Desenvolvimento de método para determinação de nitazoxanida por colorimetria associada a imagens

Abstract

In the last decades, we have experienced a great technological and scientific advance, but parasitic diseases keep representing a major public health problem, especially in underdeveloped countries, directly affecting the population’s quality of life. Antiparasitic drugs are a quick and effective alternative in treatment, while issues such as education and basic sanitation, which could help in solving these problems, are more complex issues, taking longer and requiring large financial investments. Nitazoxanide (NTZ) is currently being widely used in therapy, mainly because it has a broad antiparasitic and anthelmintic spectrum. Due to their wide use by the population, the safety and therapeutic efficacy of these products is of paramount importance. In this sense, several methods are available in the literature for drug quantification, as well as monographs in official compendia. In both cases, it is clear that the use of toxic reagents, the long analysis time, the low analytical frequency, together with the high value of the equipment used, are problems in the routine quality control of the available pharmaceutical forms. In this context, we sought to develop a simple method, taking into account the application of more economical tools, in order to provide greater speed and reduce environmental impacts. In this work, a method was developed for the determination of nitazoxanide in tablets and powder for suspension using colorimetry associated with digital images. Colorimetric analysis was based on the color reaction obtained when the drug is exposed to a basic medium. For image acquisition, a portable system was used, comprising a box designed to control the brightness and a smartphone. The processing and treatment of the images was performed using the PhotoMetrix PRO® application, decoding the color using the RGB (Red, Green, Blue) system. After the development and optimization of the method, the validation was carried out according to the official guides, taking into account parameters such as linearity, matrix effect, precision, accuracy and robustness. The method developed using colorimetry associated with digital images presented itself as a promising tool, allied to the principles of green chemistry, for the use in the quality control of tablets and powder for suspension containing NTZ, as it provides fast analyses, with low cost, high analytical frequency and affordable equipment. The proposed method was compared to the official pharmacopoeial method and the results obtained showed that they are equivalent, that is, both provide statistically similar results for the quantification of NTZ in commercially available pharmaceutical forms. In this sense, the proposed method contributes to the routine quality control of the drug, collaborating with the safety and therapeutic efficacy of commercially available products, as well as with the environment.