High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of resveratrol analog 3,5,4'-trimethoxystilbene in rat plasma

(E)-3,5,4'-Trimethoxystilbene (BTM-0512), the analog of resveratrol, is potentially useful for the treatment of human diseases. This is the first study to use high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for the determination of the resveratrol analog in rat plasma. Plasma proteins (0.1 mL) were precipitated with acetonitrile after the addition of the internal standard chlorzoxazone. The analysis used a BDS HYPERSIL C(18) analytical column (5 microm, 4.6 x 250 mm) with acetonitrile/water as the mobile phase. The UV-detection wavelength was 303 nm. The calibration curve was linear over the range of 0.025-10 microg/mL with a correlation coefficient of 0.9958. This concentration range corresponds well with the plasma concentrations of BTM-0512 in pharmacokinetic studies. There was a recovery of 102.2%, 95.3% and 103.7% from 0.05, 5 and 10 microg/mL plasma samples, respectively. The relative standard deviation of intra- and interday assay variations was all less than 13%. This HPLC assay is a quick, precise and reliable method for the analysis of BTM-0512 in pharmacokinetic studies.