Rapid analysis of ergovaline in ovine plasma using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection.

A rapid high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the determination of the mycotoxin ergovaline in ovine plasma is described here. Ergotamine was used as an internal standard. A simple extraction procedure with diethyloxide was carried out, before chromatography on a C8 column, with the excitation and emission wavelengths fixed at 250 and 420 nm respectively, on a fluorimetric detector. The method, which was found to be linear between 3.5 and 15 ng/ml, had good specificity, precision and accuracy. The limit of quantification and the limit of detection were 3.5 and 1.2 ng/ml, respectively. A preliminary application of the described assay to a plasma kinetic study, after intravenous administration of a single dose of ergovaline (17 micrograms/kg body mass) to four sheep, showed a very rapid decrease of the plasma ergovaline levels. The terminal half-life and the total clearance of the mycotoxin were found to be 23.6 min and 0.020 l/min kg-1 body mass, respectively.

Pharmacodynamics and antithrombotic effects after intravenous administration of the new thromboxane A2 receptor antagonist sodium 4-[[1-[[[(4-chlorophenyl)sulfonyl]amino]methyl]cyclopentyl] methyl]benzeneacetate.

The antiplatelet and antithrombotic activities of LCB 2853 (sodium 4-[[1-[[[(4-chlorophenyl)sulfonyl]amino]methyl]cyclopentyl] methyl]benzeneacetate, CAS 141335-11-7) a novel thromboxane A2 (TXA2) receptor antagonist were examined after intravenous administration. The correlation between LCB 2853 plasma concentration and ex vivo inhibition of arachidonic acid-induced aggregation was observed in rats, for 4 h, as long as LCB 2853 was detected in plasma by HPLC analysis. Pharmacokinetic parameters were determined. The antithrombotic activity was tested in arterial and venous thrombosis models. In dog coronary stenosis, LCB 2853 shown a very high efficacy (ED50 = 7.2 micrograms/kg), whereas acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) was only active at 3.2 mg/kg and ticlopidine was ineffective at 12.8 mg/kg. In rat venous thrombosis induced by combination of venous injury and blood stasis, perfused LCB 2853 decreased the weight of thrombi in a dose related manner (ED50 = 220 micrograms/kg/min). In a comparative study, at 250 micrograms/kg/min, ticlopidine was less potent and ASA failed to show any protection. The potent immediate efficacy of LCB 2853 and the advantageous comparisons with ASA (which was ineffective in some models) or ticlopidine (which needs metabolization lag time) observed in many models suggest that this compound may have beneficial effects in patients with TXA2-associated disturbances.