Determination of Vancomycin B and Vancomycin Impurities by Liquid Chromatography

The preferred test methods for control of product-related impurities in medicinal products are high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a fine sorbent, and ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC), which allow for better chromatographic separation of active substances and related impurities, reduction of time costs, and saving of material resources. The aim of the study was to develop HPLC and UPLC test procedures and assess the chromatographic separation capacity and efficiency in order to improve determination of the main vancomycin component and related impurities. Materials and methods: vancomycin hydrochloride lyophilisate for oral solution and solution for injection, and vancomycin hydrochloride reference standard (USP RS) were used as test objects. Agilent 1290 Infinity liquid chromatography system, and Chromolith® Performance RP-18e, Kinetex C18, Nucleodur C18 Isis, Zorbax RRHD Eclipse Plus C18, and LiChrospher® RP-18 columns were used for the testing. Results: HPLC analysis using a Chromolith® column (100×4.6 mm) reduces the testing time by 10 minutes compared to the USP test procedure, and by 15 minutes compared to the British Pharmacopoeia procedure. The proposed test procedure requires less eluent and increases chromatographic separation efficiency. UPLC analysis using a Kinetex C18 column (50×4.6 mm, 2.6 μm) made it possible to reduce the testing time by two thirds compared to the British Pharmacopoeia procedure. The use of isocratic elution greatly simplified the testing. The testing time under the proposed chromatographic conditions was 10 minutes. Conclusions: the selected HPLC and UPLC test conditions made it possible to significantly reduce the time of testing, minimise the use of expensive reagents, and increase efficiency of chromatographic separation in the determination of vancomycin impurities and the main component Vancomycin B.