Determination of tolrestat, a novel aldose reductase inhibitor, in serum and tissues.

An ultraviolet spectrophotometric method and a high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method were developed for the determination of tolrestat, a novel aldose reductase inhibitor, in serum. The limits of detection of the methods are 15 micrograms/ml and 0.2 microgram/ml, respectively. With human serum, a modification of the HPLC method provides sensitivity to 25 ng/ml. The specificity of the methods were compared. The HPLC method can be applied to the lens and the sciatic nerve.