Electroanalytical sensors for antiretroviral drugs determination in pharmaceutical and biological samples: A review

Abstract

• Review on the advancement of electroanalytical strategies for antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, dating back to 2012. • In-depth discussion on the reaction mechanisms and electrochemical behavior of ARV drugs. • Overview of antiretroviral drugs analysis in the context of pharmaceutical and clinical settings. The high human immune deficiency virus (HIV) pandemic has resulted in the discovery, development, and use of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs not only to improve patient well-being but also to reduce the risk of perinatal transmission of HIV. Due to drug-to-drug interactions, drug resistance, drug toxicity, and counterfeit drugs, there has been an urgent need for the development of portable, sensitive, selective, facile, and reliable detection strategies for ARV analysis in both pharmaceutical and clinical settings. Electroanalytical techniques are of particular interest because they offer the advantages of onsite monitoring of ARV drugs due to their flexible nature and real-time analysis compared to traditional analytical techniques. It is evident from literature dating back a decade ago that voltammetry is the most used electroanalytical technique for ARV analysis. Hence, the present review aims to discuss how detection strategies for ARV have evolved over the years and focus on recent advances in ARV analysis. Furthermore, the review will focus on different types of ARV drugs and their respective mechanisms.