Polarography and pharmacy: a centenary of mutual interaction

Abstract

AbstractOn the occasion of the centenary of the discovery of polarography, this article studies the mutual interactions between polarography and pharmacy. It highlights the relationship of the discoverer of polarography, Jaroslav Heyrovský (1890–1967), to pharmacy. The article shows how quickly and widely polarography has been applied to pharmacy. The contribution of polarography to the quality control of pharmaceutical substances and dosage forms is discussed, including some interesting solutions to problems with the measurement of substances that are difficult to determine electrochemically. The integration of polarography into pharmacopoeias is also followed. Next, the use of polarography in the determination of drugs and their metabolites in biological samples for pharmacological purposes is discussed. Finally, the application of polarography in the development of new drugs is reviewed. Although classical polarography on a dropping mercury electrode is nowadays seldom used, its contribution to pharmacy is considerable, and, moreover, new voltammetric methods derived from polarography still have a useful and irreplaceable position in pharmacy. Graphical abstract