Determination of Epimedin B in rat plasma and tissue by LC-MS/MS: Application in pharmacokinetic and tissue distribution studies

A simple,sensitive,and specific liquid chromatography tandem mass-spectrometric method was developed and validated for the determination of epimedin b in rat plasma and tissue samples. after being processed with a protein precipitation method,these samples were separated on an agilent eclipse xdb-c18 column with an isocratic mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution (32: 68,v/v). the calibration curve of epimedin b was linear over the concentration range from 1 to 500 ng/ml in plasma and tissue homogenate. the method was then applied to pharmacokinetic and tissue distribution studies after a single oral administration of herba epimedii extract to sd rats. results showed that epimedin b reached the plasma peak concentration at 0.4 h and the terminal elimination half-life was 1.6 h in rat plasma,and the plasma area under the curve from time zero to infinity (auc0-∞) was 14.35 μg/l·h. the concentration distribution of epimedin b in rat tissue was in the following order: liver > ovary > womb > lung > kidney > spleen > heart > brain,indicating that the compound could be widely distributed in rat,and the reproductive system may be the principal target of epimedin b for female rat. © 2017 qianru feng et al.