Enzymatic inhibition assay for fluorometric determination of allopurinol and oxipurinol in serum and urine.

An enzymatic inhibition assay for the xanthine oxidase (XOD) inhibitors allopurinol and oxipurinol is described. 2-Amino-4-hydroxypteridine is used as sensitive fluorogenic substrate, which is oxidized to highly fluorescent isoxanthopterin by XOD. Increasing concentrations of allopurinol (Ap) or oxipurinol (Ox) prevent conversion of 2-amino-4-hydroxypterdine to isoxanthopterin. Assay conditions of XOD-inhibition are different for Ap and Ox. In the presence of xanthine both Ap and Ox inhibit XOD to the same degree; absence of xanthine results in inactivation by Ap only. Thus rapid and convenient determination of Ap and Ox is possible without prior separation of the substances. The limit of detection is about 0.5 nmol/ml (50 micrograms/ml) in serum and 25 nmol/ml (2.5 micrograms/ml) in urine.