Sensitivity improvement of amino acids by N-terminal diisopropyloxyphosphorylation in electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

With the introduction of a diisopropyloxyphosphoryl (DIPP) group at the N-terminus of amino acids, the signal response in electrospray ionization mass spectrometry can be enhanced by 10-100-fold in positive mode and even more in negative mode. An enhancement of proton affinity due to the N-terminal DIPP derivatization was considered to be responsible for the sensitivity improvement in positive mode, which was supported by kinetic method studies. Two possible mechanisms, i.e., an increase in gas-phase acidity due to the introduction of the electron-withdrawing DIPP group, and the effect of pH on the formation of anions of amino acids and their phosphorylated derivatives, were considered for the signal response enhancement in negative mode.     

液相色谱-串联质谱法测定肉及肉制品中利谷隆及其代谢产物3,4-二氯苯胺残留

建立了液相色谱-串联质谱分析多种肉及肉制品中利谷隆及其代谢产物3,4-二氯苯胺残留的方法。样品用丙酮-乙腈(5:95, v/v)提取,冷冻去脂,经弗罗里硅土固相萃取柱净化后进行液相色谱-串联质谱检测,采用内标法定量。利谷隆及3,4-二氯苯胺在1～500 μg/L范围内呈良好的线性关系,相关系数(r)均大于0.998,方法的定量限(信噪比(S/N)＞10)为10 μg/kg,检出限(S/N＞3)为5 μg/kg。在各种肉及肉制品基质中添加低、中、高3种不同水平的利谷隆及3,4-二氯苯胺,其回收率范围分别为88.3%～101.2%和91.6%～101.6%,相对标准偏差(RSD)分别为4.8%～13.7%和4.7%～11.8%。结果表明所建立的方法可以满足肉及肉制品中利谷隆和3,4-二氯苯胺残留量的检测需要。     

A sweeping-micellar electrokinetic chromatography method for direct detection of some aromatic amines in water samples

A simple and rapid sweeping method for the online improvement of detection limit of some aromatic amines has been developed in this work. The optimum sweeping and separation conditions for 4-methylaniline, 3,4-dichloroaniline, 4-chloroaniline, and 4-aminophenyl were investigated in detail. Under the optimum conditions, the detection limits of these four aromatic amines ranged from 5.4 x 10(-10) to 4.6 x 10(-8)mol/L (S/N = 3), which was about 80-1090-folds lower than those of conventional sample injections. Linear response range were in the range of 2.5 x 10(-8)-2.0 x 10(-6)mol/L with the correlation coefficient between 0.9965 and 0.9994. Baseline separation was achieved within 10 min. After validation, the developed method was applied to determine 4-methylaniline, 3,4-dichloroaniline, 4-chloroaniline, and 4-aminophenyl in river water sample with average recoveries of 79.6-88.7%.     

Determination of trace amounts of 3,4-dichloroaniline by high-performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection and its application to pesticide residue analysis

Summary High-performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection was used for the determination of trace amounts of 3,4-dichloroaniline. The latter was separated with Nucleosil C₁₈ as stationary phase and methanolwater (70:30 V/V) containing 0.05 mol/l ammonium acetate as eluent. The voltage of the working electrode (glassy carbon) was set at +960 mV vs. Ag/AgCl. The linear dynamic range between limiting current and concentration was about 1×10² (0.2–20 ng) and the minimum detectable amount was 0.2 ng. This method was applied to the determination of trace amounts of linuron and free 3,4-dichloroaniline in potatoes. The minimum quantitative level was 0.01 ppm. The method requires less clean-up steps than the GC and HPLC methods (using UV detection).     

液相色谱-串联质谱法测定吉非替尼中4种基因毒性杂质

建立了一种同时测定吉非替尼中4种基因毒性杂质3-氯-4-氟苯胺、3,4-二氟苯胺、3-氟-4-氯苯胺和3,4-二氯苯胺的高效液相色谱-串联质谱（HPLC-MS/MS）方法。用Inertsil ODS-3柱（100 mm×3.0 mm,3μm）为色谱柱,以0.1%（体积分数,下同）甲酸水溶液-0.1%甲酸乙腈溶液为流动相,在电喷雾正离子模式下进行测定。该方法在特异性、线性、精密度、准确性、稳定性和耐用性方面得到了验证。4种基因毒性杂质在0.6~96.0μg/L范围内与峰面积呈良好线性关系。检测限和定量限分别为0.2~2.0μg/L和0.6~6.0μg/L。所有杂质的回收率为91.0%~98.5%。检测后,在批号16052301和R16052501-1样品中仅检测到3-氯-4-氟苯胺,但低于杂质限度（6 mg/L）。该方法简便可靠,可用于吉非替尼中4种基因毒性杂质的测定,并为质量控制提供参考。     

Effect of lipid composition on phospholipase A2-catalyzed membrane leakage in immobilized liposomes: sensitization for polychlorinated biphenyls detection with antibody affinity column tandem with fluorescent liposome column

Phospholipase A(2) (PLA(2))-catalyzed membrane leakage can be detected by immobilized liposomes containing a self-quenching fluorescent dye, calcein, on an open column using off-line analysis with a fluorescent spectrophotometer. The calcein release was found to be affected by the pH value, incubation time, and liposome compositions. The fluorescent signal from the negatively charged liposomes hydrolyzed by PLA(2) was 5 times higher than that from neutral liposomes. We utilized this enzymatic reaction to amplify signal to detect polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). To achieve this goal, we conjugated an analogue of PCB, 3,4-dichloroaniline, to PLA(2). The competitive immunoreaction between the 3,4-dichloroaniline-PLA(2) conjugate and PCB samples on the anti-PCB antibody column caused the release of the bound PLA(2) conjugates in proportion to the PCB concentration. The released PLA(2) conjugates was then passed through the tandem fluorescent liposome column causing release of fluorescent dye from the liposomes. Therefore, the signal of immunocompetitive assay was amplified on the fluorescent liposome column. The tandem column system achieves a high sensitivity by detecting the PCB concentration as low as 0.5 ng/mL in less than 20 min. It has great potential in detecting other pollutants, and has been used for sensitive immunoassays.     

Analysis of pesticides and metabolites in Spanish surface waters by isotope dilution gas chromatography/mass spectrometry with previous automated solid-phase extraction Estimation of the uncertainty of the analytical results

A method based on isotope dilution gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) with automated solid-phase extraction (SPE) is described for the analysis of 32 pesticides and metabolites in surface waters. This approach consist in the use of nine isotopically labelled representative pesticides as internal standards, which allows high accuracy (trueness and precision) and sensitivity for most analysed compounds, as it is required for isotope dilution-based methods. Uncertainties associated with pesticide determination in real samples were estimated using quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) data. For most pesticides expanded uncertainty was below 40%, according to the commonly established requirements for analytical results. Ninety three Spanish surface waters collected in June-July and September-November 2004 were analysed. Concentration and occurrence of pesticides were evaluated. These parameters were higher in the summer than in the autumn period. In summer four pesticides were found in more than 50% of the analysed samples and four compounds were detected above the concentration level of 1 microg/l (atrazine, terbutylazine, 3,4-dichloroaniline and fenitrothion), while in autumn percentage of detection was below 50% for all pesticides and only one compound (terbutylazine) exceeded 1 microg/l.     

Rapid analysis of the nitrification inhibitor 3,4-dimethylpyrazole phosphate in soil using LC-MS/MS

Nitrate from the biological nitrification of ammonium fertilisers causes environmental damage via groundwater contamination and nitrous oxide emission. To limit nitrate formation, nitrification inhibitors (NIs) are used in conjunction with ammonium-based fertilisers in agricultural land management. The NI 3,4-dimethyl-1H-pyrazole phosphate (DMPP), with an active constituent 3,4-dimethyl-1H-pyrazole (3,4-DMP), is commercially available and its effectiveness and behaviour in soils have been studied. However, only one method for the analysis of 3,4-DMP in soil has been reported and relies on extensive sample preparation to remove matrix interferences prior to HPLC analysis. A new method was developed to allow monitoring of 3,4-DMP residues in soil after appliaction, which utilises the greater selectivity and sensitivity of LC-MS/MS. A 3,4-DMP limit of quantitation of 0.5 ng/g was achieved, which is 10 times more sensitive than the published method, and was achieved using 10,000 times less 3,4-DMP injected on-column, with an injection volume 100 times smaller. Four internal standards were evaluated to improve the accuracy of the extraction method. The isotope-substituted structural isomer 3,5-dimethyl pyrazole-¹⁵N₂ provided the best and most consistent recoveries over the 300-fold concentration range tested. The new method was employed to investigate the persistence and mobility of 3,4-DMP in an agricultural soil. 3,4-DMP had a half-life of 5 days in the top 0.5 cm of soil at normal and double recommended application rates, while half-lives in the 2.5 cm soil profile were 28 and 21 days, respectively. 3,4-DMP mobility in the clay loam soil tested was low, with only 15–25% of applied 3,4-DMP detected below the top 0.5 cm, suggesting the loss of 3,4-DMP was either due to volatilisation or degradation, rather than leaching into the soil profile.     

An improved sample preparation method for the sensitive detection of peptides by MALDI‐MS

We describe here an optimization study of the sample preparation conditions for sensitive detection of peptides by matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI‐MS). Among many factors in the conditions, we varied the percent acetonitrile in the peptide solution, the percent acetonitrile in the matrix solution and the α‐cyano‐4‐hydroxycinnamic acid (CHCA) concentration in the matrix solution. CHCA was chosen because it is the most frequently used matrix for analyzing peptides. The well‐established dried‐droplet method was employed for sample deposition. The examined range of the concentration of CHCA was from 0.01 to 10 mg/ml, and the MeCN content of the solvent for matrix/analyte was 10% to 50%. The indicator for the detection sensitivity was the S/N ratio of the peaks of peptides used. Highly increased sensitivity (100‐ to 1000‐fold) was observed for the optimal CHCA concentration of 0.1 mg/ml in 20% MeCN/0.1% aq. trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), as compared with the conventional concentration (10 mg/ml) in 50% MeCN/0.1% aq. TFA. For example, the limit of detection of human ACTH 18–39 was 10 amol/well for the optimal condition but 10 fmol/well for the conventional condition. The optimal condition (0.1 mg/ml CHCA in 20% MeCN/0.1% aq. TFA) was verified with five model peptides and provided significant improvement in sensitivity (by two to three orders of magnitude) compared with the conventional conditions. Optimizing the CHCA concentration and solvent composition significantly improved the detection sensitivity in the analysis of peptides by MALDI‐MS. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ionic liquid for high temperature headspace liquid-phase microextraction of chlorinated anilines in environmental water samples

Based on the non-volatility of room temperature ionic liquids (IL), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([C4MIM][PF6]) IL was employed as an advantageous extraction solvent for high temperature headspace liquid-phase microextraction (LPME) of chloroanilines in environmental water samples. At high temperature of 90 degrees C, 4-chloroaniline, 2-chloroaniline, 3,4-dichloroaniline, and 2,4-dichloroaniline were extracted into a 10 microl drop of [C4MIM][PF6] suspended on the needle of a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) microsyringe held at the headspace of the samples. Then, the IL was injected directly into the HPLC system for determination. Parameters related to LPME were optimized, and high selectivity and low detection limits of the four chlorinated anilines were obtained because the extraction was performed at high temperature in headspace mode and the very high affinity between IL and chlorinated anilines. The proposed procedure was applied for the analysis of the real samples including tap water, river water and wastewater samples from a petrochemical plant and a printworks, and only 3,4-dichloroaniline was detected in the printworks wastewater at 88.2 microg l(-1) level. The recoveries for the four chlorinated anilines in the four samples were all in the range of 81.9-99.6% at 25 microg l(-1) spiked level.     

Characterization of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for N-diisopropyloxyphosphoryl dipeptide methyl esters

A systematic study of the fragmentation pattern of N-diisopropyloxyphosphoryl (DIPP) dipeptide methyl esters in an electrospray ionization (ESI) tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) was presented. A combination of accurate mass measurement and tandem mass spectrometry had been used to characterize the major fragment ions observed in the ESI mass spectrum. It was found that the alkali metal ions acted as a fixed charge site and expelled the DIPP group after transferring a proton to the amide nitrogen. For all the N-phosphoryl dipeptide methyl esters, under the activation of a metal ion, the rearrangement product ion at m/z 163 was observed and confirmed to be the sodium adduct of phosphoric acid mono-isopropyl esters (PAIE), via a specific five-membered penta-co-ordinated phosphorus intermediate. However, no rearrangement ion was observed when a beta-amino acid was at the N-terminal. This could be used to develop a novel method for differentiating isomeric compounds when either alpha- or beta-amino acid are at the N-terminus of peptides. From the [M+Na]+ ESI-MS/MS spectra of N-phosphoryl dipeptide methyl esters (DIPP Xaa1 Xaa2 OMe), the peaks corresponding to the [M+Na Xaa1 C3H6]+ were observed and explained. The [M+Na]+ ESI-MS/MS spectra of N-phosphoryl dipeptide methyl esters with Phe located in the C-terminal, such as DIPPValPheOMe, DIPPLeuPheOMe, DIPPIlePheOMe, DIPPAlaPheOMe and DIPPPhePheOMe, had characteristic fragmentation. Two unusual gas-phase intramolecular rearrangement mechanisms were first proposed for this fragmentation. These rearrangements were not observed in dipeptide methyl ester analogs which did not contain the DIPP at the N-terminal, suggesting that this moiety was critical for the rearrangement.     

Sample stacking of fast-moving anions in capillary zone electrophoresis with pH-suppressed electroosmotic flow

On-line sample concentration of fast moving inorganic anions by large volume sample stacking (LVSS) and field enhanced sample injection (FESI) with a water plug under acidic conditions is presented. Detection sensitivity enhancements were around 100 and 1000-fold for LVSS and FESI, respectively. However, reproducibility and linearity of response in the LVSS approach is superior compared to the FESI approach.     

Online concentration of aristolochic acid I and II in Chinese medicine preparations by micellar electrokinetic chromatography

In this study, an online concentration method in micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) applying field-enhanced sample injection (FESI) mode was developed for the detection of aristolochic acids (AAs) in Chinese medicine preparations. AA-I and AA-II were baseline separated with high separation efficiency, and 100-fold enhancement of the detection sensitivity was achieved compared with those obtained from normal capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) or simple MEKC method. The proposed method was successfully applied for the determination of AAs in Chinese medicine preparations.     

Gas chromatographic determination of nitric oxide at sub-ppm levels

The highly sensitive procedure involves the reaction of nitric oxide with various aromatic amines in the presence of copper (II) halide at room temperature and the gas chromatographic measurement of the aryl halide formed with an electron capture detector. The conversion yield of nitric oxide and the sensitivity of the detector to each product were studied. The system containing 3,4-dichloroaniline and copper(II) bromide is the most sensitive; the detection limit is 0.01 ppm, which indicates the possibility of determining nitric oxide in air samples without preconcentration. Gases commonly encountered in polluted air do not interfere, except for nitrogen dioxide, which can be removed by the Saltzman method.     

Analysis of large-volume DNA markers and polymerase chain reaction products by capillary electrophoresis in the presence of electroosmotic flow

We have demonstrated on-line concentration and separation of DNA in the presence of electroosmotic flow (EOF) using poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) solutions. After injecting large-volumes DNA samples, PEO solutions entered a capillary filled with 400 mM Tris-borate (TB) buffers by EOF and acted as sieving matrices. DNA fragments stacked between the sample zone and PEO solutions. Because sample matrixes affected PEO adsorption on the capillary wall, leading to changes in EOF, migration time, concentration, and resolving power varied with the injection length. When injecting phiX174 RF DNA-HaeIII digest prepared in 5 mM Tris-HCl buffer, pH 7.0, at 250 V/cm, peak height increased linearly as a function of injection volume up to 0.9 microl (injection time 150 s). The sensitivity improvement was 100-fold compare to that injected at 25 V/cm for 10 s (0.006 microl). When injecting 1.54 microl of GeneScan 1000 ROX, the sensitivity improvement was 265-fold. The sensitivity improvement was 40-fold when injecting 0.17 microl DNA sample containing pBR 322/HaeIII, pBR 328/BglI, and pBR 328/HinfI digests prepared in phosphate-buffered saline. This method allows the analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products amplified after 17 cycles when injecting 0.32 microl (at 30 cm height for 300 s). The total analysis time was shorter (91.6 min) than that (119.6 min) obtained from injecting PCR products after 32 cycles for 10 s.     

Immuno-mass spectrometry assay of EPI-HNE4, a recombinant protein inhibitor of human elastase

In order to increase the sensitivity of liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) assays of recombinant proteins for pharmacokinetics studies, we have developed an immuno-mass spectrometry assay for EPI-hNE4, a 6237 Da protein currently developed for respiratory distress syndromes. After immunocapture of the analyte in human plasma with magnetic beads coated with anti-EPI-hNE4 antibodies, the intact protein was eluted and separated in reversed-phase LC and then analysed by tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) in selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The problem of analytical interference due to endogenous binding antibodies was addressed by successive steps of acidification and neutralisation before immunocapture. Furthermore, potential variations in the recovery of analyte during sample extraction were compensated for by addition of an internal standard recognised by the antibodies. The precision of the assay remained therefore below 15%. A significant increase in assay sensitivity was achieved since the extraction step allowed sample concentration and removal of matrix components interfering with the electrospray ionisation process. Using 0.4 mL of plasma, a limit of quantification at 0.5 ng/mL (80 pM) was reached, which represents a 10-fold improvement in sensitivity over our previous work using sample precipitation. This technique was able to monitor EPI-hNE4 kinetics in the plasma of human subjects for 36 h after an intravenous administration of 0.125 mg/kg.     

Determination of rice herbicides, their transformation products and clofibric acid using on-line solid-phase extraction followed by liquid chromatography with diode array and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometric detection

A simultaneous method for the trace determination of acidic, neutral herbicides and their transformation products in estuarine waters has been developed through an on-line solid-phase extraction method followed by liquid chromatography with diode array and mass spectrometric detection. An atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) interface was used in the negative ionization mode after optimization of the main APCI parameters. Limits of detection ranged from 0.1 to 0.02 ng/ml for 50 ml of acidified estuarine waters preconcentrated into polymeric precolumns and using time-scheduled selected ion monitoring mode. Two degradation products of the acidic herbicides (4-chloro-2-methylphenol and 2,4-dichlorophenol) did not show good signal response using APCI-MS at the concentration studied due to the higher fragmentor voltage needed for their determination. For molinate and the major degradation product of propanil, 3,4-dichloroaniline, positive ion mode was needed for APCI-MS detection. The proposed method was applied to the determination of herbicides in drainage waters from rice fields of the Delta del Ebro (Spain). During the 3-month monitoring of the herbicides, 8-hydroxybentazone and 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetic acid were successively found in those samples.     

Statistical evaluation of recovery of 3,4-dichloroaniline in soil as function of particle size and analyte concentration

A great mean value of recovery for extraction of 3,4-dichloroaniline from a soil is calculated from individual recovery values evaluated for four different fractions of the soil. Then the uncertainty associated to this great mean recovery is calculated and used to know whether to apply or not the correction in routine analysis performed for the same kind of soil and the same analyte. The most representative fractions that, as a function of particle size, can be identified in a soil are: sand (2.000-0.063 mm), coarse silt (0.063-0.020 mm), fine silt (0.020-0.002 mm) and clay (≤0.002 mm). These fractions are here considered as sub matrices of the matrix soil.To evaluate the mean recovery and its uncertainty, as a function of the sub matrix and the analyte concentration, the four blank soil fractions were spiked with the analyte at three concentration levels (10.0, 50.0 and 100.0 mg/kg) and three replicates were performed for each experiment. The 36 samples were extracted by accelerated solvent system and the amounts of 3,4-dichloroaniline were determined by RP-HPLC analysis. From the 36 individual recovery values, the great mean and its uncertainty are calculated.Experiments performed on samples of soil of similar composition, spiked with known concentrations of the same analyte showed the goodness of the mean recovery value.     

Determination of Trace Chloroanilines in Environmental Water Samples Using Hollow Fiber-Based Liquid Phase Microextraction

A liquid phase microextraction method using hollow fiber to support extraction solvent was developed for enrichment of trace level chloroanilines in environmental water samples. Target analytes, 2-chloroaniline, 3-chloroaniline, 2,3-dichloroaniline, 2,4-dichloroaniline, 3,4-dichloroaniline, and 3,5-dichloroaniline were determined using gas chromatography-flame ionization detector after extraction. Experimental conditions that affect extraction efficiency were investigated and optimized. The proposed method showed a wide linear range from lower ??g L^?1 to 1,000 ??g L^?1, low detection limits (??5.1 ??g L^?1), and reasonable relative standard deviations (RSDs < 13%). Feasibility of the method was evaluated by analyzing river water samples collected from the Hudson River and the East River in New York City.     

Measurement uncertainty arising from trueness of the analysis of two endocrine disruptors and their metabolites in environmental samples. Part I: ultrasonic extraction from diverse sediment matrices

The validation of preconcentration strategies for the simultaneous determination of two endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and their metabolites present in the aquatic environment including natural waters and freshwater sediments as well as the estimation of uncertainty arising from trueness using fully nested experimental designs are presented in a series of two papers. In this work, we present Part I of our ongoing study, the validation of an analytical method based on ultrasonic extraction of the target analytes from various freshwater sediments and the estimation of the method measurement uncertainty. The selected endocrine disruptors included two widely used herbicides, diuron (1-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-3,3-dimethylurea) and linuron (3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1-methoxy-1-methylurea) and their common degradation products namely, 3,4-dichloroaniline (3,4-DCA), 1-(3,4-dichlorophenyl) urea (DCPU) and 1-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-3-methylurea (DCPMU). A high-performance liquid chromatography system coupled to UV-diode array detector (HPLC/UV-DAD) was used for the target analytes quantification. A fully nested experimental design was applied to study the measurement uncertainty arising from trueness by estimating proportional bias (in terms of recovery). The overall recoveries, that is, those determined by the nested experiments were in the range of 59.5-85.1%, except 3,4-DCA for which a low overall recovery of 29.0% was observed. The analytical method was shown to be linear over the studied range of concentrations (5-100 microg/kg), exhibiting satisfactory repeatability and reaching limits of detection usually in the 0.6-4.6 microg/kg range on dry sediment basis. The method used permitted the determination of the target EDCs and their metabolites in sediment samples collected from selected study stations in the region of Epirus (N.W. Greece) at the concentration levels demanded by current legislation.