Application of gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer-computer system to evaluation of 14C-labelled compounds

Usefulness of gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer-computer system (GC-MS-CPU) not only for measurement of specific activities of 14C-labelled compounds in a mixture but also for evaluation of 14C-labelled compounds in terms of examining their purities and elucidating chemical structures of the impurities was proved. A sample of methyl 2-(p-chlorophenyl-14Cn)-3-methylbutylate (III) synthesized from p-chlorophenyl-14Cn-acetonitrile (VI) was analyzed by GC-MS-CPU, and it was found that the labelled compound was contaminated with a small amount of the corresponding m-isomer (IV) having a very high specific activity. Further examination suggested that the contaminating m-isomer (IV) originated from m-chlorophenyl-14Cn-acetonitrile (IX) which had already contaminated in the starting material (VI), and also that cyanomethylation of p-dichlorobenzene-14Cn (VIII) by benzene-type reaction resulted in producing a mixture of p- and m-chlorophenyl-14Cn-acetonitriles (VI, IX).     

Carbon-14 labelling of biomolecules induced by14CO ionized gas

Ionized¹⁴CO gas provides a rapid method for producing¹⁴C-labelled biomolecules. The apparatus consists of a high vacuum system in which a small amount of¹⁴CO is ionized by electron impact. The resulting species drift towards a target where they interact with the molecule of interest to produce¹⁴C-labelled compounds. Since the reaction time is only 2 minutes, the method is particularly promising for producing tracer biomolecules with short-lived¹¹C at high specific activities. We have studied the applicability of the method to various classes of compounds of biological importance, including sterids, alkaloids, prostaglandins, nucleosides, amino acids and proteins. All compounds treated gave rise to¹⁴C addition and degradation products. Furthermore, for some compounds, chromatographic analysis in multiple systems followed by derivatization and crystallization to constant specific activity, indicated that carbon exchange may occur to produce the labelled, but otherwise unaltered substrate in yields of the order of 10–100 mCi/mol. More conclusive proof of radiochemical identity must await production of larger quantities of material and rigorous purification including at least two different chromatographic techniques. Supported by the Medical Research Council of Canada Grant MA-6137, and by the Banting Research Foundation.     

Halbquantitative autoradiographische bestimmung von 14C-aktivitäten im pico- bis nanocurie-bereich mit hilfe der ringofenmethode

The use of the ring-oven method for the semiquantitative autoradiographic determination of ¹⁴C-labelled compounds is described. Satisfactory results can be obtained in the activity range 9.2–460 pC/μl (exposure times of 122–2 h) with special commercial films.     

Radio gas chromatography of14C-labelled compounds by measuring the radioactivity of the FID combustion products after GLC analysis

Summary A simple method of radio gas chromatography, which avoids the necessity for an effluent gas stream splitter and a special reactor after the GLC column, has been described. The system uses the FID as a combined mass detector and combustion furnace for the conversion of¹⁴C-labelled compounds into¹⁴CO₂ and operates the FID in series with the¹⁴CO₂ detection system. Specific activity values of weakly¹⁴C-labelled compounds such as organic methyl esters and TMS sugars can be determined precisely with the standard error of the mean less than 3%.     

Determination of leukotrienes and prostaglandins in [14C] arachidonic acid labelled human lung tissue by high-performance liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay

A liquid chromatographic method for the determination of 14C-labelled prostaglandins, leukotrienes and other lipoxygenase products formed by human lung tissue is described. In this paper we report our problems identifying these substances when 3H- or 14C-labelled compounds are compared with measurements of the mass by absorption or radioimmunoassay. Furthermore, some preliminary results of [14C] arachidonic acid labelled human lung tissue, stimulated by the Ca-ionophore A23187, show that, of the lipoxygenase products, mostly leukotriene B4 like compounds are formed and less leukotriene C4, E4 and D4. Relatively large amounts of hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids are present. The main cyclooxygenase products are thromboxane B2, 6-ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha and prostaglandin D2.     

Determination of the specific radioactivity of amino acids by a combination of thin-layer chromatography and quantitative autoradiography

A new method for the analysis of the specific activity of amino acids is described. The analysis is carried out by thin-layer chromatography of the dansylated amino acids, computerized fluorescence evaluation and activity measurement by quantitative autoradiography. Quantitative evaluation of the autoradiographs is achieved by careful calibration of the X-ray film blackening. As shown for 14C-labelled phenylalanine and tyrosine, the method allows the simultaneous determination of the specific activity of 22 amino acids. About 10(-13) mol of an amino acid with a specific activity of less than 5 GBq/mmol can be detected and measured by this method.     

Parameters of carbon labelling using ionized gases

We have recently described a rapid non-synthetic method for producing¹⁴C-and¹¹C-labelled biomolecules. The apparatus consists of a high vacuum system in which small amounts of¹⁴CO gas are ionized by electron impact. The resulting ionized, excited and dissociated species drift toward a thin layer of organic molecules where they interact to produce¹⁴C-labelled compounds. In this paper, details are given on the mechanisms of interaction of the electron beam and on the parameters influencing the labelling yields. Using cholesterol as a model compound labelling yields were measured while the electron energy, thickness of the organic film, gas pressure and time of exposure were varied over a wide range. The results suggest that¹⁴C⁺ and/or¹⁴CO⁺ are the principal species involved in the labelling reactions. Supported by the Medical Research Council of Canada Grant MA-6137.     

Preparation of carbon-11 labelled acetate and palmitic acid for the study of myocardial metabolism by emission-computerised axial tomography

Methods have been developed for the labelling of acetate and palmitic acid with the positron-emitting radionuclide,¹¹C (T=20.4 min). Labelling was achieved via carbonation of the appropriate alkyl magnesium bromide (methyl magnesium bromide or n-pentadecyl magnesium bromide) with¹¹C-labelled carbon dioxide produced by the¹⁴N(p, α)¹¹C nuclear reaction. The radiochemical yield and speed of each method of labelling are such that a radiochemically pure product is obtained in injectable form and in activity (>10 mCi) suitable for the study of myocardial metabolism by emission-computerised axial tomography. High pressure liquid chromatography and thin layer chromatography were used to assess the radiochemical purity of each radiopharmaceutical. The specific activity of¹¹C-labelled acetate was estimated by an enzymic procedure to be greater than 0.5 Ci/μmole.     

The double radio-isotope derivative technique for the assay of drugs in biological material: Part II. The simultaneous determination of opipramol and its deshydroxyethyl metabolite

The neuroleptic drug opipramol and its deshydroxyethyl metabolite can be determined simultaneously in the same biological sample. Known amounts of ¹⁴C-labelled opipramol and ¹⁴C-labelled metabolite are added to the sample to serve as internal standards. After suitable extraction, both compounds are acetylated by ³H-labelled acetic anhydride. Together with μg-amounts of carrier compounds, the O-acetyl derivative of opipramol and the N-acetyl derivative of the metabolite are purified and separated by two-dimensional thin-layer chromatography. Each of the derivatives is isolated and counted for ¹⁴C-and ³H-activity. The ¹⁴C-activities recovered serve to determine the overall yield of the opipramol and metabolite, and to convert the measured ³H-activity to 100 % theoretical yield. From analyses of standard samples, the specific ³H-activities of the acetyl derivatives were calculated, and these values were used to convert the measured ³H-activities from biological samples to concentrations of original opipramol and metabolite. For both compounds the standard deviations of blank samples were ±1 ng ml^?1. For concentrations up to 100 ng ml^?1 the standard deviation was ±3 ng ml^?1.     

Synthesis of [11C]/(13C)amines via carbonylation followed by reductive amination

Twelve 11C-labelled amines were prepared via 11C-carbonylation followed by reductive amination. The 11C-carbonylation was performed in the presence of tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium using aryl iodides or aryl triflates, [11C]carbon monoxide and phenyl-/methylboronic acid. The [11C]ketones formed in this step were then transformed directly into amines by reductive amination using different amines in the presence of TiCl4 and NaBH3CN. The 11C-labelled amines were obtained with decay-corrected radiochemical yields in the range 2-78%. The radiochemical purity of the isolated products exceeded 98%. (13C)Benzhydryl-phenyl-amine was synthesised and analysed by NMR spectroscopy for confirmation of the labelling position. Specific radioactivity was determined for the same compound. The reference compounds were prepared by reductive amination of ketones using conventional reaction conditions and three of the compounds were novel. The presented approach is a new method for the synthesis of [11C]/(13C)amines.     

14C-寡糖在西瓜幼苗植株体内吸收传导和分布

应用同位素示踪技术研究了14C-寡糖在西瓜幼苗植株体内的吸收、传导和分布行为.自显影结果显示,寡糖通过处理叶部或根部后能够被西瓜幼苗植株快速吸收,在叶片中的传导表现为从叶缘向叶片中心分布的趋势.将叶部处理8h和根部处理24h后,14C-寡糖即可以传导和分布到西瓜幼苗的整个植株体内,证明14C-寡糖在西瓜幼苗植株体内具有较强的扩散和向基或向顶传导特征.结果表明,处理叶部4～120h时,根系、茎与未被直接处理的叶片等其它部位的放射性比活度分别由0.18×105和23.08×105Bq/kg变化为0.32×105和3.02×105Bq/kg,总体上表现出向基传导和分布的态势.处理根部4～120h时,西瓜幼苗植株根系、茎部、子叶和真叶中放射性比活度分别由22.23×105,2.23×105,8.33×105和12.78×105Bq/kg变化为431.11×105,42.23×105,65.57×105和78.89×105Bq/kg,表现出14C-寡糖在西瓜幼苗植株体内向顶传导作用和在地上部的积累态势很强.     

Enhanced radiation crosslinking of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid to polymers: alkanes as model compounds for polyethylene

The crosslinking of polyethylene by irradiation is enhanced in the presence of acrylic acid. This process has been studied for model compounds; for ¹⁴C-labelled hexadecane, each molecule of polyacrylic acid is linked to an average of 47 hexadecane molecules; at the radiation dose used, this result implies a hitherto unexpected chain reaction. Evidence from ESR spectra indicates an ionic intermediate.     

Identification and quantification of natural isoxazolinone compounds by capillary zone electrophoresis.

A capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) method that is specific, simple, rapid and also cheap was developed to analyse some natural UV-absorbing isoxazolinone compounds with toxic potential present in legume seedlings. The six most common natural isoxazolinone compounds were separated within 10 min with 25 mM potassium phosphate (pH 7.5) containing 8% 1-propanol as running buffer. A 60 cm coated fused-silica capillary (52.6 cm effective length x 75 microm I.D.), with an electric field of 375 V/cm at 30 degrees C was used. The limit of detection ranged from 0.01 mM (3.0 microg/ml) to 0.03 mM (7.7 microg/ml). Linearity between peak areas and concentrations ranging from 0.05 mM to 1.75 mM were determined for each isoxazolinone. The correlation coefficient was 0.9954 or greater. Both relative migration time and peak area were reproducible. The RSD of relative migration time is between 0.44 and 1.94% and RSD of peak area is between 1.26 and 6.86%. The concentrations of isoxazolinones in Lathyrus odoratus and L. sativus seedlings obtained by CZE were in agreement with the previous results from HPLC.     

Separation and determination of epinephrine and dopamine in traditional Chinese medicines by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography with laser induced fluorescence detection

A micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography method with laser-induced fluorescence detection was developed for the analysis of epinephrine and dopamine after derivatization with 4-chloro-7-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole. The optimum derivatization conditions were: 30 mM sodium borate (pH adjusted to 8.0 with 1.0 M HCl), reaction time 30 min at 60 degrees C. Baseline separation was achieved within 14 min with a running buffer composed of 10 mM sodium borate + 25 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate (pH adjusted to 9.5 with 0.1 M NaOH) and an applied voltage of 15 kV. Good linearity relationships (correlation coefficients: 0.9991 for epinephrine and 0.9985 for dopamine) between peak areas and concentrations of the analytes were obtained. The detection limits and quantification limits for epinephrine and dopamine were 0.0038 mg/L and 0.013 mg/L, and 0.065 mg/L and 0.020 mg/L, respectively. The method was applied to the analysis of the two compounds in two Chinese medicines with recoveries in the range of 92.6-108.7%.     

HPLC and HPLC-MS analysis of urinary N(epsilon)-monomethyl-lysine

Administration of (14)C-labelled L-deprenyl to rats results in the urinary elimination of a 14C-labelled compound. The 9-fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl chloride-reacted urine sample is fractionated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on an octadecyl silica stationary phase. N(epsilon)-Monomethyl-lysine is identified in the fraction containing the majority of the radioactivity. Structural elucidation is carried out using HPLC-mass spectrometry in atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mode. Identification of the 14C-labelled fragment in Ne-monomethyl-lysine is an experimental proof that an N-methylated amino acid is generated by transmethylation from a well-known drug. This type of transmethylation may have basic importance in the positive side effects of certain drugs.     

Quantitation of sunitinib,an oral multitarget tyrosine kinase inhibitor,and its metabolite in urine samples by nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis time of flight mass spectrometry

A rapid, sensitive, and specific method was developed and validated using a nonaqueous‐capillary electrophoresis method with TOF‐MS for determination of sunitinib and N‐desethyl sunitinib in human urine. In order to avoid ionic suppression a urine samples dilution with methanol 1:10 previous step was used. This was the only treatment step to urine samples before the injection. Despite this dilution of the urine, the detection limit was as low as 0.07 mg/L for sunitinib and 0.15 mg/L for N‐desethyl sunitinib. Separation of compounds was achieved with a mixture of 5 mM ammonium formate in methanol. The calibration curves were linear over the range of 0.5–50.0 mg/L for the two analyzed compounds. The within‐run and between‐run precisions were within 5%, while the accuracy ranged from 96.0 to 100.4%. This method can be used in routine clinical practice to monitor sunitinib and N‐desethyl sunitinib drugs in the urine of cancer patients treated with once daily administration.     

Determination of plasma lactic acid concentration and specific activity using high-performance liquid chromatography.

Assessment of lactate metabolism is of particular interest during exercise and in disease states such as diabetes, shock, and absorptive abnormalities of short-chain fatty acids by the colon. We describe an analytical method that introduces radio-active tracers and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to simultaneously analyze concentrations and specific activities (SAs) of plasma lactate. The HPLC conditions included separation on a reversed-phase column (octadecylsilane) and an isocratic buffer (30% acetonitrile in water). [3H]Acetate served as an internal standard. Lactate and acetate were extracted from plasma samples with diethyl ether following a pH adjustment to less than 1.0 and back-extracted into a hydrophilic phase with sodium carbonate (2 mM, pH greater than 10.0). Lactate is detected in the ultraviolet range (242 and 320 nm) by derivatization with alpha-bromoacetophenone. Control plasma samples were studied after an overnight fast for precision and analytical recovery. Calibration curves were linear in the range 0.18-6.0 mM (r = 0.92). The precision was 3% and the analytical recovery was 87%. The detection limit of the method was 36 pmol. Determination of lactate metabolism was performed in a patient with chronic congestive heart failure who was administered primed-continuous L-[U-14C]lactate (10 microCi bolus and 0.3 microCi/min continuously) during a 60-min rest period. Mean arterial lactate concentration and SA were 1.69 +/- 0.2 mM and 253.8 +/- 22 dpm/mumol, respectively. Systemic lactate turnover was 25.65 mumol/kg per min. Lactic acid systemic turnover, organ uptake and release rates can be accurately determined by isocratic HPLC.     

A simple quantitative HPLC assay for ifosfamide in biological fluids

A high performance liquid chromatography method is described for measuring Ifosfamide (I) in human serum. This involves solvent extraction, reverse phase HPLC and UV detection at 190 nm. Standard curves of peak height x detector sensitivity versus I concentration in serum were linear with a lower limit of detection of 100 ng/ml. Authentic 14C-labelled I cochromatographed with standard I and with I found in serum from treated patients. The concentration-time curves of I determined by both HPLC and gas chromatography were indistinguishable. We conclude that this method is suitable for determining I pharmacokinetics in biological specimens.     

High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of dextromethorphan, guaifenesin and benzoate in a cough syrup for stability testing

A method has been developed for the analysis of a cough syrup containing dextromethorphan, guaifenesin, benzoic acid, saccharin and other components. Forced degradation was also studied to demonstrate that the method could be employed during a stability study of the syrup. Final conditions were phosphate buffer (25 mM, pH 2.8) with triethylamine (TEA)-acetonitrile (75:25, v/v). In such conditions, all the actives, excipients and degradation products were baseline resolved in less than 14 min, and different wavelengths were used for the different analytes and related compounds.     

Optimization and validation of a stability-indicating RP-HPLC method for determination of azithromycin and its related compounds

A validated stability-indicating HPLC method was developed for the analysis of azithromycin (AZ) and its related compounds in raw materials, capsule, and suspension using an Xterra RP C18 column at 50 degrees C with UV detection at 215 nm. Isocratic elution was employed using the mobile phase 14 mM disodium hydrogen phosphate (pH 10.5, adjusted by 1 M NaOH)-methanol-acetonitrile-tetrahydrofuran (40.0 + 30.0 + 30.0 + 0.1, v/v/v/v). AZ and 14 of its related compounds were separated and quantified. The described method was linear over the range of 2-1800 microg/mL AZ with (r = 0.9999). The stability of AZ was studied under accelerated acidic, alkaline, and oxidative conditions. The proposed method was used to investigate the kinetics of acidic and alkaline hydrolysis process of AZ at different temperatures, and the apparent pseudo first-order rate constant, half-life, and activation energy were calculated. The major peak detected from the degradation of AZ in alkaline and acidic conditions was decladinosylazithromycine, while azithromycin N-oxide was detected from the oxidative degradation. Long-term stability studies for capsule and oral suspension were carried out. The proposed stability-indicating method was completely validated according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requirements.