Green method for quantification of clindamycin in capsules by National Environmental Methods Index, Eco-Scale Assessment and Analytical GREEnness Metric

Clindamycin (CLIN) is an antibiotic derived from lincosamide, produced from Streptomyces lincolnensis. Studies in the literature demonstrate that the evaluation of this drug, although effective, predominantly uses analytical conditions with the use of toxic solvents, which are against the principles of Green Analytical Chemistry (GAC). In this context, the objective was to develop and validate an eco-friendly method by spectrophotometry in the ultraviolet (UV) region for the quantitative evaluation of CLIN in capsules. In addition, the proposed method was evaluated for greenness by the National Environmental Methods Index (NEMI), Ecological Scale Assessment (ESA) and Analytical GREEnness Metric (AGREE). Purified water and ethanol (50:50, v/v), quartz cuvette and wavelength of 318 nm and potassium permanganate as an oxidizing agent were used. The method was linear in the range of 0.5 to 5 µg mL-1 (0.9998), precise (RSD < 5 %); selective through spectral overlap and forced degradation; accurate (99.85%); robust to changes in wavelength and cuvette capacity; content analysis was of 102.55 % and NEMI presented all 4 green quadrants; ESA, score of 79, which characterizes an excellent green analysis; and AGREE score of 0.8, thus characterizing it as a green method through the 12 GAC principles. The method was developed and validated and can be used for quantitative evaluation of CLIN in capsules. Furthermore, the method was considered green through the greenness profiling tools NEMI, ESA and AGREE.