Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography of non-transferrin-bound iron and some hydroxypyridone and hydroxypyrone chelators.

The pursuit of orally available Fe(III) chelating agents has resulted in several clinical trials of 1,2-dimethyl-3-hydroxypyrid-4-one (CP20). Chromatography of this and related Fe chelators on silica-based columns has proven difficult due to unwanted interactions with the stationary phase, including with contaminating Fe bound to silanol groups. By addition of Fe3+ (50 microM ferric ammonium citrate) to an acidified aqueous mobile phase, we have successfully separated a series of hydroxypyridones-including CP20-and the related pyrones maltol and ethylmaltol by HPLC on microBondapak C18. Complexation occurs with these agents even at low pH, and they elute in an order consistent with the partition coefficients of their Fe(III) complexes. By the reverse strategy of adding ethylmaltol to the mobile phase, chelatable Fe was chromatographed and the peak response at 500 nm was linear down to a detection limit below 0.5 microM. This method was applied to pooled serum and to serum spiked with Fe after filtration at 10 kDa cut-off. The direct determination of non-transferrin-bound Fe at micromolar concentrations in serum is possible with this approach.

Copper complexation by 3-hydroxypyridin-4-one iron chelators: structural and iron competition studies.

Clinical trials of 1,2-dimethyl-3-hydroxypyridine-4-one (1) as an orally available iron chelator are presently underway in several centers. Discrepant reports of toxicity in human and animal studies have stimulated debate on the role of iron status and the availability of iron for chelation relative to other essential elements like copper in determining the clinical effects of 1. Therefore, we investigated the ability of 1, its 1,2-diethyl analog 2, and their iron chelates to complex copper. Both compounds formed tetracoordinate 2:1 Cu(II) complexes which X-ray structure analysis showed to be planar and coordinated through the oxygen atoms of the hydroxy ketone functionality. Potentiometric analysis revealed that these complexes dominated at physiological pH, although between pH 6 and 7 approximately equal amounts of the mono and bis complexes of Cu with 1 were present at equilibrium. Comparing the stepwise formation constants deduced from the stability constants of these complexes (log beta 2 = 21.7 +/- 0.8 (1) and 20.2 +/- 2.0 (2)) with those of their Fe(III) complexes (Motekaitis,R.J.;Martell,A.E.Inorg.Chim.Acta 1991, 183,71-80) leads to a prediction of insignificant copper complexation when equimolar iron is present and dissociation products are thermodynamically unimportant. However, displacement of Fe3+ occurred from both complexes with stoichiometric amounts of Cu2+, implicating the participation of metal hydrolysis products in the equilibria. We conclude that Cu(II) complexes of the 3-hydroxypyridin-4-one chelators are stable under physiological conditions and that copper can effect displacement of iron by these agents under circumstances where hydrolysis of the metals is important.

Use of ethylene-vinyl-acetate as a new membrane matrix for calcium ion-selective electrode preparation.

A new polymer matrix based membrane electrode with an ion-exchanger responding to calcium was constructed by dissolving the copolymer ethylene-vinyl-acetate together with the ion-exchanger in chloroform in the presence of a mixture of dioctylphthalate-nitrobenzene as plasticizer. The ion-exchanger used as the electroactive component was calcium didecyl phosphate in di-(n-octylphenyl) phosphonate (Orion). This electrode exhibited near-Nernstian response over the concentration range 10(-1)-4 x 10(-6)M calcium. The pH did not affect the electrode performance within the range 8-11. Response time varied from 15 to 120 sec and the lifetime exceeded six months. The membrane is subject to static charge buildup, but this is avoided by controlling the level of dryness of the membrane. Selectivity coefficients determined for both monovalent and divalent cations showed negligible interference by most of these ions. The electrode was applied successfully to the determination of calcium in commercial mineral waters.

New modified polymeric electrodes selective to local anaesthetic compounds.

New polymeric electrodes responding to the cationic forms of tetracaine (TC), lidocaine (LD), and procaine (PC) were constructed by incorporating their ion-pair complexes (the salts of TC, LD and PC with phosphotungstic acid) into ethylene-vinyl acetate (E/VAC) copolymer. Other ion pairing agents investigated were silicotungstate and tetraphenylborate. The phosphotungstic acid resulted in the best linear and Nernstian response. A 1:1 (v/v) mixture of dioctyl phthalate (DOP) and nitrobenzene (NB) was used as plasticizer. The electrodes exhibited linear response over the concentration ranges 10(-2)-5.6 x 10(-6), 10(-2)-2.5 x 10(-5) and 10(-2)-1.8 x 10(-5) M of TC, LD and PC, respectively. pH did not affect the electrode performances within the ranges 2.7-6.3, 2.6-6.7 and 2.8-7.5 for the three electrodes, respectively. Interferences are negligible for many organic base and alkali metal cations. Cations of similar structure interfere with LD and PC, but not appreciably with TC. Direct potentiometry was used to determine these compounds in pharmaceutical preparations with accurate results.

Adsorptive voltammetry and hydrolysis kinetics of loprazolam mesilate.

Loprazolam is determined by square-wave adsorptive stripping voltammetry in 0.04M ammonium chloride at pH 4.0, with an accumulation potential of -0.25 V vs. Ag/AgCl/KCl(s), at which the nitro group is reduced to a hydroxylamine group, with adsorption of the product. Cathodic stripping results in reduction of the azomethine bond of the adsorbed product. With a deposition time of 120 sec the detection limit is 2.5 x 10(-10)M. The relative standard deviation is 1.7% for 5 x 10(-8)M loprazolam (60 sec deposition). Reversible hydrolysis of the azomethine group occurs in sulfuric or hydrochloric acid. The reaction is initially first-order, followed by an apparent second-order reaction. First-order rate constants and half-lives are reported for 0.1-1M sulfuric acid and 0.02M hydrochloric acid media and compared with the values for nitrazepam hydrolysis.