Determination of acyclovir in human plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Acyclovir is a crucial antiviral medication, particularly for immunosuppressed patients like organ transplant recipients.
• Accurate therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) is essential for optimizing acyclovir efficacy and minimizing toxicity.
• Existing analytical methods may lack the sensitivity or practicality required for routine TDM in clinical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a selective and sensitive isocratic high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for quantifying acyclovir in human plasma.
• To establish a reliable analytical technique suitable for the therapeutic drug monitoring of acyclovir.

Main Methods:

• Sample preparation involved acid deproteinization of human plasma.
• Analysis was performed using an isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography system.
• Method validation included assessment of analytical recovery, quantification limit, and precision.

Main Results:

• The developed HPLC method demonstrated high analytical recovery, exceeding 94% at both low and high acyclovir concentrations.
• The quantification limit was determined to be 0.1 mg/L using a plasma volume of 500 microliters.
• Precision studies showed coefficients of variation below 5%, indicating excellent reproducibility.

Conclusions:

• The described isocratic HPLC method is selective, sensitive, and reliable for acyclovir analysis in human plasma.
• This validated method is suitable for the routine therapeutic drug monitoring of acyclovir in organ-transplant recipients.
• The method's performance characteristics support its clinical utility in managing acyclovir therapy.