HPLC Analysis and Pharmacokinetics of Picroside I in Dog Plasma

Abstract

A sensitive and selective HPLC–UV method established for determination of picroside I in dog plasma has been used to study the pharmacokinetics of the drug after intravenous administration of three different doses. Sample pretreatment consists in deproteination by addition of acetonitrile; l-ascorbic acid was used to improve the stability of picroside I. The lower limit of quantification of picroside I was 0.05 μg mL⁻¹. The recovery of the method was up to 90%. After intravenous administration to dogs picroside I was mainly distributed in the central compartment and was rapidly eliminated from the plasma; the mean elimination half-life was 30.54 ± 4.34, 30.20 ± 3.78, and 34.02 ± 1.88 min for doses of 2.5, 5, and 15 mg kg⁻¹, respectively, and the respective values of AUC _0–∞ were 81.04 ± 19.95, 198.50 ± 27.77, and 586.44 ± 103.08 μg min mL⁻¹. The different doses had no significant effect on the main pharmacokinetic data and the kinetics seemed to be linear in dosage range 2.5–15 mg kg⁻¹.