Quality evaluation of antimalarial drugs used in Djibouti: A study of Quinine, Primaquine, Artesunate, and Coartem formulations

Authors

  • Abdirahman ELMI Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5270-7425
  • Fatouma Mohamed Aboul-Latif Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7213-4700
  • Diaudine Ali Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti
  • Ahmed Said Mohamed Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5845-8263
  • Raida Ryad Mohamed Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti
  • Idriss Miganeh Waiss Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3344-6634

Abstract

Malaria remains a significant public health challenge in Djibouti, with cases rising in recent years. The quality of antimalarial drugs, particularly those imported from countries with less stringent regulatory frameworks, is a critical concern. This study aimed to evaluate the quality of commonly used antimalarial drugs in Djibouti, including quinine, primaquine, artesunate, and Coartem. A series of analytical techniques, such as thin-layer chromatography (TLC), spectrophotometry and high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS), were employed to assess the composition, purity, and dosage accuracy of these medications. The findings revealed that some samples contained impurities and the content of active pharmaceutical ingredients often deviated from the labelled amounts. Specifically, quinine tablets were found to be 29% underdosed compared with the labelled 300 mg, with an actual content of 212.69 mg per tablet. In the LC-MS analysis, besides the active ingredients listed on the labels, derivatives such as dihydroquinine and artemisinin were identified. These discrepancies compared with the labels may be attributed to these medicines’ production and/or storage conditions.

Keywords: Analysis; Antibiotic; Djibouti; HPLC; spectrophotometer; TLC

Keywords:

Analysis, Antibiotic, Djibouti, HPLC, spectrophotometer, TLC

DOI

https://doi.org/10.22270/jddt.v16i2.7551

Author Biographies

Abdirahman ELMI , Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Fatouma Mohamed Aboul-Latif , Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Diaudine Ali, Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Ahmed Said Mohamed , Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Raida Ryad Mohamed, Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Idriss Miganeh Waiss , Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

Medicinal Research Institute, Centre d’Etudes et de Recherche de Djibouti, IRM-CERD, Route de l’Aéroport,Haramous B.P. 486, Djibouti City 77101, Djibouti

References

1. Paludisme [Internet]. Institut Pasteur. 2015 [cité 16 juill 2025]. Disponible sur: https://www.pasteur.fr/fr/centre-medical/fiches-maladies/paludisme

2. CDC - DPDx - Malaria [Internet]. 2024 [cité 16 juill 2025]. Disponible sur: https://www.cdc.gov/dpdx/malaria/index.html

3. History of antimalarial drugs. Medicines for Malaria Venture. Disponible sur: https://www.mmv.org/malaria-medicines/history-antimalarials-drugs

4. World Health Organization. World malaria report 2018 [Internet]. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2018 [cité 31 mai 2023]. 166 p. Disponible sur: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/275867

5. Abdoul-Latif FM, Elmi A, Merito A, Nour M, Risler A, Ainane A, et al. Essential oil of Ruta chalepensis L. from Djibouti: Chemical Analysis and Modeling of In Vitro Anticancer Profiling. Separations. 23 nov 2022;9(12):387. https://doi.org/10.3390/separations9120387

6. Mohamed Abdoul-Latif F, Elmi A, Merito A, Nour M, Risler A, Ainane A, et al. Chemical Analysis of Essential Oils of Cymbopogon schoenanthus (L.) Spreng. and Nepeta azurea R.Br. ex Benth from Djbouti, In-Vitro Cytotoxicity against Cancer Cell Lines and Antibacterial Activities. Applied Sciences. 30 août 2022;12(17):8699. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12178699

7. Abdoul-Latif FM, Osman DA, Fourreh AE, Hassan-Abdallah A, Merito A, Hassan S, et al. Candidate medicinal plant species of Djiboutian pharmacopeia for testing pharmacological activities on common microbial diseases. International Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. 2016;8:78-84, https://doi.org/10.22159/ijpps.2016v8i10.5788

8. Mahano AO, Mahano AZ, Cubaka NH, Kasali FM, Zirirane BB, Namegabe LM, et al. Pharmaceutical quality of antimalarial drugs: quinine sulfate and Artemether/Lumefantrine tablets sold on Bukavu Market. Futur J Pharm Sci [Internet]. déc 2021 [cité 16 juill 2025];7(1). Disponible sur: https://fjps.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s43094-021-00290-8 https://doi.org/10.1186/s43094-021-00290-8

9. Dwivedi AK, Saxena D, Singh S. HPLC and HPTLC assays for the antimalarial agents Chloroquine, Primaquine and Bulaquine. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis. nov 2003;33(4):851 8. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0731-7085(03)00355-8 PMid:14623615

10. Mahgoub RA, Awad MH, Elkhidr HE. Establishment of simple colorimetric method of analysis artesunate in tablets. IOSR J Pharm Biol Sci Ver I. 2015;10(5):2319 7676.

11. Fourreh AE, Abdoul-Latif FM, Mouti C. Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Selected Antibiotics Used in Djibouti Hospitals. J Drug Delivery Ther. 15 déc 2023;13(12):103 12. https://doi.org/10.22270/jddt.v13i12.6318

12. Elmi A, Mohamed Abdoul-Latif F, Spina R, Dupire F, Philippot S, Marie-France C, et al. Aloe djiboutiensis: Antioxidant Activity, Molecular Networking-Based Approach and In Vivo Toxicity of This Endemic Species in Djibouti. Molecules. 20 mai 2021;26(10):3046. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26103046 PMid:34065292 PMCid:PMC8161010

13. The International Pharmacopoeia [Internet]. [cité 16 juill 2025]. Disponible sur: https://digicollections.net/phint/2025/index.html#p/home

14. Namegabe LM, Kadhesi MT, Hamuli PM, Mahano AO, Brioen P. Quality Control of Quinine in Pharmaceutical Forms Tablets Find East of the Democratic Republic of Congo. AJAC. 2019;10(09):415 22. https://doi.org/10.4236/ajac.2019.109029

15. Vandercruyssen K, D'Hondt M, Vergote V, Jansen H, Burvenich C, De Spiegeleer B. LC-UV/MS quality analytics of paediatric artemether formulations. Journal of Pharmaceutical Analysis. 1 févr 2014;4(1):37 52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpha.2013.03.006 PMid:29403867 PMCid:PMC5761056

16. Dawidowicz AL, Bernacik K, Typek R, Stankevič M. Possibility of quinine transformation in food products: LC-MS and NMR techniques in analysis of quinine derivatives. Eur Food Res Technol. 1 janv 2018;244(1):105 16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-017-2940-0

17. Kudláček K, Nesměrák K, Štícha M, Kozlík P, Babica J. Historical injection solutions of quinine analyzed by HPLC/MS. Monatsh Chem. sept 2017;148(9):1613 8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00706-017-1940-x

Published

2026-02-15
Statistics
Abstract Display: 257
PDF Downloads: 208
PDF Downloads: 19

How to Cite

1.
ELMI A, Aboul-Latif FM, Ali D, Mohamed AS, Mohamed RR, Waiss IM. Quality evaluation of antimalarial drugs used in Djibouti: A study of Quinine, Primaquine, Artesunate, and Coartem formulations. J. Drug Delivery Ther. [Internet]. 2026 Feb. 15 [cited 2026 May 19];16(2):115-24. Available from: https://jddtonline.info/index.php/jddt/article/view/7551

Issue

Vol. 16 No. 2 (2026): Volume 16, Issue 2, Jan 2026

Section

Research

Copyright (c) 2026 Abdirahman ELMI , Fatouma Mohamed Aboul-Latif , Diaudine Ali, Ahmed Said Mohamed , Raida Ryad Mohamed, Idriss Miganeh Waiss

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0). that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

How to Cite

1.
ELMI A, Aboul-Latif FM, Ali D, Mohamed AS, Mohamed RR, Waiss IM. Quality evaluation of antimalarial drugs used in Djibouti: A study of Quinine, Primaquine, Artesunate, and Coartem formulations. J. Drug Delivery Ther. [Internet]. 2026 Feb. 15 [cited 2026 May 19];16(2):115-24. Available from: https://jddtonline.info/index.php/jddt/article/view/7551
Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC