SIMULTANEOUS DETERMINATION OF CLODRONATE AND ITS PARTIAL ESTER DERIVATIVES BY ION-PAIR REVERSED-PHASE HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHY COUPLED WITH EVAPORATIVE LIGHT-SCATTERING DETECTION

A new ion-pair HPLC method coupled with evaporative light-scattering d etection (ELSD) for the simultaneous determination of clodronate and i ts partial esters has been developed. The simultaneous chromatographic separation was achieved on a reversed-phase C-8 column with a gradien t system and butylamine as an ion-pair reagent. This method provides g ood enough reproducibility and sensitivity for in vitro determinations of clodronate and its ester derivatives. The method is applied for hy drolysis studies of clodronate monoesters which have been described as possible prodrugs of clodronate. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.