3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a widely studied synthetic cathinone heterocycle mainly concerning its psychoactive effects. It is a chiral molecule and one of the most abused new psychoactive substances worldwide. Enantioselectivity studies for MDPV are still scarce and the extent to which it crosses the intestinal membrane is still unknown. Herein, an in vitro permeability study was performed to evaluate the passage of the enantiomers of MDPV across the Caco-2 monolayer. To detect and quantify MDPV, a UHPLC-UV method was developed and validated. Acceptable values within the recommended limits were obtained for all evaluated parameters (specificity, linearity, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ) and precision). The enantiomers of MDPV were found to be highly permeable across the Caco-2 monolayer, which can indicate a high intestinal permeability. Enantioselectivity was observed for the Papp values in the basolateral (BL) to apical (AP) direction. Furthermore, efflux ratios are indicative of efflux through a facilitated diffusion mechanism. To the best of our knowledge, determination of the permeability of MDPV across the intestinal epithelial cell monolayer is presented here for the first time.
Keywords: Caco-2 cells; MDPV; UHPLC-UV; enantioselectivity; intestinal absorption; permeability; synthetic cathinone heterocycle.