AMMONIUM BICARBONATE MEDIATED HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHY RESOLUTION OF BIS-ANTHRACYCLINES

Bis-anthracyclines derived from the anti-cancer drug daunomycin have been resolved from reactants and intermediates using low levels of ammonium bicarbonate as a volatile pseudo ion-pairing agent under reversed-phase C18 high-performance liquid chromatographic conditions. The resolution and selectivity of this system is enhanced by increasing the number of polar groups on the stationary phase, and by decreasing the bicarbonate concentration. These conditions enable optimal selectivity to be established to achieve quantitative semi-preparative recovery of bis-anthracycline drugs, with minimal degradation during solvent removal. This system offers potential for the resolution and isolation of a number of unstable anthracycline and bis-anthracycline drugs.