Determination of glutathione and cysteine in yeasts by hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography followed by on‐line postcolumn derivatization

In the present study, we report a new method for the determination of two primary thiols, cysteine (CYS) and glutathione (GSH), by hydrophilic interaction LC. The polar analytes are separated isocratically using a mobile phase consisting of 65% acetonitrile/35% ammonium acetate (15 mmol/L, pH 2.0) and are detected at 285 nm following on‐line postcolumn derivatization by the thiol‐selective reagent methyl propiolate. The main figures of merit included linearity in the range of 5–200 μmol/L and an LOD 0.6 μmol/L for both compounds. The absence of matrix effect allowed the determination of CYS and GSH in various yeast samples. GSH was present in most of the samples at levels ranging between 0.9 and 3.1 mg/g, whereas CYS was determined in only one sample at a significantly lower concentration. In terms of accuracy, the percent recoveries ranged between 91.2 and 105.6% for GSH, and 91.6 and 106.9% for CYS.     

Determination of paracetamol (acetaminophen) by HPLC with post-column enzymatic derivatization and fluorescence detection

Summary A novel method is described for the determination of paracetamol (acetaminophen;N-acetyl-4-aminophenol) in urine. After reversed-phase HPLC separation, paracetamol is oxidized by H₂O₂ with horseradish peroxidase catalysis. Detection is performed fluorimetrically at an excitation wavelength of 329 nm and an emission wavelength of 435 nm. Urine samples were spiked with paracetamol, diluted, and injected directly without further pretreatment. Under these conditions, the limit of detection was 2×10⁻⁸ molL⁻¹, and the limit of quantification was 7×10⁻⁸ molL⁻¹. The method was validated by two different approaches based on HPLC with UV-Vis detection.     

Evaluation ofo-phthalaldehyde as bifunctional fluorogenic post-column reagent for glutathione in LC

Summary A method for the assay of various forms of glutathione in human plasma has been developed. The reduced form was measured after direct injection of deproteinized plasma with perchloric acid. The unbound oxidized forms were assayed in deproteinized plasma after reduction with dithiothreitol. The total amount of glutathione was determined by reduction before protein precipitation. Separation of reduced glutathione from other endogenous thiols was by ion-pair, reversed-phase, high-performance liquid chromatography. Post-column derivatization withortho-phthalaldehyde made the assay more selective than when using pyrenemaleimide as thiol fluorogenic reagent. The linear range was 0.02 to 2.0 g mL^–1 with good repeatability (relative standard deviation less than 5% for the lowest concentration measured).     

Rapid screening of airway secretions for fucose by parallel ligand-exchange chromatography with post-column derivatization and fluorescence detection

Summary Fucose (6-deoxygalactose) is a constituent of airway mucous glycoproteins. In this paper we describe a high-throughput method for screening nasal lavage fluid samples and induced sputum samples for fucose. Fucose was released by hydrolysis with 0.5m sulfuric acid at 100°C for 4 h. After pH adjustment remaining proteins were removed by on-line dialysis. Chromatography was performed with two 300 mm×7.8 mm i.d. Bio-Rad Aminex HPX-87H columns arranged in a box-car configuration. Post-column derivatization was performed with benzamidine under alkaline conditions. Fluorescence was monitored at an excitation wavelength of 360 nm, using an optical cut-off filter of 420 nm. The limit of quantitation for fucose was 40 μm (S/N=3) in 300μL nasal lavage medium, with use of a 20-μL injection loop. Relative standard deviation (RSD) values for intra and inter assay data were below 15% and 20%, respectively, at spike levels of 635 μm l-fucose. The method was used to monitor the fucose content of human airway secretions. Presented at: 23^rd International Symposium on Chromatography, London, UK, October 1–5, 2000     

Zwitterionic hydrophilic interaction chromatography coupled with post-column derivatization for the analysis of glutathione in wine samples

In this study the development, validation and application of a new chromatographic method for the determination of glutathione (GSH) in wine samples is presented. The separation of the GSH was carried out using a sulfobetaine-based hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) analytical column whereas its detection was carried out spectrofluorimetrically (λ_ext/λ_em = 340/455 nm) after post-column derivatization with o-phthalaldehyde. GSH was separated efficiently from matrix endogenous compounds of wines by using a mobile phase of 15 mmol L⁻¹ CH₃COONH₄ (pH = 2.5)/CH₃CN, 35/65% (v/v). The parameters of the post-column reaction (pH, amount concentration of the reagent and buffer solution, flow rate, length of the reaction coil) were investigated. The linear determination range for GSH was 0.25–5.0 μmol L⁻¹ and the LOD was 19 nmol L⁻¹. No matrix effect was observed, while the accuracy was evaluated with recovery experiments and was ranged between 89% and 108%.     

Simple HPLC determination of colistin in medicated feeds by pre-column derivatization and fluorescence detection

Summary A simple and sensitive HPLC method was developed for the determination of colistin antibiotic in feeds employing pre-column derivatization and fluorescence detection. Extraction of colistin in feeds was by sonication and shaking with 0.1 M HCl. Pre-column derivatization was with phthaldialdehyde and 2-mercaptoethanol (ME) in borate buffer (pH 10.5) to obtain a fluorescent derivative. Elution of the derivative onto an Ultracarb 5 μm ODS column was by using acetonitrile—ultrapure water (75∶25). Detection was by spectrofluorimetry at 340 nm (excitation wavelength) and 440 nm (emission wavelength). Total elution time was <20 min. The applicability of the validated method was tested by analyzing commercial medicated feeds without any interference from the matrix.     

Determination of sugars by liquid chromatography with post-column catalytic derivatization and fluorescence detection

Summary A method for the determination of reducing sugars such as fructose and glucose and nonreducing sugar such as sucrose by high performance liquid chromatography followed by an acidic hydrolysis and a derivatization with benzamidine has been developed. After separation of sugars on a gel column packed with a polymer-based cation exchange material (Sugar-Pak I, Waters-Millipore), the sucrose is first hydrolysed in a solid phase reactor to convert it into reducing subunits. A post-column fluorigenic reaction with benzamidine under alkaline condition allows the selective determination of both natural and converted reducing carbohydrates.This procedure has proven to be selective (fluorigenic detection) and highly sensitive (allowing detection as little as picomoles amounts), reproducible and linear over a broad range of concentrations: 5×10^–4 to 1.0×10^–2 M.The applicability of this method to natural matrices such as plant extracts and beverages is also described. The sugar content of a barley extract has been determined and compared with a specific enzymatic test. The determined sugar content of natural and commercial lemon juices as well as of Cola beverages has been compared with those found by the conventional LC refractive index analytical procedure. In all cases, the results were comparable and were within the experimental errors of the methods.     

Retention behaviour of metal complexes with 5-sulphoquinoline-8-ol in reversed-phase ion-pair liquid chromatography

Summary The reversed-phase ion-pair liquid chromatographic behaviour of several metal complexes with 5-sulphoquinoline-8-ol (HQS) on an octadecyl-modified silica column was investigated by using a fluorescence detector. The aluminum complex gave two peaks on the chromatograms when eluents containing phosphate buffer were used. The effects of the pH of the eluent, HQS concentration, the nature of anions in the eluent, and the column temperature on the retention behaviour of the aluminum complex are discussed on the basis of the equilibria and the kinetics of the complexation of the aluminum ion with HQS and anions in the eluent. The equilibrium constant for the interconversion reaction between the two Al(III)-HQS species which correspond to the two peaks observed and the second stepwise formation constant for the Zn(II)-HQS complex were evaluated from the HPLC data obtained.     

Identification of the major compounds in extracts ofVerbena officinalis L. (Verbenaceae) by HPLC with post-column derivatization

Summary A qualitative reversed-phase HPLC method has been developed for the analysis of 50% MeOH extracts ofVerbena officinalis L. (Verbenaceae) leaves. The method enables separation of the main constituents: iridoids, flavonoids and phenolic acid derivatives. Simultaneous detection at different wavelengths, measurement of the UV spectrum of each separated compound during elution and co-injection of reference substances facilitated easy and rapid identification of verbenalin, hastatoside and verbascoside. As some of these compounds, mainly flavonoids, have closely related structures, however, characterization by derivatization with reagents inducing a shift of UV absorption maxima was required. This furnished additional structural information. The reagents were adapted for compatibility with the solvent system used for the chromatographic separation.     

Sub-nanogram detection of dihydroartemisinin after chemical derivatization with diacetyldihydrofluorescein followed by high-performance liquid chromatography and UV absorption

Summary The use of diacetyldihydrofluorescein (DADF) for derivatization of dihydroartemisinin (dihydroqinghaosu, DHQHS) is proposed. The reaction between DHQHS and this reagent in the presence of 4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) and N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) was complete in 8 hours at room temperature giving about 80 per cent theoretical yield. The derivative showed intense UV absorption, thus providing a sensitivity of 0.1 nanogram by UV detection after column separation. The influences of the ratio of the reagents, reaction temperature, chromatographic conditions and the extent of detection linearity were investigated. The reaction gave consistent results and chromatographic separation was not affected by an excess of the reagent or side products.     

Determination of biogenic amines in fermented beverages and vinegars by pre-column derivatization withpara-nitrobenzyloxycarbonyl chloride (PNZ-Cl) and reversed-phase LC

Summary The reagentp-nitrobenzyloxycarbonyl chloride (PNZ-CI) was used for pre-column derivatization of biogenic amines (BAs) at ambient temperature followed by reversed-phase, liquid-chromatographic separation of the derivatives. Optimized derivatization of samples was achieved within 10 min in borate buffer by adding PNZ-Cl in acetonitrile (MeCN). Excess reagent was scavenged by subsequent addition of glycine in water. For LC a Superspher^? RP-18e column and gradient elution using a ternary gradient system containing sodium acetabe buffer (pH 6.1), sodium acetate buffer (pH 4.3) and MeCN, were used. The PNZ-derivatives were quantified by their UV-absorption at 265 nm. Detection limits of BAs were approximately 62–1000 μg L⁻¹ (injected amounts: 53–850 pg) at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3:1. The coefficients of determination were 0.9906–0.9992. Diaminohexane was used as internal standard. Recoveries of BAs ranged from 78–93% depending on the food matrix. This method was applied to the quantitative determination of 2-phenylethylamine, tryptamine, serotonin, putrescine, histamine, cadaverine, tyramine, spermidine, and spermine, in beer, wine, vinegars, and lactic fermented cabbage juice. Parts of the results were presented at the 35th Congress of the “Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ern?hrung”, Kiel, 19^th–20^th March 1998, and the “Regionaltagung der Lebensmittelchemiker”, Giessen, 9^th–10^th March 1998     

Determination of trans-fatty acids in food samples based on the precolumn fluorescence derivatization by high performance liquid chromatography

Trans-fatty acids are unsaturated fatty acids that are considered to have health risks. 1,3,5,7-Tetramethyl-8-butyrethylenediamine-difluoroboradiaza-s-indacene is a highly sensitive fluorescent labeling reagent for carboxylic acids developed by our lab. In this study, using this precolumn fluorescent derivatization reagent, a rapid and accurate high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection method was developed for the determination of two trans-fatty acids in food samples. Under the optimized derivative conditions, two trans-fatty acids were tagged with the fluorescent labeling reagent in the presence of 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethyl-aminopropyl) carbodiimide at 25°C for 30 min. Then, the baseline separation of trans- and cis-fatty acids and their saturated fatty acid with similar structures was achieved with less interference using a reversed-phased C₁₈ column with isocratic elution in 14 min. With fluorescence detection at λ_ex/λ_em = 490 /510 nm, the linear range of the TFAs was 1.0-200 nM with low detection limits in the range of 0.1–0.2 nM (signal-to-noise ratio = 3). In addition, the proposed approach was successfully applied for the detection of trans-fatty acids in food samples, and the recoveries using this method ranged from 96.02 to 109.22% with low relative standard deviations of 1.2–4.3% (n = 6).     

Optimization of o‐phtaldialdehyde/2‐mercaptoethanol postcolumn reaction for the hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography determination of memantine utilizing a silica hydride stationary phase

A rapid procedure for the determination of memantine based on hydrophilic interaction chromatography with fluorescence detection was developed. Fluorescence detection after postcolumn derivatization with o‐phtaldialdehyde/2‐mercaptoethanol was performed at excitation and emission wavelengths of 345 and 450 nm, respectively. The postcolumn reaction conditions such as reaction temperature, derivatization reagent flow rate, and reagents concentration were studied due to steric hindrance of amino group of memantine. The derivatization reaction was applied for the hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography method which was based on Cogent Silica‐C stationary phase with a mobile phase consisting of a mixture of 10 mmol/L citric acid and 10 mmol/L o‐phosphoric acid (pH 6.0) with acetonitrile using an isocratic composition of 2:8 v/v. The benefit of the reported approach consists in a simple sample pretreatment and a quick and sensitive hydrophilic interaction chromatography method. The developed method was validated in terms of linearity, accuracy, precision, and selectivity according to the International Conference on Harmonisation guidelines. The developed method was successfully applied for the analysis of commercial memantine tablets.     

Determination of naturally occurring hydroxynaphthoquinone polymers by size-exclusion chromatography

Summary Polymerization of alkannin, shikonin, and their derivatives, potent pharmaceutical substances, crucially affects their use in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and as food colorants, because it leads to loss of their antimicrobial activity, reduction of the lustre of their red coloration, and a decrease in their solubility. In this study size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) has been used for the first time for qualitative and quantitative analysis of monomeric and polymeric hydroxynaphthoquinone alkannin and shikonin derivatives. The purity and degree of polymerization has been determined to evaluate severalAlkanna tinctoria root samples from different geographical sources, and commercial samples of alkannin and shikonin, as pharmaceutical raw materials. Conditions for extraction of hydroxynaphthoquinones fromAlkanna tinctoria roots with olive oil were optimized in terms of polimerization, aiming to improve the biological activity of the final pharmaceutical product, Helixderm.     

Nucleotide pools and energy charges of smooth molluscan muscles analysed by reversed-phase,ion-pair,high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary A method is described for the analysis of the 5 mono-, di- and triphosphates of adenosine, guanosine, uridine and cytidine, as well as uridinediphosphate-glucose and cyclic AMP. Separation is achieved by reversed-phase ion-pair chromatography with linear gradient elution. Application of this method to the analysis of nucleotides in smooth molluscan muscles is described, including the determination of cAMP-levels and the calculation of energy charges for all of the four nucleotide systems.     

Determination of furosine in milk samples by ion-pair reversed phase liquid chromatography

Summary An ion-pair, reversed-phase, liquid chromatographic procedure using UV detection for quantitation of furosine is described. The standard plot was linear (r>0.999) over a 5 ng range. An authentic synthesised sample of furosine was used for calibration. Commerical milk samples were analyzed by the described procedure.     

Liquid chromatographic determination of nitroaromatics in water following solid phase extraction,pre-column reduction and derivatization

Summary A selective and sensitive method for determination of nitroaromatics is described. The analytes were reduced to corresponding primary amines with iron powder and then derivatized with fluram in citrate buffer to form pyrrolinones. The highly fluorescent pyrrolinones were isolated and preconcentrated by octadecylsilane solid phase extraction cartridge followed by reversed-phase, high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis. Detection was at 395–495 nm. Various aspects such as the reduction process, derivatization, solid phase extraction and chromatographic separation were optimized. Analysis time was relatively short due to a special design for successive reduction and preconcentration. Limits of detection for 3-nitrophenol, nitrobenzene, 4 and 2-nitrotoluene were less than 60, 12, 60 and 280 ng L^–1 respectively.     

Simultaneous determination of aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, G2 in Fructus Bruceae by high‐performance liquid chromatography with online postcolumn photochemical derivatization

A simple, reliable, and highly sensitive method for the simultaneous determination of aflatoxin B₁, B₂, G₁, G₂ in Fructus Bruceae was developed using high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled to online postcolumn photochemical derivatization and fluorescence detection. Aflatoxins were first extracted by a methanol/water mixture and then cleaned up with an AflaTest? immunoaffinity column. Different clean‐up and derivatization methods were compared and optimized. The established method was extensively validated to show satisfactory performance of linearity (R² ≥ 0.9997), recovery (74.3–100.8%), and precision (RSDs ≤ 2.8%) for the investigated aflatoxins. This proposed method was also applied to 11 F. Bruceae samples and the results showed that 10 out of 11 were contaminated with aflatoxins ranging from 0.26 to 27.52 μg/kg and the occurrence of aflatoxin B₁, the most toxic one, was as high as 91% in all the samples, highlighting the severe contamination and the necessity to set legal limits for aflatoxins in F. Bruceae.     

Determination of picomole amounts of carbonyls as luminarin hydrazones by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

Summary Fluorogenic reagents (luminarin 3, luminarin 11 and luminarin 12), having a quinolizinocoumarin moiety as fluorophore and a carboxylic acid hydrazide function as reacting group, have been developed. These reagents were found to be highly sensitive fluorescence derivatization reagents for aldehydes and ketones in high-performance liquid chromatography. The reagents readily react with carbonyl compounds in aqueous sulphuric acid solution (0.1 M) at room temperature to produce the corresponding hydrazone derivatives, which can be separated on both reversed or normal-phase column. The structures of the derivatives were studied, together with their properties in reversed and normalphase chromatographic systems. UV absorbance, corrected fluorescence spectral data and quantum yields of luminarin 3, luminarin 11 and luminarin 12 are presented. The detection limits (signal to noise ratio=3) for aldehydes and ketones were in the sub-pmol range. Luminarin 3 was also applied to the determination of hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) in orange juices and concentrates. The method for HMF involves the solid-liquid extraction of the juice by using a C-18 cartridge prior to derivatization and normal-phase separation of the derivative with fluorimetric detection at 387 nmex., 444 nm em. The calibration curve was linear for amounts of HMF ranging from 0.1 to 10 nmol. Intrarun relative standard deviation was 12.8% for 0.1 nmol and 2.6% for 1 nmol. Recovery studies indicated an average of 98.7±1.9% for juice concentrate and 99.8±3.2% for pasteurized juice.     

Analysis of ofloxacin in plasma samples by high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary A sensitive HPLC method has been developed for determination of ofloxacin (OFL) in biological fluids. Sample preparation was performed by adding phosphate buffer (pH 7.4, 0.1m) then extraction with trichloromethane. OFL and the internal standard, sarafloxacin (SAR), were separated on a reversed-phase column with aqueous phosphate solution-acetonitrile, 80∶20, as mobile phase. The fluorescence of the column effluent was monitored at λ_ex 338 and λ_em 425 nm. The retention times were 2.66 and 4.24 min for OFL and SAR, respectively, and the detection and quantitation limits were 8 and 15 ng mL⁻¹, respectively. Plots of response against ofloxacin concentration were linear in the range 8 to 2000 ng mL⁻¹. Recovery was 92.9% for OFL.