Selective, sensitive, and rapid liquid chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry method for determination of Glimepiride in human plasma

An analytical method based on liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) was developed and validated for the determination of glimepiride in human plasma. Glimepiride and glimepiride-d4 (internal standard) were extracted from the plasma by solid phase extraction and chromatographed on a C18 analytical column using an isocratic mobile phase. Detection was carried out by positive electrospray ionization (ESI+) in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. The chromatographic separation was obtained within 2 min. Linearity was established from 1.00–500.00 ng/mL with a coefficient of determination (r2) of 0.9981 or greater. The lower limit of quantitation (LOQ) was identifiable and reproducible at 1.00 ng/mL with a precision of 3.8%. The method has shown remarkable reproducibility, with intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy <11.3% and <11.0%, respectively. The method was successfully applied for the quantitation of glimepiride in human plasma to support clinical and pharmacokinetic studies.