A Convenient Approach to Simultaneous Analysis of a Pharmaceutical Drug and Its Counter-Ion by CE Using Dual-Opposite End Injection and Contactless Conductivity Detection

Abstract

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) coupled to a capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detector (C4D) was used for the determination in a single analysis of a pharmaceutical drug and its counter-ion. Dual-opposite end injection (DOI) was used to introduce hydrodynamically the analytes at each end of the capillary. No modification of the commercial apparatus is required. After applying the voltage, the cations and anions migrate from each end of the capillary in opposite directions toward the detector placed near the cathode outlet. The electrophoretic conditions were initially developed with three test drugs (chlorpheniramine maleate, metoprolol tartrate, clomiphene citrate) and then applied to two Vinca alkaloids (catharanthine sulfate, vinorelbine ditartrate). The 10 mM histidine–50 mM acetic acid buffer (pH 4.1)–methanol 90:10 (v/v) electrolyte was suitable for the analysis of these high or medium mobile anions by CE–C4D due to its low conductivity background and high buffer capacity. Finally, the CE procedure developed was successfully validated for catharanthine sulfate. The method developed herein is fast (<10 min) and accurate (repeatability on migration time < 0.6% and peak areas < 1.3%, n = 6).