Electrochemical Detection of Benzodiazepines, Following Liquid Chromatography, for Applications in Pharmaceutical, Biomedical and Forensic Investigations

Abstract

Benzodiazepines are an important class of drugs commonly administered with a potential for abuse and environmental pollution. This review focuses on the liquid chromatographic electrochemical detection of the benzodiazepine class of drugs. These are characterised by a readily electrochemically reducible azomethine group, with a number also substituted by other electrochemically active groups. Liquid chromatography employing both single and dual electrode detection has been reported for a variety of benzodiazepines and their metabolites in biological, pharmaceutical, biomedical and forensic investigations. Recently, electrochemistry has been utilised to mimic biological oxidation processes and has been combined with liquid chromatography/mass spectroscopy for their identification and quantification of the products generated. The present review focuses on recent developments in liquid chromatographic-electrochemical determination of benzodiazepines reported since 2006, with earlier reports given in summary.