Abstract
A simple, rapid, and sensitive chemiluminescence method for the determination of colistin (Polymyxin E), a cyclic polypeptide with antibiotic effect produced by certain strains of Bacillus polymyxa, has been developed by combining a flow-injection technique and the bacteria's sensitizing effect on the chemiluminescence reaction between sulfite and acidic permanganate. The optimum conditions for chemiluminescence emission were established. The chemiluminescence was proportional to the log of concentration of colistin over the range 4–100 µg mL−1 (3.5–87 µM). The detection limit was 1.2 µg mL−1 (1.0 µM) of colistin. The method has been satisfactorily used for the determination of colistin in pharmaceuticals.