Application of TLC-smartphone method for the analysis of carbamazepine in plasma

Abstract

A new, simple, rapid, low-cost, and robust thin layer chromatography-smartphone method has been developed for the qualitative and quantitative determination of carbamazepine in human plasma. Liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) with dichloromethane was used for sample purification. The drug of interest was separated on TLC aluminum coated with silica gel; and a mixture of cyclohexane, chloroform, and acetic acid (4:4:2 v/v/v) was used as the mobile phase. The sample spot was visualized under a UV chamber at 254 nm then photographed by a smartphone. The intensity of each spot was quantified by videodensitometry. The method was validated according to the guideline of the ICH Q2 (R1). The results showed good linearity (R > 0.99), high sensitivity, and reliable robustness. For accuracy and precision, acceptable relative standard deviations (RSD) were reached (<15%). The limits of detection and quantification were 0.94 µg/mL and 2.8 µg/mL, respectively. The comparison to HPLC method didn’t show a significative difference (p = .314). The analysis of carbamazepine in samples charged with several interferences showed good recovery (>90%), except for phenobarbital (recovery = 72%). It was concluded that the proposed TLC-smartphone is a viable method that can be used for the analysis of carbamazepine in human plasma.