•It is the first report on the analytical method and stability study of cabozantinib.•A stability-indicating LC method of cabozantinib was developed and validated.•Three unknown degradants were identified by LC/TOF-MS and LC–MS/MS.•The major oxidative degradant was isolated and confirmed to be a new compound.•Degradation kinetics of cabozantinib under different conditions was investigated.The chemical stability of cabozantinib (CBZ) was investigated using a novel stability-indicating LC method. Forced degradation of CBZ was carried out under acidic, basic, thermal, oxidative and photolytic stress conditions. Hydrolysis and oxidation were the primary pathways for this compound and three major unknown degradation products were characterized by LC/TOF-MS and LC–MS/MS. The major oxidative degradation product was isolated by preparative LC and identified by UV, HRMS and NMR techniques to be N-{4-[(N-oxide-6,7-dimethoxyquinolin-4-yl)oxy]phenyl}-N′-(4-fluorophenyl)-cyclopropane-1,1-dicarboxamide. The developed method was validated as per ICH guidelines and then successfully applied to investigate the degradation kinetics of CBZ. Degradation of CBZ followed first-order kinetics under all experimental conditions. A V-shaped pH-rate profile over the pH range 2–10 was observed with maximum stability at pH 6. The effect of temperature on the rate of CBZ degradation was characterized using the Arrhenius equation. The activation energy for hydrolysis was 57.31 kJ mol−1 in alkaline solution.

Matrine is the major bioactive alkaloid found in certain Sophora plants and has been used for the treatment of liver diseases and protection of liver function. The aim of this study was to investigate the human liver uptake mechanism of matrine by using HepG2 cells as the in vitro model. Matrine was transported into HepG2 cells in a time- and temperature-dependent manner. The cellular uptake was saturable and was significantly reduced by the metabolic inhibitors, such as sodium azide and rotenone. Furthermore, the uptake of matrine was found to be regulated by a protonophore (carbonyl cyanide 4-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylhydrazone) and pH, indicating that this influx transporter may be a proton-coupled antiporter. The uptake of matrine was sensitive to inhibition by the cationic drugs including pyrilamine, quinidine, verapamil, amantadine, diphenhydramine, and cimetidine but insensitive to other typical substrates or inhibitors of well-known organic cation transport systems. The present study reveals that, for the first time, in HepG2 cells, the existence of a proton-coupled organic cation antiporter that contributes substantially to the hepatic uptake of matrine.