Enantiospecific high-performance liquid chromatographic assay with fluorescence detection for the monoamine oxidase inhibitor tranylcypromine and its applicability in pharmacokinetic studies.

In order to be able to measure low concentrations of tranylcypromine enantiomers in biological material, chiral fluorescent derivatization and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were employed. The internal standard S-(+)-amphetamine and borate-sodium hydroxide buffer pH 11 were added to plasma or urine sample aliquots. o-Phthaldialdehyde was used for precolumn derivatization in combination with the chiral mercaptan N-acetylcysteine. HPLC resolution of the diastereoisomeric derivatives was possible on an octadecylsilane column. The mobile phase consisted of sodium phosphate buffer solution pH 6.5, methanol and tetrahydrofuran. The fluorescence of the eluate was monitored at 344/442 nm. The intra-day coefficients of variation were below 10%, the limit of determination was 0.5 ng/ml. The assay was found to be applicable for routine analyses in a preliminary pharmacokinetic study, in which an oral dose of 20 mg racemic tranylcypromine sulfate was administered to three healthy volunteers. The plasma concentrations were generally low, and those of S-(-)-tranylcypromine significantly exceeded those of the R-(+)-enantiomer. Average maximum concentrations were 57.5 and 6.3 ng/ml for S- and R-tranylcypromine, respectively. While S-tranylcypromine was well detectable within the whole study period (8 h), R-tranylcypromine concentrations fell below the detection limit after 4 h in two out of the three studied volunteers.