A rapid, sensitive, and robust reversed-phase liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the determination of total and unbound
ceritinib, a second-generation ALK inhibitor, in patient plasma and
brain tumor tissue samples. Sample preparation involved simple
protein precipitation with
acetonitrile. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH C18 column using a 4-min gradient elution consisting of mobile phase A (0.1%
formic acid in water) and mobile phase B (0.1%
formic acid in
acetonitrile), at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min.
Ceritinib and the internal standard ([13C6]
ceritinib) were monitored using multiple reaction monitoring mode under positive electrospray ionization. The lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) was 1 nM of
ceritinib in plasma. The calibration curve was linear over
ceritinib concentration range of 1-2000 nM in plasma. The intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy were within the generally accepted criteria for bioanalytical method (<15%). The method was successfully applied to assess
ceritinib brain tumor penetration, as assessed by the unbound
drug brain concentration to unbound
drug plasma concentration ratio, in patients with
brain tumors.