Development of a LC-MS/MS method for the determination of antrodin B and antrodin C from Antrodia camphorata extract in rat plasma for pharmacokinetic study.

A selective and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the determination of antrodin B and antrodin C in rat plasma. Both target compounds, together with the internal standard (diazepam), were extracted from rat plasma samples by liquid-liquid extraction with ethyl acetate. Chromatographic separation was carried out on an Agilent XDB-C(8) column with an isocratic mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and water (70:30, V/V) at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. The mass spectrometric detection was performed by selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode via atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) source operating in positive ionization mode. The assay exhibited a linear dynamic range of 47.6-4760 ng/mL for antrodin B and 56.6-5660 ng/mL for antrodin C. The intra- and inter-day precision was less than 5.3% and the accuracy was less than 2.7% for both analytes. The validated method has been applied to the pharmacokinetic study of antrodin B and antrodin C in rats following oral administration of Antrodia camphorata extract.
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