Stability-indicating liquid chromatographic method development and validation for quantification of trifarotene in pure and topical drug product

Abstract Background Trifarotene is effective for treating acne and other skin issues. To ensure its quality and meet regulatory standards, a reverse phase liquid chromatography (RP-LC) stability-indicating method was developed and validated for its quantification in pure and topical dosage forms. An isocratic elution chromatographic method was employed, using an octadecylsilyl silica gel-packed column (150 mm × 4.6 mm, 3 µm particle size). The mobile phase was a mixture of phosphate buffer and acetonitrile (40:60 v/v). Chromatographic conditions included a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min, column temperature of 40 °C, detection at 265 nm, and injection volume of 20 µL. Results The developed analytical method reports the retention time of trifarotene 11.2 min, higher theoretical plate count, asymmetric peak, and good resolution between the peaks of trifarotene, phenoxyethanol, and environmentally generated impurities. Conclusion The analytical method has been found to be linear, accurate, robust, specific, and selective for impurities produced during forced degradation studies. The proposed analytical method can be utilized for routine pharmaceutical analysis of trifarotene to judge its quality and safety.