Analysis of new serotonergic anxiolytics by liquid chromatography

A simple isocratic procedure was developed for the analysis of new serotonergic anxiolytics and the related compounds in bulk materials, pharmaceutical formulations and in biological samples. The system may be applied for the assay of other serotonergic anxiolytics of related structure such as buspirone. The liquid chromatographic assay utilizes a reversed-phase C18 column, a mobile phase consisting of a mixture (55:45, v/v) of (A) buffer potassium dihydrogen phosphate (0.05 M) containing sodium lauryl sulphate (0.005 M) and (B) acetonitrile. A fluorescence detection is used with lambda ex 237 nm; lambda cm 374 nm. The accuracy, precision and sensitivity of the proposed method are established. Standard curves are linear with respect to concentration in the range 0.05-7.5 micrograms ml-1. The method also allows the separation and identification of related compounds at concentrations below 0.01%.