Development and validation of an assay method for the determination of trifluoroacetic acid in a cyclosporin-like drug

An improved method for the assay of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in a cyclosporin-like drug substance is presented, based on ion chromatography with suppressed conductivity detection. Column fouling by the drug molecule is avoided by use of a sample preparation method in which the drug substance is precipitated at alkaline pH whilst the TFA remains in solution. The new method requires a smaller sample mass than a previous method based on headspace-GC-FID whilst achieving an improvement in sensitivity. During validation, the method's performance was found to be consistent with usual acceptance criteria, and the method was found to be robust in routine use.