Zoniclezole

An analytical method has been developed for the determination of a new antiepileptic drug, CGS 18416A, in human plasma. CGS 18416A is a new anticonvulsant representative of a novel class of water‐soluble agents being developed for the treatment of epilepsy. Preclinical trials indicate sustained efficacy at relatively low oral doses, indicating a need for a sensitive assay. The method is based on capillary gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and utilizes stable isotope‐labelled CGS 18416A as the internal standard. Samples (1 mL) are acidified, then washed with pentane/ethyl acetate, followed by liquid/liquid extraction at pH 11 with pentane/ethyl acetate. Extracts are then concentrated and analysed directly by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Separation is accomplished on a thick film methylsilicone capillary column. Mass spectrometry was carried out under positive ion ammonia Cl conditions with selected ion monitoring of the protonated molecular ions (m/z = 248 and 252) for CGS 18416A and the 13CD3‐CGS 18416A, respectively. Specificity was demonstrated by the lack of interfering peaks at the retention time of CGS 18416A and the internal standard. Recovery and reproducibility assessments indicate good accuracy and precision over the validated concentration range of 0.2–51 ng/mL. The limit of quantification is 0.2 ng/mL and the method has sufficient sensitivity to support clinical trials. This is illustrated with an example of quantification in a normal volunteer following oral dosing.

1. Seven N-substituted imidazoles, with abilities to induce rat hepatic cytochrome P-450 from 1.5- to 4-fold after 3 days of treatment (75 mg/kg daily), were investigated for their concurrent inductive effect in kidney, intestine and lung. 2. The ability of a compound to induce cytochrome P-450 in the liver did not correlate with the ability to induce in extrahepatic tissues, the highest magnitude hepatic inducer (clotrimazole) having little inductive effect in other organs. 3. Induction of cytochrome P-450 concentration was greater in kidney and intestine than in lung but, with the exception of the two imidazoles bearing either a benzyl or a 2-naphthylmethyl substituent, the degree of induction in the extrahepatic organs did not approach that seen in liver. 4. Different monooxygenase activities were preferentially induced by the individual N-substituted imidazoles in a single tissue, and activities induced by a compound in one tissue were not uniformly induced by that compound in other tissues. Induction of activities did not always correlate with an increase in cytochrome P-450 concentration.