Structural Characterization, Toxicity Assessment and Molecular Modeling of Forced Degradation Products of Siponimod

Siponimod, a selective sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) receptor modulator, represents a next-generation therapeutic drug for active secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. This study conducted in-depth forced degradation studies of siponimod in solid state subjected to acidic, alkaline, oxidative, photolytic, and thermal conditions, in compliance with ICH guidelines Q1A (R2) and Q3A (R2). An HPLC method was developed to quantify siponimod and separate its degradation products (DPs). The DPs were characterized using LC-HRMS/MS and LC-MSⁿ techniques. Moreover, the toxicological profiles of siponimod and its DPs were evaluated through the in silico tools ProTox 3.0 and ADMETlab 3.0, with molecular docking and dynamics simulations assessing their binding to the S1P1 receptor. Siponimod was stable to light but degraded under acidic, alkaline, oxidative, and thermal stress, producing five products: DP-1 (acidic), DP-2/3 (oxidative), DP-4 (hydrolytic), and DP-5 (thermal). The toxicity prediction suggested that neither siponimod nor its DPs exhibited carcinogenic or mutagenic potential, and the molecular modeling analysis revealed that DP-2 and DP-3 demonstrated favorable binding affinities, with stable dynamic profiles and thermodynamic properties that closely resembled those of siponimod. As far as we know, this is the first study on the structural elucidation of the DPs of siponimod by LC-HRMS/MS and LC-MSⁿ.