Malaysian Journal of Analytical Sciences, Vol 20 No 2 (2016): 247 - 257

MALAYSIAN JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL SCIENCES ISSN

1394 - 2506
Published by The Malaysian Analytical Sciences Society

STABILITY INDICATING RP-HPLC METHOD FOR SIMULTANEOUS

DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE
FORM

(Kestabilan Kaedah KCPT-Indikator bagi Penentuan Serentak Asprin dan Clopidogrel Dalam
Bentuk Dos)
Md. Gousuddin*, Pinaki Sengupta, Vijaya Datt Tripathi, Arindam Das

Faculty of Pharmacy,
Lincoln University College, 47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

*Corresponding author: [email protected]

Received: 13 June 2015; Accepted: 1 February 2016

Abstract
Stability-indicating High Performance Liquid Chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed for simultaneous Aspirin and
Clopidogrel, A Phenomenex Gemini C-18, 5 µm column having 250mm x 4.6 mm i.d. in isocratic mode, with mobile phase
containing buffer solution 0.3% orthophosphoric acid : acetonitrile (65: 35, v/v). The flow rate was 1 ml/min and effluents
were monitored at 266 nm. For linearity seven points calibration curve were obtained in a concentration range from 0.030 –0.120
mg/ml for aspirin and 0.015 – 0.060 mg/ml for clopidogrel with correlation coefficient 0.9999. In the present study stability
indicating HPLC method for the combination was tested by degrading the drugs together under various stress conditions like acid
hydrolysis, base hydrolysis, oxidation, thermal and photolytic stress which is recommended by ICH guideline.

Keywords: reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography, stability indicating method, aspirin, clopidogrel

Abstrak
Kestabilan Kaedah Kromatografi Cecair Prestasi Tinggi (KCPT) – indikator telah dibangunkan bagi penentuan serentak Aspirin
dan Clopidogrel. Turus Phenomenex Gemini C-18, 250mm x 4.6 mm i.d. diguna dalam mod isokratik, bersama fasa bergerak
yang mengandungi larutan penimbal iaitu 0.3% asid orthofosforik : acetonitril. Kadar aliran adalah 1ml/min dan effluent dipantau
pada panjang gelombang 266 nm. Tujuh titik lengkung kalibrasi dipilih bagi ujian kelinearan yang diperolehi dari julat 0.030 –
0.120 mg/ml dan 0.015 – 0.060 masing – masing bagi aspirin dan clopidogrel dengan nilai pekali korelasi adalah 0.9999. Dalam
kajian ini, kestabilan kaedah KCPT- indikator bagi gabungan analit diuji di bawah pelbagai tekanan seperti hidrolisis asid,
hidrolisis bes, pengoksidaan, termal dan tekanan fotolitik seperti yang dicadangkan oleh garis panduan ICH.

Kata kunci: kromatografi cecair prestasi tinggi fasa terbalik, kestabilan kaedah indikator, aspirin, clopidogrel

Introduction
Platelet aggregation and thrombus formation play a critical role in the initiation and development of key
complications of acute coronary syndromes (ACSs). Antiplatelet therapy and antithrombotic therapy have been
demonstrated to favorably modify clinical outcome, and recent trials of revascularization in ACSs have
demonstrated a reduction in the frequency of major cardiac events [1 – 12]. Antiplatelet and anti-thrombin have
synergistic actions that reduce the risk of spontaneous or revascularization, especially percutaneous coronary
intervention (PCI)-related events. Yet, all effective antithrombotic agents also increase the risk of bleeding,

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DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE FORM

especially bleeding that results from vascular accessor associated with surgery, including coronary artery bypass
grafting (CABG). The Clopidogrel in unstable angina to prevent recurrent ischemic Events (CURE) trial
demonstrated that the combination of clopidogrel and aspirin was superior to aspirin alone for patients hospitalized
with non-ST-elevation ACSs.

Aspirin is chemically acetylsalicylic acid (Figure 1). Its molecular formula is C9H8O4 having molecular weight
180 g/mole [14]. It is slightly soluble in water, freely soluble in alcohol, soluble in chloroform and ether, sparingly
soluble in absolute ether. Aspirin, one of the first drugs to come into common usage, is still the most widely used
drug in the world, is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug that exhibits anti-inflammatory, analgesic and
antipyretic activities.

COOH

O CH3

Figure 1. Chemical structure of aspirin

Clopidogrel bisulfate, chemicall y it is [S - (a)(2 - chlorophenyl) - 6,7 - dihydrothieno (3,2-C) pyridine-5 (4H)
acetic acid methyl ester sulphate] (Figure 2). The empirical formula of clopidogrel bisulfate is
C16H16ClNO2S•H2SO4 and its molecular weight is 419.9 g/mole [14]. It is a white to off-white powder. It is
practically insoluble in water at neutral pH but freely soluble at pH 1. It also dissolves freely in methanol,
dissolves sparingly in methylene chloride and is practically insoluble in ethyl ether. It has a specific optical
rotation of about +56°. The structural formula is as follows:

Figure 2. Chemical Structure of clopidogrel

The combination of clopidogrel with aspirin provides enhanced prevention of atherothrombotic events by blocking
the platelet aggregation by both ways. (ADP pathway and collagen induced pathway) and it shows a synergistic
antiplatelet action in controlling the ischemic events.

Literature reveals that various methods simultaneous determination of aspirin and clopidogrel in pharmaceutical
formulation HPTLC [5 – 6]. Various publications are available regarding determination method of aspirin and
clopidogrel but most of the methods are applicable to alone aspirin or clopidogrel in pharmaceutical dosage form
or in bilogical fluids. Only three methods are reported for the simulteneous determination of apirin and
clopidogrel. One is semi-micro column HPLC-UV method for simultaneous determination of clopidogrel
metabolite, aspirin and salicylic acid in rat plasma. Second is a spectrophotometric method, which is able to
determine aspirin and clopidogrel in combine dosage form and third is simple high performance liquid
chromatography, which applicable to routine quality control sample analysis. The separation is performed by high

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performance liquid chromatography for reasons of robustness and familiarity of analysts with this technique. To
our knowledge, no stability-indicating analytical method for the determination of aspirin and clopidogrel in
combine dosage forms has been published.

In the present study stability indicating HPLC method for the combination was tested by degrading the drugs
together under various stress conditions like acid hydrolysis, base hydrolysis, and oxidation, thermal and
photolytic stress which is recommended by ICH guideline.

Materials and Methods

Pharmacopoeial grade standards of aspirin and clopidogrel bisulphate were provided by Blue Cross laboratory. A
tablet containing 150 mg aspirin and 75 mg clopidogrel was commercially available. HPLC grade acetonitrile,
methanol and water were obtained from Spectrochem Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai (India). Analytical grade hydrochloric
acid, sodium hydroxide pellets, orthophosphoric acid and hydrogen peroxide solution (30 % v/v) were obtained
from Ranbaxy Fine Chemical, New Delhi (India).

HPLC instrumentation and conditions

The chromatographic system used to perform development and validation of this assay method was comprised
of (SHIMADZU, HPLC) with LC- 20AT (VP series) pump, with software Spinchrom and UV-Visible detector
SPD-20A (VP series). Chromatographic analysis was performed on a Phenomenex Luna C8 (250 mm 4.6 mm i.d.,
5 µm particle size) column. The mobile phase was consisted of 0.3 % orthophosphoric acid (v/v) - acetonitrile
(65:35, v/v). The flow rate of the mobile phase was adjusted to 1.0 ml/min and the injection volume was 20 µl.
Detection was performed at 226 nm.

In the presence work, an analytical method based on LC using UV detection was developed and validated for assay
determination of aspirin and clopidogrel in tablet formulation. The analytical conditions were selected, keeping in
mind the different chemical nature of aspirin and clopidogrel. The development trials were taken by using the
degraded sample of each component was done, by keeping them in various extreme conditions.

The column selection has been done on the basis of backpressure, resolution, peak shape, theoretical plates
and day-to-day reproducibility of the retention time and resolution between aspirin and clopidogrel peak.
After evaluating all these factors, C8 (2) (250 mm 4.6 mm i.d., 5 µm particle size) column was found to be
giving satisfactory results. The selection of buffer based on chemical structure of both the drugs.

Preparation of stock solution for stress studies

The degradation samples were prepared by transferring powdered tablets, equivalent to 150 mg aspirin and 75 mg
clopidogrel into a 250 ml round bottom flask. Then prepared samples were employed for acidic, alkaline and
oxidant media and also for thermal and photolytic stress conditions. After the degradation treatments were
completed, the stress content solutions were allowed to equilibrate to room temperature and diluted with mobile
phase to attain 0.075 mg/ml of aspirin and 0.0375 mg/ml of clopidogrel concentration.

Results and Discussion

The acidic pH range was found suitable for solubility, resolution, stability, theoretical plates and peak shape of both
components. Best results were obtained with 0.3 % orthophosphoric acid solution improved the peak shape of
aspirin and clopidogrel. Finally, by fixing 0.3 % orthophosphoric acid (v/v) and mobile phase composition
consisting of a mixture of 0.3% orthophosphoric acid (v/v) into ratio 65:35, v/v. Optimized mobile phase
proportion was providing good resolution between aspirin and clopidogrel and also for degradation product which
is generated during force degradation study. For the selection of organic constituent of mobile phase, acetonitrile
was chosen to reduce the longer retention time and to attain good peak shape. Figure 1 and Figure 2 represent the
Chromatograms of standard and test preparation respectively.

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DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE FORM

Figure 1. Chromatogram of standard preparation (0.08mg/ml)

Figure 2. Chromatogram of test preparation (0.08mg/ml)

In order to determine whether the analytical method or assay were stability- indicating, aspirin and clopidogrel
combine tablets were stressed under various conditions to conduct forced degradation studies. Regulatory guidance
in ICH Q2A, Q2B, Q3B and FDA 21 CFR section 2 11 all require the development and validation of stability-
indicating potency assays. Unfortunately, the current guidance documents do not indicate detailed degradation
conditions in stress testing. However, the used forced degradation conditions, stress agent concentration and time of
stress, were found to effect degradation and not complete degradation of active materials. The discovery of such
conditions was based on development trial.

Acidic condition
Acidic degradation study was performed by heating the drug content in 1 N HCl (50 ml) at 80 °C for 1 hour and
mixture was neutralized with 1 N NaOH solution. The drug content was found to be degrading up to 16.93 % in
acidic condition. Clopidogrel was more susceptible to acid hydrolysis under experimental conditions. In all
degradation conditions the drug degrades as observed by by the decreased area in the peak of the drug when

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compared with peak area of the same concentration of the undegraded drug, with giving one additional degradation
peak at 9.02 min.

Figure 3. Chromatogram of acidic forced degradation study

Alkaline condition
Alkaline degradation study was performed by heating the drug content in 1 N NaOH (50 ml) at 80 °C for 1
hour and mixture was neutralized with 1 N HCl solutions. In alkali degradation, it was found that around
approximately 22 % of the drug was degraded (Figure 4). Aspirin was more susceptible to alkaline hydrolysis
under experimental conditions. In all degradation conditions the drug degrades as observed by the decreased area in
the peak of the drug when compared with peak area of the same concentration of the undegraded drug, with giving
one additional degradation peak at 4.72 min.

Figure 4. Chromatogram of alkali forced degradation study

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DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE FORM

Oxidative condition
Oxidation degradation study was performed by heating the drug content it’s in initial concentration carried out in
1% v/v hydrogen peroxide no significant changes then will increase into 3% v/v hydrogen peroxide a t 80 °C for
30 minutes. In oxidative degradation, it was found that approximately 15.84 % of drug was degraded (Figure 5). .

Figure 5. Chromatogram of oxidative forced degradation study

Thermal condition
Thermal degraded samples wherever degradation possible from about 1% to 30%.Preferably, the following stress
conditions are was performed by exposing solid drug at 80 °C for 72 hours. Resultant chromatogram of thermal
degradation study (Figure 6) indicates that aspirin is found to be slightly stable under thermal degradation
condition. Only 7.0 % of drug content was degraded.

.
Figure 6. Chromatogram of thermal degradation study

Photolytic condition
Exposure of drug molecules may produce photolytic degraded products. The rate of photo degradation depends upon the

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intensity of incident light and quantity of light absorbed by the drug molecule. Photolytic degradation is carried out by
exposing the drug substance (in solid as well as in the solution form) or drug product to a combination of visible and UV
light. Photolytic degradation study was performed by exposing the drug above specific photolytic condition. Drug
content was found to be more stable than other stress condition stable in UV-light. Aspirin is stable under UV light
compare to clopidogrel. (Figure 7).

Figure 7. Chromatogram of UV-light degradation study

Linearity
For linearity seven points calibration curve were obtained in a concentration range from 0.030 – 0.120 mg/ml for
aspirin and 0.015 – 0.060 mg/ml for clopidogrel, respectively. The response of the drug was found to be linear in
the investigation concentration range and the linear regression equation for aspirin was y = 60026378.57x +
51410.11 with correlation coefficient 0.9999 (Figure 8) and for clopidogrel was y = 44544414.03x - 1890.29 with
correlation coefficient 0.9999 (Figure 9). Where x is the concentration in mg/ml and y is the peak area in
absorbance unit.

Figure 8. Linearity curve for aspirin

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DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE FORM

Figure 9. Linearity curve for clopidogrel

Detection and Quantification Limit (LOD and LOQ)

The limit of detection and limit of quantification were evaluated by serial dilutions of aspirin and clopidogrel stock
solution in order to obtain signal to noise ratio of 3:1 for LOD and 10:1 for LOQ. The LOD value for aspirin and
clopidogrel were found to be 0.05 ppm and 0.15 ppm, respectively and the LOQ value 0.2 ppm and 0.3 ppm,
respectively. Chromatogram of LOD study for aspirin and was illustrated in Figure 10.

Figure 10. Chromatogram of LOD study of aspirin

Precision
Data obtain from precision experiments are given in Table 1 for intraday and interday precision study for both
aspirin and clopidogrel. The RSD values for intraday precision study and interday precision study was < 2.0 % for
aspirin and clopidogrel. It was confirmed that the developed method was precise for analysis. Results of precision in
this study was summarized in the Table 1 below

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Table 1. Results of precision study

Aspirin (%Assay) Clopidogrel (%Assay)

Set Intraday Interday Intraday Intraday

(n = 6) (n = 6) (n = 6) (n = 6)
1 99.1 100.2 99.3 99.6
2 100.0 99.9 98.7 99.6
3 99.6 100.5 98.6 100.1
4 99.5 100.3 99.0 100.1
5 100.3 101.0 100.0 100.6
6 99.1 100.8 99.5 100.7
Mean 99.6 100.5 99.2 100.1
Standard deviation 0.48 0.40 0.53 0.47
% RSD 0.48 0.40 0.53 0.47

Accuracy
Recovery of aspirin and clopidogrel were determined at three different concentration levels. The mean recovery for
aspirin was 99.12 – 99.83% and 98.20 – 100.35 % for clopidogrel (Table 2). The result indicating that the method
was accurate.

Table 2. Results of accuracy study

Level Amount Added Amount Found a a

Recovery RSD
(% ) Concentration Concentration (%) (%)
(mg/ml) (mg/ml)
Aspirin
50 0.03751 0.03721 99.22 0.07
100 0.07497 0.07432 98.12 0.23
150 0.11250 0.11232 99.83 0.05
Clopidogrel
50 0.01874 0.01840 98.20 0.19
100 0.03748 0.03695 98.59 0.14
150 0.05627 0.05647 100.35 0.24
a
Each value corresponds to the mean of three determination

Robustness
The result of robustness study of the developed assay method was established in Table 3 and Table 4, respectively.
The result had shown that during all variance conditions, assay value of the test preparation solution was not
affected and it was in accordance with that of actual. System suitability parameters were also found satisfactory
hence the analytical method would be concluded as robust method.

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DETERMINATION OF ASPIRIN AND CLOPIDOGREL IN DOSAGE FORM

Table 3. Evaluation data of robustness study of aspirin

% Assay System Suitability Parameters

Theoretical Asymmetry % RSD
Flow 0.9 ml/min 100.5 6460 1.05 0.22
Flow 1.1 ml/min 100.3 5661 1.05 0.09
0.28 % H3PO4-ACN (65:35, v/v) 100.0 6117 1.00 0.40
0.32 % H3PO4-ACN (65:35, v/v) 99.7 5588 1.02 0.30
0.3% H3PO4-ACN (63:37,v/v) 100.2 5475 1.12 0.19
0.3% H3PO4-ACN (67:33,v/v) 100.1 5838 1.04 0.20
Column change (different lot) 100.4 5425 1.05 0.34

Table 4. Evaluation data of robustness study for clopidogrel

System Suitability Parameters

Robust Conditions % Assay Theoretical Asymmetry % RSD Resolution
Flow 0.9 ml/min 98.5 6975 1.07 0.67 5.75
Flow 1.1 ml/min 100.0 5992 1.06 0.39 5.14
0.28 % H3PO4-ACN(65:35,v/v) 98.8 6899 1.03 1.03 6.35
0.32 % H3PO4-ACN(65:35,v/v) 99.2 6113 1.03 0.69 5.6
0.3% H3PO4-ACN(63:37,v/v) 99.5 5850 1.11 0.70 4.31
0.3% H3PO4-ACN (67:33,v/v) 99.0 6185 1.04 0.30 5.71
Column change (different lot) 100.0 5996 1.04 0.25 4.97

Conclusion
The method was validated for all validation parameters as per ICH guidelines. The linearity range for aspirin and
clopidogrel was 0.030 – 0.120 mg/ml for aspirin and 0.015 – 0.060 mg/ml for clopidogrel with correlation
coefficient 0.9999. The % RSD for intra-day precision was < 2%. The developed and validated stability indication
HPLC method is found to be linear, accurate, precise, specific and robust, confirming the stability indicating
method for the simultaneous estimation of aspirin and clopidogrel.

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