Liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometric study and analysis of xanthone and secoiridoid glycoside composition of Swertia chirata, a potent antidiabetic.

Swertia chirata is a bitter plant, used in the Indian system of medicine (Ayurveda) for various human ailments. The bioactive constituents include the xanthone and secoiridoid glycosides consisting of mangiferin, amarogentin, amaroswerin, sweroside and swertiamarin. Methanolic extracts of S. chirata possess constituents with antidiabetic activities, which was investigated by high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS/MS). Preliminary HPLC analyses were performed on a reversed-phase C18 column using gradient elution. In the LC/ESI-MS spectra, predominant [M+H]+ and [M+Na]+ ions were observed in positive ion mode and provided molecular mass information. The five components of S. chirata were structurally correlated and confirmed based on the fragmentation characteristics and information available in the literature. The fragmentation behavior of [M+H]+/[M+Na]+ ions of these components were deduced from the collision-induced dissociation (CID) spectra obtained from the selective on-column information-dependant acquisition (IDA) approach. Xanthone-C-glycoside showed characteristic fragment ions due to fragmentation in the C-glycosidic unit while iridoid-O-glycosides showed characteristic fragment ions due to cleavage in the glycoside linkage and retro-Diels-Alder (RDA) cleavage within an iridoid aglycone. Furthermore, on the basis of this information, an analytical assay was developed and validated to determine relative concentrations of mangiferin, amarogentin, amaroswerin, sweroside and swertiamarin. The detection was carried out using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) in positive ionization mode with a total analysis time of 3.5 min. The method was successfully applied to standardize four different batches of herbal preparation on the basis of relative concentration of five bioactive components.

Clinical pharmacokinetics of the diastereomers of arteether in healthy volunteers.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the pharmacokinetics of alpha- and beta-diastereomers of arteether in healthy male volunteers. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: The study was a single-centre clinical pharmacokinetic trial in healthy male subjects. A group comprising 13 subjects aged 25-50 years received a single intramuscular 150 mg individual dose of the arteether formulation containing alpha- and beta-isomers in a 30:70 ratio. Serial blood samples collected over a period of 0-192 hours were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation/tandem mass spectrometry and the plasma concentrations were subjected to compartmental and noncompartmental analyses. Pharmacodynamic parameters such as area under the inhibitory curve, ratio of area under the concentration-time curve to minimum inhibitory concentration (AUC/MIC), maximum plasma concentration to MIC (Cmax/MIC) and time that plasma concentration exceeds the MIC (T>MIC) were calculated in vitro in four strains of Plasmodium falciparum to evaluate the in vivo effectiveness of the proposed dosage regimen. RESULTS: There were no adverse effects observed during the study. The extent of metabolism of arteether to dihydroartemisinin (DHA) was low (approximately 5%) so as to be therapeutically nonsignificant. The pharmacokinetic profiles of the arteether diastereomers were different, and the maximum plasma concentrations of alpha- and beta-isomers were reached at 4.77+/-1.21 hours and 6.96+/-1.62 hours, respectively, after which they showed biphasic decline with apparent terminal elimination half-lives of 13.24+/-1.08 hours and 30.17+/-2.44 hours, respectively. The plasma and renal clearances, as well as whole blood to plasma partition ratios of the isomers, were comparable, while the apparent volume of distribution during terminal phase of the beta-isomer was approximately 3-fold higher than that of the alpha-isomer. In vitro erythrocyte culture experiments with four strains of P. falciparum showed similar MICs for both isomers of arteether. The highest observed MIC of 8 microg/L was selected for estimating the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic parameters, which showed excellent correlation with published data on the clinical efficacy of arteether. CONCLUSION: The pharmacokinetics of arteether isomers demonstrated stereoselectivity, which was reflected mainly in the volume of distribution and the terminal elimination half-life. The alpha- and beta-isomers of arteether appeared to compliment each other pharmacokinetically, with the alpha-isomer providing comparatively rapid and higher plasma concentrations resulting in immediate reduction in percentage parasitaemia, while the beta-isomer, with its longer terminal elimination half-life, mean residence time and sustained plasma concentrations, maintained the activity for longer periods. The extent of metabolic conversion of arteether to DHA was minimal, so as to have any therapeutic or toxic significance.

Metabolism of CDRI-85/92, a new potent anti-ulcer agent, involving cis-trans conversion.

CDRI 85/92, an anti-ulcer drug, is a new proton pump inhibitor, currently in an advanced stage of drug development. To know more about the drug it was our objective to delineate/identify the metabolic pathway as well as the enzymes responsible for the formation of metabolites. Metabolism of CDRI-85/92 (cis-5-styryl-2-oxazolidinone-4-carboxylic acid) was investigated in rat liver cellular fractions (S9, microsomes and cytosol) using reverse-phase HPLC and mass spectrometry techniques. Two major metabolites were produced by rat liver S9 fractions and reducing factor generating system from either untreated rats or phenobarbitone (PB)-pretreated rats. Incubation of CDRI-85/92 with postmitochondrial fraction (S9) for 24 h resulted in a cis to trans conversion (metabolite M2). Further cis-trans metabolizing capacity was measured separately in the cytosolic and microsomal fractions. Incubation with the cytosolic fraction resulted in an increased rate of cis-trans conversion, while the microsomal fraction showed no cis to trans conversion, thereby restricting the cis to trans conversion to Phase II enzymes, which are mainly located in the cytosol. Studies with PB-pretreated rat liver S9 fractions resulted in an increased rate of cis to trans conversion. Another metabolite was also present (M1) which was identified as an oxygenated metabolite by mass spectrometry. The major urinary metabolite from CDRI-85/92-treated Sprague-Dawley rats (20 mg/kg p.o.) was identified as M2. Studies using sulfobromophthalein and N-ethylmaleimide, as specific inhibitors of GST, showed a complete absence of metabolism, thus indicating the involvement of GST in the metabolism of CDRI-85/92. This study will be helpful in providing clues about factors influencing the bioavailability of CDRI-85/92 as well as drug-drug interactions.

Evaluation of pharmacokinetics, brain levels and protein binding of centpropazine in rats.

The pharmacokinetics of centpropazine (CNPZ), an antidepressant, was studied in rats. CNPZ was administered to groups of rats (n=3 to 5) via oral (40 mg/kg), intravenous (5 mg/kg), intraperitoneal (5 mg/kg) and intraduodenal (4 and 8 mg/kg) routes. The AUCs of CNPZ were estimated and the bioavailabilities were calculated. CNPZ was characterized by a short elimination half-life (39.5 min), a high clearance (118 ml/min/kg) and a relatively large volume of distribution (1945 ml/kg) after intravenous administration. After oral administration CNPZ exhibited a very low oral bioavailability ( approximately 0.2%). The total first pass effect (Egit+liver) was calculated as 98.7%. The bioavailability of CNPZ was similar when administered by intraduodenal and oral routes. CNPZ readily penetrated into the brain and reached Cmax by 30 min post oral dosing. About 92.0%+/-0.8% of the drug was bound to serum proteins. Low oral bioavailability of CNPZ following oral administration is likely due to its metabolism by intestinal mucosa and liver.

Pharmacokinetic interaction of tetracycline with centchroman in healthy female volunteers.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to investigate the effect of tetracycline coadministration, with and without lactic acid bacillus spores supplementation, on the pharmacokinetics of centchroman, a nonsteroidal oral contraceptive, in healthy female volunteers. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: The study was a single-centre, single-blinded, randomised, parallel treatment study in healthy female subjects of reproductive age randomised to two groups (11 subjects in each group). On day 1, subjects were given either a single oral dose of centchroman 30 mg with tetracycline 250 mg (group A) or a single dose of centchroman 30 mg, tetracycline 250 mg and one tablet containing 60 million lactic acid bacillus spores (group B). Tetracycline (250 mg three times daily) and lactic acid bacillus spores (one tablet three times daily) were continued for 3 days. Serial blood samples were collected and analysed by high performance liquid chromatography. The pharmacokinetic parameters were compared with the control data reported previously from this laboratory. RESULTS: Coadministration of tetracycline yielded significantly higher maximum plasma concentrations (C(max)) [35%] and a shorter time to reach C(max) (t(max)) values for centchroman (42%) than those obtained in the control group of females (p < 0.05). Inclusion of lactic acid bacillus spores in the regimen resulted in similar effects with increased C(max) (47%) and area under the concentration-time curve from time zero to infinity (34%) of centchroman (p < 0.05) with a significant decrease in t(max). Other parameters such as half-life, apparent clearance, apparent volume of distribution and mean residence time of centchroman were not affected by either of the treatments. CONCLUSIONS: The apparent effects of either of the regimens on centchroman pharmacokinetics seem to be of little clinical relevance in terms of increased rate or extent of availability. It can be concluded that this tetracycline-containing regimen is unlikely to alter the contraceptive efficacy of centchroman in humans.

Pharmacokinetics, in-situ absorption and protein binding studies of a new neuroleptic agent centbutindole in rats.

The present study reports the absorption kinetics, plasma protein binding and pharmacokinetic profile of the centbutindole (I) after i.v. and oral dosing in rats. In addition, an in-situ absorption study was carried out using a closed-loop technique at pH 2.6 and 7.4. The rate of absorption at pH 2.6 was 5-fold less compared to that observed at pH 7.4. In-vitro and in-vivo protein binding (ultra filtration technique) was independent of substrate concentration over a range of 1.25-10.0 microg/ml. Pharmacokinetic parameters of I were determined in male rats after administering a single 4 mg/kg oral dose and 2 mg/kg intravenous dose. The peak serum concentration of I was found to be 50.1 ng/ml at 30 min after oral administration followed by a secondary Cmax of 43.2 ng/ml at 180 min. For the hydroxy metabolite (II), a Cmax of 6.4 ng/ml was measured at 360 min after oral administration of I. After oral dosing an irregular concentration-time profile with secondary peaks was observed for both I and II. The terminal half-lives for I and II after oral dosing were 163 and 263 min, respectively. After intravenous dosing, the levels of I decreased biexponentially with a distribution (t(1/2) alpha) and elimination (t(1/2) beta) half-lives of 5.7 and 128 min, respectively. Comparison of the AUC after oral and intravenous dosing of I indicates that only about 24% of the oral dose reaches the systemic circulation. The limited bioavailability can either be due to the poor solubility of the compound and/or extensive first pass metabolism in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Co-administration of polyethylene glycol (PEG) at oral dosing improves solubilization and increases bioavailability.

Isolation and characterization of metabolites of centpropazine in rat liver, intestine, and red blood cell homogenates.

The potential sites for metabolism of centpropazine (CPZ) (an antidepressant) were evaluated in male Sprague-Dawley rats. The isolation and identification of the major metabolites formed in the presence of rat liver S9 fraction, intestine, and red blood cells under aerobic conditions were performed using high-performance liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. CPZ was found to be extensively metabolized to seven possible metabolites by liver S9 fraction in the presence of a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate generating system at 37 degrees C. Both intestinal wall and red blood cells were also found to metabolize the compound. This metabolite structure was confirmed by comparison with that of its synthetic standard. The drug was stable in intestinal contents. On the basis of our finding, we propose the in vitro metabolic pathways for CPZ.