Simultaneous Determination of Ticagrelor and Its Metabolites in Human Plasma and Urine Using Liquid Chromatography–Tandem Mass Spectrometry

We have developed and validated a rapid, selective and sensitive method using high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (MS) for the quantification of ticagrelor and all of its as-yet-identified metabolites in human plasma and urine. For the analysis of ticagrelor, its metabolites and the internal standard (IS) plasma samples were processed by liquid-liquid extraction using ethyl acetate and urine was processed by protein precipitation. Separations were performed on an Ultimate XB-C18 column (2.1 mm × 150 mm, 3 μm), using aqueous ammonium acetate (0.025 mM)/acetonitrile (35 : 65, v:v) as the mobile phase. Ticagrelor and all 11 metabolites were eluted within 4.5 min. Quantification was performed using electrospray ionization, operating in negative ion mode. The ticagrelor and metabolite M8 (AR-C124910XX) responses were optimized at the m/z 521.2 → 361.2 and m/z 477.2 → 361.1 transitions, respectively. The assay was validated over the linear range of 0.5-2,000 ng/mL for ticagrelor and M8. The intra- and inter-assay precisions were ≤14.6% for ticagrelor and ≤14.7% for M8, respectively. The matrix effects of plasma and urine were in the range of 98.3-110.7% for ticagrelor and 102.1-112.3% for M8. The relative quantification of other metabolites was performed by assessing the ratio of metabolite to IS peaks. The newly developed method was successfully used in a pharmacokinetic study characterizing ticagrelor metabolism in human volunteers.