Aerosol-based detectors for liquid chromatography.

Aerosol-based detectors developed within the last few decades have increasingly addressed the need for sensitive, universal liquid chromatography detection in a wide variety of applications. Herein, we review the operating principles, instrumentation, analytical characteristics, and recent applications of the three general types of such detectors: evaporative light scattering detection (ELSD), condensation nucleation light scattering detection (CNLSD); commercially known as the nano-quantity analyte detector (NQAD), and charged aerosol detection (CAD). Included is a comparative evaluation of the operational and analytical characteristics of these detectors.

Analysis of magnesium from magnesium stearate in pharmaceutical tablet formulations using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography with nano quantity analyte detection.

This study demonstrates the use of hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography with a nano quantity analyte detector for the retention, separation and detection of magnesium from magnesium stearate in tablet formulations for a drug product formulation blend containing a hydrochloride salt of a weakly basic compound as the active ingredient. The nano quantity analyte detector can provide direct detection of inactive excipients and inorganic salts lacking ultraviolet chromophores, as well as, all non-volatile compounds. The separation was accomplished using a SeQuant ZIC-HILIC column and mobile phase consisting of 32.5:32.5:35 of acetone/methanol/ammonium formate buffer (150 mM, pH 4.5). Common validation parameters were evaluated to assess the method's quantitative potential for magnesium (from magnesium stearate) including: linearity, accuracy, specificity, solution stability, repeatability, and intermediate precision. Overall, the method described in this report proved to be very robust and represents a novel technique to conveniently separate and detect magnesium from magnesium stearate in pharmaceutical preparations both quickly and accurately.

Roller compaction, granulation and capsule product dissolution of drug formulations containing a lactose or mannitol filler, starch, and talc.

This study investigated the influence of excipient composition to the roller compaction and granulation characteristics of pharmaceutical formulations that were comprised of a spray-dried filler (lactose monohydrate or mannitol), pregelatinized starch, talc, magnesium stearate (1% w/w) and a ductile active pharmaceutical ingredient (25% w/w) using a mixed-level factorial design. The main and interaction effects of formulation variables (i.e., filler type, starch content, and talc content) to the response factors (i.e., solid fraction and tensile strength of ribbons, particle size, compressibility and flow of granules) were analyzed using multi-linear stepwise regression analysis. Experimental results indicated that roller compacted ribbons of both lactose and mannitol formulations had similar tensile strength. However, resulting lactose-based granules were finer than the mannitol-based granules because of the brittleness of lactose compared to mannitol. Due to the poor compressiblility of starch, increasing starch content in the formulation from 0% to 20% w/w led to reduction in ribbon solid fraction by 10%, ribbon tensile strength by 60%, and granule size by 30%. Granules containing lactose or more starch showed less cohesive flow than granules containing mannitol and less starch. Increasing talc content from 0% to 5% w/w had little effect to most physical properties of ribbons and granules while the flow of mannitol-based granules was found improved. Finally, it was observed that stored at 40 degrees C/75% RH over 12 weeks, gelatin capsules containing lactose-based granules had reduced dissolution rates due to pellicle formation inside capsule shells, while capsules containing mannitol-based granules remained immediate dissolution without noticeable pellicle formation.