Development and Validation of an LC-MS/MS Method for Determination of Damaurone D in Rat Plasma and its Application to Pharmacokinetic Study in Rats

Damaurone D belongs to the genus Rosa and is a traditional medicinal product used for the treatment of depression, inflammation, and infectious diseases. The purpose of this study was to develop a simple liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the detection of damaurone D in rat plasma and to demonstrate its application in pharmacokinetic studies. Damaurone D and berberine (internal standard) were extracted with acetonitrile using a protein precipitation method. Mass transition was monitored in multiple reaction monitoring mode at m/z $323.2{\rightarrow}267.0$ for damaurone D and m/z $336.1{\rightarrow}320.0$ for berberine in positive ion mode. Analytical validation was conducted by evaluating the specificity, linearity, accuracy, precision, matrix effect, extraction recovery, and stability. The calibration curves were linear over 2-1000 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precision and accuracy of quality control samples were 4.79-13.33% and 86.23-102.75%, respectively. The matrix effect and extraction recovery were 96.11-98.47% and 96.11-102.25%, respectively. In the pharmacokinetic study after intravenous administration of damaurone D at a dose of 3 mg/kg in rats, the area under the curve and clearance of damaurone D in rat plasma were $16750.26{\pm}2676.10min{\cdot}ng/mL$ and $182.44{\pm}31.36mL/min/kg$, respectively.