Enantioselective determination of 3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) in human plasma by liquid chromatography on a teicoplanin-based chiral column coupled with tandem mass spectrometry

A novel and sensitive liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method was developed and validated to determine the exposure of 3-n-butylphthalide (NBP) enantiomers in human plasma. The NBP enantiomers were extracted from human plasma using methyl tert-butyl ether. The baseline separation of R-(+)-NBP and S-(−)-NBP was achieved within 11.0 min using a teicoplanin-based Astec Chirobiotic T column (250 mm × 4.6 mm i.d., 5 μm) under isocratic conditions at a flow rate of 0.6 mL/min. The selection of the chiral stationary phase and the effect of the mobile phase composition on the resolution of the enantiomers were discussed. The selectivity, linearity, precision, accuracy, matrix effect, recovery, and stability were evaluated under optimized conditions. The LC–MS/MS method using 200 μL of human plasma was linear over the concentration range of 5.00–400 ng/mL for each enantiomer. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) for both enantiomers was 5.00 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-assay precision values of the replicated quality control samples were within 8.0% for each enantiomer. The mean accuracy values for the quality control samples were within ±6.1% of the nominal values for R-(+)-NBP and S-(−)-NBP. No chiral inversion was observed during sample storage, preparation, and analysis. The method proved suitable for enantioselective pharmacokinetic studies of NBP after an oral administration of a therapeutic dose of racemic NBP.