DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF A SENSITIVE LC-MS/MS ANALYTICAL METHOD FOR QUANTIFYING AXITINIB WITH AXITINIB D3 AS AN INTERNAL STANDARD
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22159/ajpcr.2025v18i10.54999Keywords:
Axitinib, Axitinib D3,, Food and drug administration, European medicines agency, PharmacokineticsAbstract
Objective: An efficient, highly sensitive, and robust LC-MS/MS method has been optimized, validated for accurately measuring Axitinib concentrations in human plasma, utilizing Axitinib D3 as an internal standard.
Methods: A liquid–liquid extraction approach was utilized to isolate both the analyte and the internal standard from the plasma matrix. An Eclipse Phenyl column of 100 × 3.0 mm size with 5 µm particles operated using a mobile phase containing methanol mixed with 0.1% formic acid in 10 mM ammonium formate at a ratio of 60:40 (v/v) following the advanced bioanalytical framework for method establishment and validation.
Results: The complete chromatographic run was accomplished in 4.0 minutes, with the analyte and internal standard eluting at approximately 1.89 minutes. The assay demonstrated a validated linear response across the concentration range of ~ 0.2 to 125 ng/mL. The developed method was thoroughly validated for key parameters including precision, accuracy, selectivity, matrix effects, and stability. All validation results met the predefined specifications, confirming method's reliability.
Conclusion: The validated method for quantifying Axitinib in human plasma complies with regulatory guidelines set by the FDA and EMA, making it appropriate for pharmacokinetic studies in human subjects.
Downloads
References
1. Singh E. Inhibitors of bromodomain-4 and cyclooxygenase-2: A review on the advantageous effect of dual-target approach in cancer treatment. Int J Chem Res. 2023;7(1):1-5. doi: 10.22159/ijcr.2023v7i1.210
2. Ramadoss K, Vadivel V, Abishek V, Lakshmi K. Magnetic nanoparticle-based approaches in cancer therapy: A critical review. Int J Appl Pharm. 2022;14(6):21-7. doi: 10.22159/ijap.2022v14i6.45064
3. Mehdi S, Chauhan A, Dhutty A. Cancer and new prospective to treat cancer. Int J Curr Pharm Res. 2023;15(6):16-22. doi: 10.22159/ ijcpr.2023v15i6.3078
4. Bhutadiya VL, Mistry KN. A review on bioactive phytochemicals and it’s mechanism on cancer treatment and prevention by targeting multiple cellular signaling pathways. Int J Pharm Pharm Sci. 2021;13(12):15-9. doi: 10.22159/ijpps.2021v13i12.42798
5. Kase AM, George DJ, Ramalingam S. Clear cell renal cell carcinoma: From biology to treatment. Cancers (Basel). 2023;15(3):665. doi: 10.3390/cancers15030665, PMID 36765622
6. Jiang H, Liao J, Wang L, Jin C, Mo J, Xiang S. The multikinase inhibitor axitinib in the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: The current clinical applications and the molecular mechanisms. Front Immunol. 2023;14:1163967. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1163967, PMID 37325670
7. Rassy E, Flippot R, Albiges L. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors and immunotherapy combinations in renal cell carcinoma. Ther Adv Med Oncol. 2020;12:1758835920907504. doi: 10.1177/1758835920907504, PMID 32215057
8. Song X, Tian Y, Li H, Liu B, Zhang A, Yang H. Research progress on advanced renal cell carcinoma. J Int Med Res. 2020;48(5):1-10. doi: 10.1177/0300060520924265, PMID 32529862
9. Li S, Li J, Peng L, Li Y, Wan X. Cost-effectiveness of frontline treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma in the era of immunotherapies. Front Pharmacol. 2021;12:718014. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.718014, PMID 34566643
10. Zarrabi KK, Handorf E, Miron B, Zibelman MR, Anari F, Ghatalia P, et al. Comparative effectiveness of front-line ipilimumab and nivolumab or axitinib and pembrolizumab in metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma. Oncologist. 2023;28(2):157-64. doi: 10.1093/oncolo/ oyac195, PMID 36200791
11. Rini BI, Escudier BJ, Michaelson MD, Negrier S, Gore ME, Oudard S, et al. Phase III AXIS trial for second-line metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC): Effect of prior first-line treatment duration and axitinib dose titration on axitinib efficacy. J Clin Oncol. 2012 Feb 10;30(5_ Suppl):354. doi: 10.1200/jco.2012.30.5_suppl.354
12. Chen Y, Tortorici MA, Garrett M, Hee B, Klamerus KJ, Pithavala YK. Clinical pharmacology of axitinib. Clin Pharmacokinet. 2013;52(9):713-25. doi: 10.1007/s40262-013-0068-3, PMID 23677771
13. Hu-Lowe DD, Zou HY, Grazzini ML, Hallin ME, Wickman GR, Amundson K, et al. Nonclinical antiangiogenesis and antitumor activities of axitinib (AG-013736), an oral, potent, and selective inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases 1, 2, 3. Clin Cancer Res. 2008;14(22):7272-83. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-08-0652, PMID 19010843
14. Anusha M, Gubbiyappa KS. Bioanalytical method development and validation for the determination of asciminib anticancer drug in biological matrices by LC-ESI-MS/MS. Int J Appl Pharm. 2024;16(6):176-81. doi: 10.22159/ijap.2024v16i6.52154
15. Sunkara PK, Chaganty S, Ramakrishna K. An LC-ESI-MS/MS method development and validation for the quantification of infigratinib in biological matrices. Int J Appl Pharm. 2024;16(1):88-93. doi: 10.22159/ ijap.2024v16i1.49476
16. Sparidans RW, Iusuf D, Schinkel AH, Schellens JH, Beijnen JH. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric assay for the light sensitive tyrosine kinase inhibitor axitinib in human plasma. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci. 2009;877(32):4090-6. doi: 10.1016/j. jchromb.2009.10.024, PMID 19910267
17. Smith BJ, Pithavala Y, Bu HZ, Kang P, Hee B, Deese AJ, et al. Pharmacokinetics, metabolism, and excretion of [14C] axitinib, a vascular endothelial growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in humans. Drug Metab Dispos. 2014;42(5):918-31. doi: 10.1124/ dmd.113.056531, PMID 2460863318. Rivera-Torres J, San José E. Src tyrosine kinase inhibitors: New perspectives on their immune, antiviral, and senotherapeutic potential. Front Pharmacol. 2019;10:1011. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2019.01011, PMID 31619990
19. Rini BI, Rixe O, Bukowski RM, Michaelson MD, Wilding G, Hudes GR, et al. AG-013736, a multi-target tyrosine kinase receptor inhibitor, demonstrates anti-tumor activity in a Phase 2 study of cytokine-refractory, metastatic renal cell cancer (RCC). J Clin Oncol. 2005 Jun 1;23(16_Suppl):4509. doi: 10.1200/jco.2005.23.16_ suppl.4509
20. Suneetha A, Donepudi S. HPLC method development and validation for the estimation of axitinib in rabbit plasma. Braz J Pharm Sci. 2017;53(3):e00012. doi: 10.1590/s2175-97902017000300012
21. He Y, Zhou L, Gao S, Yin T, Tu Y, Rayford R, et al. Development and validation of a sensitive LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of eight tyrosine kinase inhibitors and its application in mice pharmacokinetic studies. J Pharm Biomed Anal. 2018;148:65-72. doi: 10.1016/j.jpba.2017.09.013, PMID 28965046
22. Rafi S, Rambabu K. Bio-analytical method development and validation of Avelumab, axitinib and its application to pharmacokinetic studies in rabbit plasma by using LCMS/MS. Int J Appl Pharm. 2021;13(5):198-204. doi: 10.22159/ijap.2021v13i5.42415
23. Stokvis E, Rosing H, Beijnen JH. Stable isotopically labeled internal standards in quantitative bioanalysis using liquid chromatography/ mass spectrometry: Necessity or not? Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom. 2005;19(3):401-7. doi: 10.1002/rcm.1790, PMID 15645520
24. Wu J, Wiegand R, LoRusso P, Li J. A stable isotope-labeled internal standard is essential for correcting for the interindividual variability in the recovery of lapatinib from cancer patient plasma in quantitative LC-MS/MS analysis. J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci. 2013;941:100-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2013.10.011, PMID 24189203
25. US Food and Drug Administration. Bioanalytical Method Validation: Guidance for Industry. Silver Spring, MD: United States Department of Health and Human Services; 2018 May.
26. ICH. International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use. M10: Bioanalytical Method Validation and Study Sample Analysis. Geneva: ICH; 2022 May 24.
27. ICH. International council for harmonisation of technical requirements for pharmaceuticals for human use. In: ICH Guideline M10 on Bioanalytical Method Validation and Study Sample Analysis. London: European Medicines Agency; 2022 Jul 25.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Copyright (c) 2025 SOMASEKHAR REDDY KANALA, KUPPIRALA SANDEEP CHAKRAVARTHI

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The publication is licensed under CC By and is open access. Copyright is with author and allowed to retain publishing rights without restrictions.