The Determination of a New Trifluorinated Quinolone, Fleroxacin, Its N-Demethyl, and N-Oxide Metabolites in Plasma and Urine by High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Fluorescence Detection

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Abstract
A liquid chromatographic method is described for the determination of the new fluoroquinolone Ro 23–6240 and its N-demethyl and N-oxide metabolites in plasma and urine. The three substances were extracted from aqueous solution with dichloromethane/isopropanol containing sodium dodecyl sulphate. After evaporation and reconstitution, samples were analysed on a reversed-phase column using ion pair chromatography and fluorescence detection. The limit of quantification was 10–20 ng/ml (RSD 4%) using a 0.5 ml plasma sample, and the inter assay precision was 3–10% over the concentration range 50 ng/ml to 20 μg/ml. Recovery from plasma was 81% (RSD 10%) over the range 10 ng/ml to 5 μg/ml. The method has been applied successfully to the analysis of several thousand samples from human pharmacokinetic studies. Care has to be taken to avoid exposure of samples to direct sunlight, and the use of opaque vessels for sample storage and handling is recommended.