Enantioseparation of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs by capillary electrophoresis using mixtures of anionic and uncharged beta-cyclodextrins as chiral additives

Nine nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were enantioseparated by capillary electrophoresis using an anionic cyclodextrin derivative (sulfobutyl ether beta-cyclodextrin or carboxymethyl-beta-cyclodextrin) in combination with a neutral cyclodextrin as chiral additives to a pH 3 phosphoric acid-triethanolamine buffer. In the presence of a negatively charged cyclodextrin, the analytes were given an appropriate mobility but relatively low enantioselectivities were generally obtained when such a cyclodextrin was the only selector added to the buffer. The addition of an uncharged cyclodextrin, such as the native beta-cyclodextrin or one of its derivatives (dimethyl-, trimethyl- and hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin), to this kind of buffer containing an anionic cyclodextrin, was found to give rise to considerable improvement in chiral resolution for all compounds studied. Resolution and analysis time were optimized by varying the nature and concentration of the two cyclodextrins. The best compromise was usually achieved by the simultaneous addition of sulfobutyl ether beta-cyclodextrin and trimethyl-beta-cyclodextrin. Under optimum conditions, the enantiomers of all NSAIDs examined could be completely separated (most often with resolution values higher than 5) in short analysis times (generally lower than 15 min).