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Asimple, precise and accurate high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) method has been developed for the simultaneous estimation of dihydroartemisinin and piperaquine phosphate in pharmaceutical dosage form. The separation was carried out on Merck TLC aluminum sheets with silica gel 60 F254, (20 × 10 cm) of 250 μm thickness using chloroform–methanol–ammonia 25% (9.5 : 0.3 : 0.1, v/v) as the mobile phase. HPTLC separation of the two drugs followed by optical densitometry measurement of their spots at 345 nm for piperaquine phosphate before derivatization and 545 nm for dihydroartemisinin after derivatization was done. Derivatization was performed using a mixture of anisaldehyde–conc. sulphuric acid–methanol (1:1:10, v/v) followed by heating the plate at 100°C for 15 min. The drugs were satisfactorily resolved with RF values 0.59 ± 0.02 and 0.40 ± 0.02 for dihydroartemisinin and piperaquine phosphate, respectively. Linearity of the method was investigated in the range of 200 – 700 ng/spot for dihydroartemisinin and 100 – 700 ng/spot for piperaquine phosphate. The intra-day and inter-day relative standard deviations for both components were less than 2.0% and the validation parameters were in compliance with ICH guidelines. Hence the method can be utilized for the routine quality control analysis of the above drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alstonia scholaris (Family: Apocynaceae) is a medicinal plant which has been indicated for the treatment of various diseases including arthritis in folklore medicine. The antiarthritic activity of the ethanolic extract of Alstonia scholaris leaves is reported. The present study was performed to establish the antiarthritic activity of the dichloromethane fraction (DCM) and to identify the constituent(s) responsible for the activity. DCM was tested for antiarthritic activity against Freund's Complete Adjuvant (FCA) induced arthritic rats. Arthritis assessment, nociceptive threshold and body weight were measured. On day 28, plasma tumor necrosis factor α, synovial leukocyte concentration, synovial tissue myeloperoxide, malonaldehyde, glutathione, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase were determined. Effect of DCM on ethanol and sodium salicylate induced gastropathy was also studied. DCM was subjected to HPTLC analysis and the phytoconstituent was identified using marker. DCM significantly decreased the signs of arthritis evident with decreased arthritis index, body weight, TNF-α and leukocyte infiltration. DCM significantly reduced gastric lesion indices and gastric juice secretion. It also significantly decreased the levels of lipid peroxidation and myeloperoxide in the articular tissue, whereas significantly increased the antioxidant enzymes glutathione, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. Moreover DCM was found to contain ursolic acid, which is one of the biomarkers indicated to have anti-inflammatory activity. The present study is suggestive that DCM has prominent antiarthritic activity which may be attributed to its analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. The Ursolic acid may contribute the found antiarthritic activity in part or whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sensitive, selective, precise and stability-indicating high-performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method for analysis of sertraline hydrochloride in the bulk drug and in formulations has been established and validated. Aluminum foil HPTLC plates precoated with silica gel 60F254 as stationary phase were used with toluene-ethyl acetate-ethanol-ammonia 8:2:0.5:0.1 (v/v). A compact spot was obtained for sertraline hydrochloride (RF 0.33 ± 0.02). Densitometric analysis was performed in absorbance mode at 273 nm. Regression analysis of calibration data revealed a good linear relationship (r² = 0.9996 ± 0.02) between response and concentration over the range 2000-12000 ng per band. The method was validated for accuracy, precision, linearity, limits of detection and quantification, and robustness. Sertraline hydrochloride was subjected to acidic and alkaline hydrolysis, oxidation, dry heat treatment, and photodegradation. Peaks of degradation products were well resolved from that of the pure drug and had significantly different RF values. Statistical analysis showed the method enabled repeatable and selective analysis of sertraline hydrochloride. The method can be used for routine quantitative analysis of sertraline hydrochloride in the bulk drug and in formulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]