Pharmacokinetic behaviors of ligustrazine after single- and multiple-dose intravenous Shenxiong glucose injection in rats by high-performance liquid chromatography

Shenxiong glucose injection (SXG) is a traditional Chinese medicine that is used for cardio-cerebral vascular diseases on the national essential drug list of China. To date, a comprehensive knowledge concerning the pharmacokinetic profile of SXG-related components, especially following multiple dosing, is still lacking. This study was designed to investigate the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of ligustrazine after single- and multiple-dose intravenous administration of SXG in rats. A simple HPLC method was developed for the determination of ligustrazine in biological samples. The pharmacokinetic profiles of ligustrazine in rats were linear after both single- and multiple-dose intravenous administration of SXG, with a half-life of approximately 35 min. Ligustrazine was readily distributed in highly perfused organs and almost eliminated from organs after 90 min of SXG injection. The AUC(0-t) and C-0 of ligustrazine after SXG injection (18 ml/kg, equal to 9.0 mg/kg ligustrazine) were increased significantly compared to those of single ligustrazine administration (9.0 mg/kg), indicating that the pharmacokinetics of ligustrazine in the SXG were affected by other ingredients. This study provided first evidence for the pharmacokinetic characteristics of ligustrazine after both single and multiple-dose SXG in rats, which would be helpful for its clinical application.