Gas-liquid chromatographic evaluation of bencyclane in biological samples for pharmacokinetic and bioavailability investigations: comparison of two analytical methods.

Analytical conditions that allow bencyclane, a vasodilator, to be evaluated in biological samples for pharmacokinetic and bioavailability investigations are reported. Two gas chromatographic methods were developed, one employing a flame-ionization detector, reaching a sensitivity of 0.5-1 micrograms/ml, and the other employing a thermionic specific detector and reaching a sensitivity of 10 ng/ml. The extraction recovery, reproducibility and specificity were all satisfactory with both methods. The former method is suitable for chemical quality controls and the latter has a sufficient sensitivity and reproducibility for determination of the drug in biological samples as required in pharmacokinetic investigations.