Amikacin assay in serum by high-performance liquid chromatography

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Pharmacology
• Clinical Diagnostics

Background:

• Accurate quantification of amikacin in serum is crucial for therapeutic drug monitoring.
• Existing methods may lack the sensitivity, specificity, or speed required for routine clinical application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the quantitative determination of amikacin in human serum.
• To establish a rapid, sensitive, and specific assay for amikacin levels.

Main Methods:

• Serum samples were prepared by adsorbing amikacin onto silica gel.
• The adsorbed amikacin was derivatized using o-phthalaldehyde and eluted with ethanol.
• Quantification was performed using reverse-phase HPLC with fluorometric detection.

Main Results:

• The method demonstrated a linear response for amikacin concentrations from 1.0 to 15 µg/ml.
• No interference was observed from other antibiotics, including various aminoglycosides.
• Comparison with a standard microbiological assay yielded a high correlation coefficient of 0.99.

Conclusions:

• The developed HPLC method provides a sensitive and specific means for quantifying amikacin in serum.
• This assay is rapid and suitable for routine clinical laboratory use.
• The method's high correlation with microbiological assays validates its accuracy.