Determination of imperatorin in rat plasma by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography after oral administration of Radix Angelicae dahuricae extract

A simple high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method has been developed for the determination of imperatorin in rat plasma and applied to a pharmacokinetic study in rats after administration of Radix Angelicae dahuricae extract. After addition of fluocinonide as an internal standard (IS), plasma samples were extracted with diethyl ether. HPLC analysis of the extracts was performed on a Diamonsil C18 analytical column using methanol–water (70:30, v/v) as the mobile phase. The UV detector was set at 254 nm. The standard curve was linear over the range 0.04–4.0 μg/mL. The lower limit of quantification was 0.04 μg/mL. The HPLC method developed could be easily applied to the determination and pharmacokinetic study of imperatorin in rat plasma after giving the animals Radix Angelicae dahuricae extract.     

A new HPLC micromethod to measure total plasma homocysteine in newborn

Total plasma homocysteine (tHcy) in children may be an useful biochemical marker for genetic risk of premature cardiovascular disease. We reported a rapid, isocratic HPLC method able to process very small amount of newborn plasma samples. A blood sample from heel capillary circulation was collected, using a heparinized capillary glass tube. Plasma sample from 1 to 10 μl was derivatized with ammonium-7-fluorobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole-4-sulphonate after reduction with tri-n-butylphosphine and analyzed on Discovery C18 column, with a solution of acetonitrile–dihydrogenphosphate 0.1 M (8:92 v/v pH*2.1). This assay ensures a good recovery (95%), precision (CV 4.5%) and linearity (y=2.41x+0.31, r=1). Due to its simplicity and reliability, our method is suitable for routine analysis of tHcy and other aminothiols (Cys, Cys-Gly, GSH) assessed for clinical and research purposes. With this HPLC method we have assayed tHcy levels in 1400 apparently healthy newborn babies (tHcy mean VALUE=4.9±2.7 μM). In conclusion, this accurate and linear HPLC method allows measurement of tHcy in newborn during the routinary capillary blood collection in the fourth living day without any other invasive procedure.     

HPLC-MS/MS determination of a peptide conjugate prodrug of doxorubicin, and its active metabolites, leucine-doxorubicin and doxorubicin, in dog and rat plasma

A HPLC-MS/MS Electrospray (ESI) method was developed and validated to quantify a peptide conjugate prodrug of doxorubicin (Dox-Con) and its active metabolites leucine-doxorubicin (Leu-Dox) and doxorubicin (Dox) in dog and rat plasma. The analytes were extracted from plasma by solid-phase extraction on a Bond Elut® C8 cartridge and eluted with chloroform–methanol (2:1). Eluates were evaporated and reconstituted in acetonitrile–5 μM sodium trifluoroacetate in 0.1% aqueous formic acid (20:80) and injected onto a Waters Oasis® HLB column. Analytes were eluted from the column with a solvent gradient into the mass analyzer. The ions were quantified in the selected reaction-monitoring mode (SRM), using positive ions, on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. The lower limits of quantification for Dox-Con, Leu-Dox, and Dox in plasma, were approximately 5, 1 (dog)/6 (rat), and 0.5 ng/ml, respectively. Intra- and inter-assay accuracy (% of nominal concentration) and precision (%CV) for all analytes were within 15 and 16%, respectively.     

Evaluation of impurities level of perindopril tert-butylamine in tablets

Perindopril tert-butylamine is a new member of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors group used in the treatment of hypertension and heart failure. In this paper, the evaluation of reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method (RP-HPLC) for the determination of impurities level of perindopril tert-butylamine in tablets was done. The chromatograms were recorded using a Hewlett Packard 1100 chromatographic system with DAD detector. Separations were performed on a YMC-Pack C8 column (250 mm × 4.6 mm; 5 μm particle size) at 50 °C column temperature. Mobile phase was a mixture of acetonitrile–potassium phosphate buffer (0.05 M) (37:63, v/v) (pH 2.5). pH of the mobile phase was adjusted with ortophosphoric acid. Mixture of acetonitrile–water (40:60, v/v) was used as a solvent. Injection volume was 50 μl, flow rate 1.7 ml min⁻¹ and UV-detection was performed at 215 nm. The developed method subjected to method validation and parameters in terms of selectivity, linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection, limit of quantitation and robustness were defined. The validated method is suitable for the simultaneous determination of perindopril tert-butylamine as well as its impurities in pharmaceuticals.     

Pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution study of orientin in rat by liquid chromatography

A simple HPLC–UV method was established for the determination of orientin in plasma and different tissues of rat (heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, brain, stomach and small intestine). The separation was achieved by HPLC on a C₁₈ column with a mobile phase composed of acetonitrile–0.1% acetic acid (20:80, v/v), UV detection was used at 348 nm. Good linearity was found between 0.250–50.0 μg/ml (r² = 0.9966) for plasma samples and 0.050–50.0 μg/ml (r² ≥ 0.9937) for the tissue samples, respectively. Within- and between-day precisions expressed as the relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) for the method were 2.3–9.6% and 3.0–7.4%, respectively. The relative recoveries of orientin ranged from 95.4 to 100.6% for plasma and 93.1 to 107.9% for tissue homogenates. The developed method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution research after intravenous administration of a 20 mg/kg dose of orientin to healthy Sprague–Dawley rats. The main pharmacokinetics parameters obtained presented that orientin was quickly distributed and eliminated within 90 min after intravenous administration. The tissue distribution results showed that liver, lung and kidney were the major distribution tissues of orientin in rats, and that orientin had difficulty in crossing the blood–brain barrier. It was also found that there was no long-term accumulation of orientin in rat tissues.     

Direct injection HPLC method for the determination of selected benzodiazepines in plasma using a Hisep column

A direct plasma injection HPLC method has been developed for the determination of selected benzodiazepines (nitrazepam, clobazam, oxazepam, lorazepam). The method uses an analytical hydrophobic shielded phase (Hisep) column equipped with a Hisep guard column, are easy to perform and requires 20 ul of a filtered plasma sample. The chromatographic run time is less than 15 min using a mobile phase of 15:85 v/v acetonitrile–0.18 M ammonium acetate pH 2.5. The method is good for 175 injections before replacement of the guard column. The method was linear in the range 0.5–18 ug ml⁻¹ (r>0.99, N=6) for the analytes with R.S.D. less than 10.82%. Interday and intraday variability were found to be less than 14%. The limits of detection and quantitation were 0.16 (s/n>3) and 0.5 ug ml⁻¹ (s/n>10), respectively, for each of the four benzodiazepines.     

Determination of ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid in injection forms by ion-pair chromatography

A high performance liquid chromatographic method was developed for the determination of ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) in injection forms. The method consists of direct extraction of the samples with ethyl acetate; the organic layers were evaporated to dryness and further diluted to a 0.025% (w/v) copper nitrate in order to achive the formation of the EDTA–copper solution complex. The chromatographic separation was performed on a C8 Hypersil column. The mobile phase consisted of a mixture of acetonitrile–0.015 M tetrabutylammonium hydroxide (10:90, v/v), (pH* 7.0) pumped at a flow rate of 1.5 ml min⁻¹. The UV detector was operated at 300 nm. Correlation coefficients of the calibration graphs were better than 0.9995, relative standard deviation was less than 2.5%. Detection limit of EDTA was found to be 1.97 μg ml⁻¹.     

Development and validation of a bioanalytical method using automated solid-phase extraction and LC-UV for the simultaneous determination of lumefantrine and its desbutyl metabolite in plasma

A bioanalytical method for the determination of lumefantrine (LF) and its metabolite desbutyl-lumefantrine (DLF) in plasma by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography has been developed. Plasma proteins were precipitated with acetonitrile:acetic acid (99:1, v/v) containing a DLF analogue internal standard before being loaded onto a octylsilica (3 M Empore) SPE column. Two different DLF analogues were evaluated as internal standards. The compounds were analysed by liquid chromatography UV detection on a SB-CN (250 mm × 4.6 mm) column with a mobile phase containing acetonitrile–sodium phosphate buffer pH (2.0; 0.1 M) (55:45, v/v) and sodium perchlorate 0.05 M. Different SPE columns were evaluated during method development to optimise reproducibility and recovery for LF, DLF and the two different DLF analogues. The within-day precisions for LF were 6.6 and 2.1% at 0.042 and 8.02 μg/mL, respectively, and for DLF 4.5 and 1.5% at 0.039 and 0.777 μg/mL, respectively. The between-day precisions for LF were 12.0 and 2.9% at 0.042 and 8.02 μg/mL, respectively, while for DLF 0.7 and 1.2% at 0.039 and 0.777 μg/mL, respectively. The limit of quantification was 0.024 and 0.021 μg/mL for LF and DLF, respectively. Different amounts of lipids in plasma did not affect the absolute recovery of LF or DLF.     

Determination of tyramine in cheese by LC-UV

An isocratic reversed-phase liquid chromatographic assay for tyramine has been developed. The method is based on the reaction of tyramine with 4-chloro-7-nitrobenzofurazan and measurement of the absorbance at 458 nm after chromatographic separation on a C-18 column. Optimum reaction conditions were investigated. A linear relationship was found between absorbance and concentration over the range 25–300 ng per 10 μl of tyramine. The method was applied to the determination of tyramine in cheese. The cheese sample was homogenized with 5% (w/v) HClO₄ extracted with ethyl acetate–acetone (2:1) and chromatographed on high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) after derivatization reaction with NBD-Cl. The determination limit was 25 μg/g cheese. The mean recovery of tyramine from cheese was 98.0%.     

Analysis of flurbiprofen, ketoprofen and etodolac enantiomers by pre-column derivatization RP-HPLC and application to drug-protein binding in human plasma

A stereoselective reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay to determine the enantiomers of flurbiprofen, ketoprofen and etodolac in human plasma was developed. Chiral drug enantiomers were extracted from human plasma with liquid–liquid extraction. Then flurbiprofen and ketoprofen enantiomers reacted with the acylation reagent thionyl chloride and pre-column chiral derivatization reagent (S)-(−)--(1-naphthyl)ethylamine (S-NEA), and etodolac enantiomers reacted with S-NEA using 1-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethyl-carbodiimide (EDC) and 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HOBT) as coupling agents. The derivatized products were separated on an Agilent Zorbax C₁₈ (4.6 mm × 250 mm, 5 μm) column with a mixture of acetonitrile–0.01 mol·L⁻¹ phosphate buffer (pH 4.5) (70:30, v/v) for flurbiprofen enantiomers, acetonitrile–0.01 mol·L⁻¹ phosphate buffer (pH 4.5) (60:40, v/v) for ketoprofen enantiomers and methonal–0.01 mol·L⁻¹ potassium dihydrogen phosphate buffer (pH 4.5) (88:12, v/v) for etodolac enantiomers as mobile phase. The flow of mobile phase was set at 0.8 mL·min⁻¹ and the detection wavelength of UV detector was set at 250 nm for flurbiprofen and ketoprofen enantiomers and 278 nm for etodolac enantiomers. The assay was linear from 0.5 to 50 μg·mL⁻¹ for each enantiomer. The inter- and intra-day precision (R.S.D.) was less than 10% and the average extraction recovery was more than 87% for each enantiomer. The limit of quantification for the method was 0.5 μg·mL⁻¹ (R.S.D. < 10%, n = 5). The method developed was used to study the drug–protein binding of flurbiprofen, ketoprofen and etodolac enantiomers in human plasma. The results showed that the stereoselective binding of etodolac enantiomer was observed and flurbiprofen and ketoprofen enantiomers were not.     

Validated HPLC method for determination of LASSBio-581, a new heterocyclic N-phenylpiperazine derivative, in rat plasma

A rapid, simple and accurate high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed and validated for the determination of LASSBio-581 (1-[1-(4-chloro-phenyl)-1H-[1,2,3]triazol-4-ylmethyl]-4-phenyl-piperazine) in rat plasma using ketoconazole as internal standard. Plasma samples were deproteinized with methanol. A good chromatographic separation was achieved using a reversed phase C₁₈ column. Mobile phase consisting of sodium dihydrogen phosphate monohydrate (pH 4.5, 0.02 M) and methanol mixture (35:65, v/v) was used at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min. The eluate was monitored using a UV detector at 248 nm. The retention times of LASSBio-581 and the internal standard were approximately 3.8 and 5.6 min, respectively. The calibration curves were linear over the concentration range of 0.25–8.0 μg/ml with correlation coefficients >0.99. The limit of quantitation was 0.25 μg/ml. The accuracy of the method was >90%. The intra-day relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) ranged from 6.15 to 10.52% at 0.4 μg/ml, 7.44 to 13.81% at 1.5 μg/ml and 6.10 to 13.94% at 6.0 μg/ml. The inter-day R.S.D. were 9.54, 8.42 and 8.25% at 0.4, 1.5 and 6.0 μg/ml, respectively. No interference from endogenous substances or metabolites were observed. The method has been used to measure plasma concentrations of LASSBio-581 in pharmacokinetic studies in rats.     

Determination of gabapentin in human plasma and urine by high-performance liquid chromatography with UV-vis detection

A simple and reliable high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method with UV–vis detection has been developed and validated for the determination of gabapentin (GBP) in human plasma and urine. The clean up of the sample was carried out by solid-phase extraction with C18-cartridge. After the clean up procedure, the samples were pre-column derivatizated with 1,2-naphthoquinone-4-sulphonic acid sodium salt (NQS). A chromatographic separation was achieved on a C18 column with a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and 10 mM orthophosphoric acid (pH 2.5) with isocratic elution (35:65). Baclofen was used as an internal standard (I.S.). The method developed for GBP was linear over the concentration range of 0.05–5.0 μg/ml and 0.1–10.0 μg/ml for plasma and urine, respectively. The method is precise (relative standard deviation, R.S.D. <4.05%) and accurate (relative mean error, RME <0.15%); mean absolute recoveries were 72.21% for plasma and 72.73% for urine.     

Fast liquid chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS-MS) determination of metformin in plasma samples

Liquid chromatographic–tandem mass spectrometric (LC–MS–MS) methods for the determination of metformin in plasma from different species are presented. The first method employed a YMC cyano 2 mm×50 mm, 3 μm analytical column. For minimum sample preparation direct injection of samples after protein precipitation was performed. The polar column used with highly organic mobile phases provided a normal phase retention mechanism. The elution conditions were optimized to obtain reproducible peak areas and good peak shape. A step gradient from 100% acetonitrile to acetonitrile–water 80:20 (v/v) containing 10 mM ammonium acetate and 1% acetic acid was applied, leading to a sample-to-sample cycle time of 2 min. In a second method, a column-switching LC–MS–MS assay for on-line trapping was developed. The analyte and internal standard were trapped on a YMC cyano 2 mm×10 mm, 5 μm column using acetonitrile–methanol 95:5 (v/v). Elution was performed isocratically in back-flush mode on to the analytical column (YMC cyano 2 mm×50 mm, 3 μm) using 10 mM ammonium acetate in acetonitrile–water 80:20 (v/v) with 1% formic acid. With this approach, the signal-to-noise ratio was improved and the run time could be shortened to 1 min. Calibration samples were prepared in the matrix to be assayed in the range of 10–10,000 ng/ml. Quality control (QC) samples were prepared at 40, 400 and 4000 ng/ml and interspersed with the unknown study samples in the assays. Deviations for precision and accuracy were less than 20% for the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) and low QC sample and less than 15% for other calibrators and QCs.     

A fluorimetric liquid chromatographic method for the determination of propranolol in human serum/plasma

A simple, rapid, and sensitive fluorimetric-high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the determination of propranolol in human serum/plasma has been developed, without the need for solvent extraction. The procedure required 200 μl of serum/plasma, and the addition of 1 ml of acetonitrile for protein precipitation followed by vortexing and centrifugation at 10 000 g. The clear supernatant was evaporated to dryness under a stream of nitrogen at 50 60°C, the residue was reconstituted in 100 μl of methanol, and a 90 μl portion was injected onto the high-performance liquid chromatograph for propranolol quantitation. Chromatography was accomplished using a Hypersil^® cyano column, a mobile phase of acetonitrile - aqueous acetic acid (1%) containing 0.2% triethylamine (35:65, v/v) (pH 3.6), a flow rate of 1.5 ml min⁻¹, a fluorescence detector set at an excitation wavelength of 230 nm and an emission wavelength of 340 nm, and using pronethalol as the internal standard. Retention times for pronethalol and propranolol were 7.5 min and 9.5 min, respectively. Standard curves were linear in the range 5–200 ng ml⁻¹. Relative standard deviations for both inter-day and intra-day precision analysis were less than 7% for serum. No interference was observed from endogenous serum/plasma components. Specificity was shown for some, but not all, commonly coadministered drugs tested. The advantages of this method include good precision, low sample volume, good reproducibility and recovery, and high sensitivity.     

Simultaneous LC determination of paracetamol and related compounds in pharmaceutical formulations using a carbon-based column

A simple, rapid and convenient high performance liquid chromatographic method, which permits the simultaneous determination of paracetamol, 4-aminophenol and 4-chloracetanilide in pharmaceutical preparation has been developed. The chromatographic separation was achieved on porous graphitized carbon (PGC) column using an isocratic mixture of 80/20 (v/v) acetonitrile/0.05 M potassium phosphate buffer (pH 5.5) and ultraviolet detection at 244 nm. Correlation coefficient for calibration curves in the ranges 1–50 μg ml⁻¹ for paracetamol and 5–40 μg ml⁻¹ for 4-aminophenol and 4-chloroacetanilide were >0.99. The sensitivity of detection is 0.1 μg ml⁻¹ for paracetamol and 0.5 μg ml⁻¹ for 4-aminophenol and 4-chloroacetanilide. The proposed liquid chromatographic method was successfully applied to the analysis of commercially available paracetamol dosage forms with recoveries of 98–103%. It is suggested that the proposed method should be used for routine quality control and dosage form assay of paracetamol in pharmaceutical preparations. The chromatographic behaviour of the three compounds was examined under variable mobile phase compositions and pH, the results revealed that selectivity was dependent on the organic solvent and pH used. The retention selectivity of these compounds on PGC was compared with those of octadecylsilica (ODS) packing materials in reversed phase liquid chromatography. The ODS column gave little separation for the degradation product (4-aminophenol) from paracetamol, whereas PGC column provides better separation in much shorter time.     

An HPLC method for the determination of atorvastatin and its impurities in bulk drug and tablets

A simple high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed for the analysis of atorvastatin (AT) and its impurities in bulk drug and tablets. This method has shown good resolution for AT, desfluoro-atorvastatin (DFAT), diastereomer-atorvastatin (DSAT), unknown impurities and formulation excipients of tablets. A gradient reverse-phase HPLC assay was used with UV detection. Some solvent systems prepared using methanol or acetonitrile and water or buffer systems with different pH values were tested. Capacity factors of related substances were calculated at all tested systems. Best resolution has been determined using a Luna C₁₈ column with acetonitrile–ammonium acetate buffer pH 4-tetrahydrofuran (THF) as mobile phase. Samples were eluted gradiently with the mobile phase at flowrate 1.0 ml min⁻¹ and detected at 248 nm. The proposed method was applied to the determination of impurities and were found to contain 0.057–0.081, 0.072–0.097, 0.608–0.664% of the DFAT, DSAT and total impurity, respectively.     

Method development and validation of repaglinide in human plasma by HPLC and its application in pharmacokinetic studies

In this study, the development and validation of a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay for determination of repaglinide concentration in human plasma for pharmacokinetic studies is described. Plasma samples containing repaglinide and an internal standard, indomethacin were extracted with ethylacetate at pH 7.4. The recovery of repaglinide was 92% ± 55.31. Chromatographic separations were performed on Purospher^® STAR C-18 analytical column (4.8 mm × 150 mm; 5 μm particle size). The mobile phase composed of acetonitrile–ammonium formate (pH 2.7; 0.01 M) (60:40, v/v). The flow rate was 1 ml/min. The retention time for repaglinide and indomethacin were approximately 6.2 and 5.3 min, respectively. Calibration curves of repaglinide were linear in the concentration range of 20–200 ng/ml in plasma. The limits of detection and quantification were 10 ng/ml and 20 ng/ml, respectively. The inter-day precision was from 5.21 to 11.84% and the intra-day precision ranged from 3.90 to 6.67%. The inter-day accuracy ranged 89.95 to 105.75% and intra-day accuracy ranged from 92.37 to 104.66%. This method was applied to determine repaglinide concentration in human plasma samples for a pharmacokinetic study.     

Validation of a sensitive LC/MS/MS method for simultaneous quantitation of flupentixol and melitracene in human plasma

A sensitive method has been developed and validated, using LC/ESI-MS/MS, for simultaneous quantitation of flupentixol and melitracen—antidepressant drugs, in human plasma. The quantitation of the target compounds was determined in a positive ion mode and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM). The method involved a repeated liquid–liquid extraction with diethyl ether and analytes were chromatographed on a C₈ chromatographic column by elution with acetonitrile–water–formic acid (36:64:1, v/v/v) and analyzed by tandem mass spectrometry. The method was validated over the concentration ranges of 26.1–2090 pg/ml for flupentixol and 0.206–4120 ng/ml for melitracen. The correlation coefficients of both analyst were >0.998 for six sets of calibration curves. The recovery was 60.9–75.1% for flupentixol, melitracen and internal standard. The lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) detection was 26.1 pg/ml for flupentixol and 0.206 ng/ml for melitracen. Intra- and inter-day precision of the assay at three concentrations were 2.15–5.92% with accuracy of 97.6–103.0% for flupentixol and 0.5–6.36% with accuracy of 98.7–101.7% for melitracen. Stability of compounds was established in a battery of stability studies, i.e., bench-top, autosampler and long-term storage stability as well as freeze/thaw cycles. The method proved to be suitable for bioequivalence study of flupentixol and melitracen in healthy human male volunteers.     

Simultaneous determination of valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide in tablets by first-derivative ultraviolet spectrophotometry and LC

First-derivative ultraviolet spectrophotometry and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were used to determine valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide simultaneously in combined pharmaceutical dosage forms. The derivative procedure was based on the linear relationship between the drug concentration and the first derivative amplitudes at 270.6 and 335 nm for valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide, respectively. The calibration graphs were linear in the range of 12.0–36.1 μg ml⁻¹ for valsartan and 4.0–12.1 μg ml⁻¹ for hydrochlorothiazide. Furthermore, a high- performance liquid chromatographic procedure with ultraviolet detection at 225 nm was developed for a comparison method. For the HPLC procedure, a reversed phase column with a mobile phase of 0.02 M phosphate buffer (pH 3.2)-acetonitrile (55: 45; v/v), was used to separate for valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide. The plot of peak area ratio of each drug to the internal standard versus the respective concentrations of valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide were found to be linear in the range of 0.06–1.8 and 0.07–0.5 μg ml⁻¹, respectively. The proposed methods were successfully applied to the determination of these drugs in laboratory-prepared mixtures and commercial tablets.     

Simultaneous determination of berberine and palmatine in rat plasma by HPLC-ESI-MS after oral administration of traditional Chinese medicinal preparation Huang-Lian-Jie-Du decoction and the pharmacokinetic application of the method

A sensitive and specific liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC–ESI-MS) method has been developed and validated for the identification and quantification of berberine and palmatine in rat plasma. After the addition of the internal standard (IS) and alkalization with 0.5 M sodium hydroxide solution, plasma samples were extracted by ethyl ether and separated by HPLC on a Shim-pack ODS (4.6 μm, 150 mm × 2.0 mm i.d.) column using a mobile phase composed of A (0.08% formic acid and 2 mmol/l ammonium acetate) and B (acetonitrile) with linear gradient elution. Analysis was performed on a Shimadzu LC/MS-2010A in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode with a positive electrospray ionization (ESI) interface. [M]⁺ = 336 for berberine; 352 for palmatine and [M + H]⁺ = 340 for IS were selected as detecting ions, respectively. The method was validated over the concentration range of 0.31–20 ng/ml for berberine and palmatine. Inter- and intra-CV precision (R.S.D.%) were all within 15% and accuracy (%bias) ranged from −5 to 5%. The lower limits of quantification were 0.31 ng/ml for both analytes. The extraction recovery was on average 68.6% for berberine, 64.2% for palmatine. The validated method was used to study the pharmacokinetic profile of berberine and palmatine in rat plasma after oral administration of Huang-Lian-Jie-Du decoction.