Rapid and simultaneous analysis of oral antidiabetic drug by ultra-high-speed HPLC

Diabetes is a major cause of chronic kidney disease, and oral antidiabetic drugs are the mainstay of therapy for most patients with Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is typically associated with insulin resistance and the dysfunction of insulin-secreting pancreatic beta-cells. Addressing these defects often requires therapy with a combination of differently acting antidiabetic agents. A potential novel combination in development brings together a DPP-4 inhibitor with the pioglitazone into a fixed-dose single-tablet combination. The former component acts mainly to increase prandial insulin secretion; the latter improves insulin sensitivity. Ultra-high-speed HPLC has become increasingly popular in analytical research fields. This novel analytical system provides fast and efficient chromatographic separation over a wide range of flow rate and pressure. In this study, we investigated the analysis of active ingredients in combination drugs using an ultra-high-speed HPLC system equipped with a photo-diode array detector. The HPLC system utilized in this study was a LaChrom Ultra system (Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan), equipped with a L-2455U diode array detector. A LaChrom Ultra C18 (particle size; 2 μm) was used as the analytical column. Rapid and simultaneous analysis of active ingredients in combination drugs was achieved.