Direct UPLC-MS-MS Validated Method for the Quantification of 5-Aminolevulinic Acid: Application to in-vitro Assessment of Colonic-Targeted Oral Tablets

A reliable, sensitive, specific, and rapid ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric (UPLC-MS-MS) method was developed for the determination of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) in orally-administered colonic delivery system. The prepared system is a compression-coated tablet using granulated chitosan as the coat layer. L-Tyrosine (TYR) was used as an internal standard with no need for derivatization. The chromatographic system consisted of Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column and isocratic mobile phase composed of acetonitrile and 0.1 % formic acid with a flow rate of 2.5 min. The assay was based on ESI+ mode in a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions at m/z 132.08 > 86.0 and m/z 132.08 > 114.0 and m/z 182.1 > 91.2 for 5-ALA and TYR, respectively. Limit of quantification was 5.0 ng/mL and the calibration curve was linear (r 2 = 0.994). Within-run precision and between-run repeatability were expressed as relative standard deviation and were lower than 2.5%. The recoveries from control samples were > 95%. The method was successfully applied for evaluation in assay and release profile of 5-ALA colon targeted tablets media containing suspended rat cecal contents pH 6.8 medium (colonic) for colonic delivery.