title: Quantitation of silibinin, a putative cancer chemopreventive agent derived from milk thistle (Silybum marianum), in human plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography and identification of possible metabolites.
abstract: Silibinin has recently received attention as a potential cancer chemopreventive agent because of its antiproliferative and anticarcinogenic effects. A simple and specific reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed and validated for the quantitation of silibinin in human plasma. Sample preparation involved simple protein precipitation, and separation was achieved on a Waters Atlantis C18 column with flow rate of 1.0 mL/min at 40 degrees C and UV detection at 290 nm. Silibinin was detected as two peaks corresponding to trans-diastereoisomers. The peak area was linear over the investigated concentration range (0-5000 ng/mL). The limits of detection were 2 and 1 ng/mL for the two diastereoisomers (d1 and d2), with a recovery of 53-58%. This method was utilized to detect silibinin in plasma of colorectal patients after 7 days of treatment with silipide (silibinin formulated with phosphatidyl choline).
authors.affiliation: Cancer Biomarkers and Chemoprevention Group, Department of Cancer Studies and Molecular Medicine, Robert Kilpatrick Clinical Sciences Building, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester, LE2 7LX, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Carmen S L
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Hoh
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Boocock
authors.forename: Timothy H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Marczylo
authors.forename: V A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: William P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Steward
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Berry
authors.forename: Andreas J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Gescher
mesh_terms: D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents / Q000097:blood*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020944:Silybum marianum / Q000737:chemistry*; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000077385:Silybin; D012838:Silymarin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood; D013237:Stereoisomerism
chemical_list: D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; D012838:Silymarin; C067772:IdB 1016; D000077385:Silybin