A COMPARATIVE-STUDY OF THE CHROMATOGRAPHY OF HYDROXYLATED DIALKYLDITHIOCARBAMATES AS MODELS FOR DRUG METABOLITES

Hydroxylated dialkyldithiocarbamates have been used as model compounds to test the suitability of packed column supercritical fluid chromatography for the analysis of drug metabolites. The dialkyldithiocarbamates, possessing 0-3 hydroxyl groups, were prepared by standard methods and the structures confirmed by proton magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry. The dithiocarbamates were systematically examined by gas-liquid chromatography, reversed-phase liquid chromatography and supercritical fluid chromatography. Particular attention was paid to the separation of the hydroxylated analogues and solute on-column stability. Very encouraging results were obtained by supercritical fluid chromatography that indicate the suitability of the technique for the assay of polar analytes.