoantibody, the Donath-Landsteiner (D-L) antibody. Although classically described in association with chronic syphilis, it is most commonly seen after acute viral infections in children. We describe a case of high-grade B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma which presented with paroxysmal cold haemoglobinuria. The lymphoma responded promptly to combination chemotherapy whilst, at the same time, the haemolytic process rapidly resolved. Subsequent investigations showed that the D-L antibody originated from the lymphoma cells.