Development and validation of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for pharmacokinetic study of TM-53, a novel transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ) modulator

- Determination of a specific and sensitive LC-MS/MS method to analyte TAZ modulator, TM-53 in rat plasma.
- Validation of the bioanalytical method according to US FDA guidelines.
- Investigation of the drug stability following the different storage or handling conditions.
- Successful application of the validated method for pharmacokinetic studies.

Transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ) is considered an attractive target for osteoporosis, obesity, and muscle regeneration. TM-53, a promising TAZ modulator, was recently introduced, and here, we developed a rapid, precise, and reliable analytical method for TM-53 and characterized its pharmacokinetic properties in rat plasma. The hybrid triple quadrupole/linear ion trap coupled to liquid chromatography method was developed and validated to quantify TM-53. Additionally, TM-53 concentrations in plasma were analyzed, and its pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by non-compartmental analysis. Multiple reaction monitoring at m/z 569.4 → 207.1 showed the most sensitive signals for TM-53, and the linear scope of the standard curve was between 1.5 ng/mL and 500 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precisions of the quality control samples were <15%, and their accuracies were ranged from 86.2% to 111.0%. Furthermore, the matrix effects, extraction recoveries, and process efficiencies of this analytical method for evaluating TM-53 in rat plasma were 99.1%, 99.9%, and 99.1% respectively. In short- and long-term stability studies, TM-53 showed good stability under frozen conditions, but TM-53 hydrolysis in the plasma matrix was observed following storage at room temperature. This analytical method was successfully applied for pharmacokinetic analysis of TM-53 in rat plasma and demonstrated excellent sensitivity, selectivity, precision, and accuracy. These data indicated that this method can be applied for further preclinical studies of TM-53.