The photocatalytic process as a tool to identify metabolitic products formed from dopant substances: the case of buspirone

The photocatalytic transformation of buspirone, an analgesic anxiolytic drug, and the formation of intermediates products have been evaluated by adopting titanium dioxide as a photocatalyst. Several molecules resulting from buspirone degradation have been identified and characterized by using HPLC/MS/MS technique. The main intermediates formed in these experimental conditions agree with the major buspirone metabolites found “in vivo” on rats and horses: hydroxy and dihydroxy-buspirone, despyrimidinyl buspirone and 1-pyrimidinyl piperazine. This shows that the photocatalytic system could provide in the present case a useful simulation of the metabolic transformation of dopant substances. Moreover, some more oxidized species have been recognized with the photocatalytic process, and this could offer a suggestion for yet to come metabolism studies.