A simple, short and stability-indicating reverse phase-ultra-performance liquid chromatography method was developed and validated for the quantitative determination of related impurities of halobetasol propionate in halobetasol propionate 0.05% cream formulation. The proposed method was developed on an ACQUITY UPLC™ BEH Phenyl (2.1 × 100 mm, 1.7 µm) column at 40°C with a mobile phase containing a gradient mixture of potassium hydrogen phosphate buffer and acetonitrile and methanol as modifiers with a runtime of 13.0 min at a monitored wavelength of 242 nm. A simple preparative method and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-compatible UPLC method also were developed for the isolation and identification of impurities and degradation products. The drug was subjected to forced-degradation conditions and found to degrade significantly. The stability-indicating capability of the developed method is established by analyzing forced-degradation samples in which the spectral purity of halobetasol propionate is ascertained along with the separation of degradation products from the analyte peak. The developed method was validated as per International Conference on Harmonization guidelines. The developed method is precise (%relative standard deviation <2.0) and is capable of detecting and quantifying all the six impurities at a level of 0.01 and 0.03%, respectively, with respect to test concentration. The wide linearity range, sensitivity, accuracy, short retention time and simple mobile phase imply that the method is suitable for routine quantification of halobetasol propionate and its related substances.

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A novel, sensitive and selective stability-indicating gradient reverse phase ultra performance liquid chromatographic method was developed and validated for the quantitative determination of desloratadine and sodium benzoate in pharmaceutical oral liquid formulation. The chromatographic separation was achieved on Acquity BEH C8 (100 mm × 2.1 mm) 1.7 μm column by using mobile phase containing a gradient mixture of solvent A (0.05 M KH2PO4 and 0.07 M triethylamine, pH 3.0) and B (50:25:25 v/v/v mixture of acetonitrile, methanol and water) at flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. Column temperature was maintained at 40°C and detection was carried out at a wavelength of 272 nm. The described method shows excellent linearity over a range of 0.254 μg/mL to 76.194 μg/mL for desloratadine and 1.006 μg/mL to 301.67 μg/mL for sodium benzoate. The correlation coefficient for desloratadine and sodium benzoate was more than 0.999. To establish stability-indicating capability of the method, drug product was subjected to the stress conditions of acid, base, oxidative, hydrolytic, thermal and photolytic degradation. The degradation products were well resolved from desloratadine and sodium benzoate. The developed method was validated as per international ICH guidelines with respect to specificity, linearity, LOD, LOQ, accuracy, precision and robustness.

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Cost-effective isolation methods were developed on preparative HPLC, flash LC, and simulated moving bed (SMB) to prepare the process impurity, 3-(aminomethyl)-5-methylhex-4-enoic acid (4-ene impurity), of pregabalin. By a thorough experimental study on the different isolation techniques available, it was concluded that SMB was the most cost-effective. Hence, it was a continuous chromatography that utilized the advantage of SMB so that a high quantity of the impurity was generated in a short period of time. SMB was equipped with eight reversed-phased columns and was used to separate the process impurity of pregabalin. The effects of flow rate in zone 2 (Q2) and 3 (Q3), as well as switching time, on the operating performance parameters like purity, productivity, and desorbent consumption were studied. Operating conditions leading to more than 90% purity in the raffinate outlet stream were identified, together with those achieving optimal performance. All of these developed methods are novel, cost-effective, and can be applied to the isolation of other process- and stability-related impurities of pregabalin.

A short and sensitive stability-indicating gradient RP-UPLC method was developed for the quantitative determination of process-related impurities and degradation products of tolterodine tartrate in pharmaceutical formulations. The method was developed by using the Waters ACQUITY UPLC™ BEH shield RP18 (2.1 × 100 mm, 1.7 μm) column with a mobile phase containing a gradient mixture of solvent A and B at a detection wavelength of 210 nm. During the stress study, the degradation products of tolterodine tartrate were well-resolved from tolterodine and its impurities and the mass balances were found to be satisfactory in all the stress conditions, thus proving the stability-indicating capability of the method. The developed method was validated as per ICH guidelines with respect to specificity, linearity, limit of detection and quantification, accuracy, precision, ruggedness, and robustness. During the stability (40°C/75% RH, 3 months) analysis of the drug product, one unknown impurity was detected by the above stability-indicating method. The unknown impurity was isolated by preparative HPLC and subjected to mass and NMR studies. Based on the spectral data, the unknown impurity was characterised as 2-(3-amino-1-phenylpropyl)-4-methylphenol (des-N,N-diisopropyl tolterodine). Structural elucidation of the impurity by spectral data is discussed in detail.

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Nicorandil is a potent drug with a dual mechanism of action which results in its wide application in treating angina patients. Since the literature review showed no single preparative method for isolation and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) compatible [high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) or ultra performance liquid chromatography (UPLC)] method for identification for the impurities generated in process and by force degradation was reported. Thus an attempt was made to develop a single preparative method for isolation and HPLC and UPLC methods for identification of impurities of nicorandil in tablet dosage form. Ten degradants were found in the formulated drug under the stress conditions, [40°C/75% relative humidity for 2 months] in an LC-MS compatible method. A cost effective and high-throughput simple gradient preparative HPLC method was developed with a runtime of 30 min to isolate all the degradants. The method is capable and can be used to isolate further degradants. To detect these degradants, rapid and effecient HPLC and UPLC methods were developed and the same were identified by UPLC-time of flight mass spectrometry (TOF MS). The crux of this work involves a single preparative isolation method and UPLC identification method for all degradants with a very short runtime, i.e., 13.8 min, and, furthermore, the method has the potential to separate a wide range of degradants.