超高效液相色谱-四极杆串联飞行时间质谱分析黄酮类化合物及小毛茛茎叶的成分

为了探索液相色谱-质谱联用(LC-MS)技术在快速识别中药及天然产物成分中的应用,以黄酮对照品为研究前体,药用植物小毛茛为研究对象,采用超高效液相色谱/二极管阵列检测器-电喷雾四极杆串联飞行时间质谱(UPLC/DAD-ESI/Q-TOF MS)分析了黄酮类化合物同系物及同分异构体的色谱、质谱特性。结果显示:黄酮氧苷和黄酮碳苷的紫外吸收光谱及二级质谱具有显著性差异,糖苷化位置同保留时间、二级质谱碎片及相对丰度具有相关性。将该方法应用于小毛茛茎叶醇提液的分析,结合其酸水解液的分析,解析了22个黄酮醇糖苷和3个苷元。方法简便,具有可操作性。     

中药紫花地丁黄酮碳苷类化学成分的超高效液相色谱-电喷雾离子源-四极杆飞行时间串联质谱研究

采用超高效液相色谱-电喷雾离子源-四极杆飞行时间串联质谱(UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS)方法,以中药紫花地丁中分离得到的5个黄酮碳苷化合物为对照品,研究了黄酮二糖碳苷类化合物在ESI-QTOF-MS/MS质谱中的裂解规律。研究进一步证实了文献报道的黄酮二糖碳苷C-6位取代糖基较C-8位糖更易优先发生裂解;但同时发现结构中如果含有不稳定构象的糖基取代时,该规律不再适用。通过对照品的质谱裂解规律,并结合文献和高分辨质谱数据,成功表征和鉴定了紫花地丁中21个黄酮二糖碳苷类以及4个黄酮氧苷类成分。该方法能快速、灵敏、准确地对中药中微量黄酮碳苷类成分的结构进行表征和鉴定。     

苦参中黄酮类化合物的电喷雾质谱研究

采用电喷雾多级串联质谱对苦参中黄酮类化合物二氢黄酮及二氢黄酮醇类化合物的特征质谱行为进行了研究.实验结果表明,两类化合物在电喷雾多级串联质谱条件下均可以在C环发生开环断裂,但断裂的位点不同;两类化合物生成的碎片离子也有很大差异,提出了由二氢黄酮醇类化合物C环上3位连接的-OH所诱发的不同反应过程的质谱碎裂机理.     

高效液相色谱-质谱法鉴定中药复方小续命汤有效成分组中醇溶性成分

在对中药复方小续命汤进行了活性研究之后,建立了适宜的高效液相色谱-电喷雾电离-串联质谱法(HPLC-ESI-MS/MS)对小续命汤抗脑缺血有效成分组中16个主要的醇溶性成分进行鉴定。这些成分分别属于生物碱类、黄酮类和苷类。样品采用MS和MS/MS全扫描两种模式进行分析。结果显示:在电喷雾离子化过程中生物碱类成分易于质子化而成为正离子,黄酮与苷类成分则易于失去质子成为负离子。因而运用了两种流动相系统以得到这些化合物的适宜离子进行检测。对于中药复方小续命汤中有效成分进行鉴定,能为更好地阐明中药复方的有效成分及作用机制提供依据。     

山茱萸炮制过程中环烯醚萜苷类成分的质谱研究

利用高效液相色谱-电喷雾多级串联质谱(HPLC-ESI-MSn)联用技术, 对传统中药山茱萸炮制过程中环烯醚萜苷类成分的变化进行了研究. 采用反相C18色谱柱, 二元线性梯度洗脱, 分离并获得了山茱萸中7个环烯醚萜苷类化合物. 并通过电喷雾一级质谱获得了上述7种化合物的分子量信息, 利用电喷雾质谱的源内碰撞诱导解离技术, 获得了该类化合物在负离子模式下的碎裂特征, 在此基础上, 对其进行了结构鉴定和含量分析. 首次发现了差向异构体7α-乙氧基莫诺苷和7β-乙氧基莫诺苷化合物. 研究结果表明, 当采用HPLC-ESI-MS法分析山茱萸环烯醚萜苷类化合物时, 通过色谱保留时间色谱峰面积和质谱特征两方面信息能够提供更加准确可靠的定性定量结果.     

利用HPLC-ESI-MS/MS区分黄芩中黄酮C-苷异构体的研究

采用HPLC-ESI-MS/MS联用技术区分了黄芩中两种互为同分异构体的黄酮C-苷类化合物5,7-OH-6-C-阿拉伯糖-8-C-葡萄糖黄酮和5,7-OH-6-C-葡萄糖-8-C-阿拉伯糖黄酮.阐述了黄酮C-苷类化合物同分异构体的电喷雾串联质谱(ESI-MSⁿ)的特征碎裂规律,证明了[M-H-60]^-,[M-H-90]^-及[M-H-120]^-离子是其特征离子.实验结果表明,对于C-6位五碳糖取代和C-8位六碳糖取代的黄酮C-苷二级串联质谱产生的[M-H-60]^-离子(^0,3₅X),其丰度一般大于50%;而对于C-6位六碳糖取代和C-8位五碳糖取代的黄酮C-苷二级串联质谱产生的[M-H-60]^-离子(^0,3₅X),其丰度一般小于50%.据此可区分两种互为同分异构体的黄酮C-苷类化合物.     

电喷雾-离子阱-飞行时间质谱联用研究黄酮和异黄酮苷元C环上的裂解规律

采用电喷雾-离子阱-飞行时间串联质谱在负离子模式下分析了4个黄酮苷元和6个异黄酮苷元的质谱数据, 并总结了两类化合物C环上的裂解规律. 黄酮化合物C环以Rretro-Diels-Alder(RDA)裂解断裂为主, 形成A1,3-离子且相对丰度较高; 而异黄酮化合物C环断裂以碳0和碳3键的断裂为主, 形成B0,3-离子, 且相对丰度较高. 说明黄酮化合物的交叉共轭体系和异黄酮的非交叉共轭体系对C环的裂解影响较大, 而且黄酮化合物的B环和异黄酮化合物的A, B环上取代基的类型和位置对生成碎片离子的稳定性也有影响, 导致生成的碎片离子类型及其相对丰度不同, 根据其质谱数据(包括碎片离子的质荷比和相对离子丰度)可以推测黄酮类化合物的结构类型和取代状况, 为快速鉴定黄酮化合物和异黄酮化合物结构奠定了基础.     

尿苷5′-位磷酰胺的合成及电喷雾电离质谱研究

以三氯氧磷为磷酰化试剂,与尿嘧啶核苷反应,将所得中间产物尿苷磷酰二氯进行胺解,生成具有抗病毒活性的尿苷磷酰胺化合物,目标化合物结构通过核磁确认,并用电喷雾电离串联质谱(ESI MS/MS)仪检测产物,研究了此类化合物的质谱裂解规律,发现了1个类似环磷腺苷的环状裂解碎片,该结果得到密度泛函理论的支持,对尿苷含磷衍生物质谱裂解数据库是一个重要的补充.     

七叶一枝花中薯蓣皂苷的分离及结构鉴定研究

本文利用高效液相色谱-串联质谱联用方法研究了七叶一枝花中的薯蓣皂苷。实验采用高效液相色谱分离了七叶一枝花中的3种薯蓣皂苷;通过与电喷雾质谱联用获得了这几种化合物的分子量信息;再用MS/MS获得了这几种化合物进一步的结构信息。采用此方法可快速分析鉴定从七叶一枝花中分离得到的薯蓣皂苷。     

车前草中苯乙醇苷化合物的电喷雾多级串联质谱研究

利用电喷雾多级串联质谱技术研究了车前草药材中的苯乙醇苷化合物, 根据其在负离子条件下表现出的特征质谱行为, 提出了车前草中的苯乙醇苷类化合物可能的电喷雾质谱碎裂规律, 建立了车前草中苯乙醇苷化合物的快速分析、鉴定方法.     

Rapid analysis of flavonoids based on spectral library development in positive ionization mode using LC-HR-ESI-MS/MS

Natural product screening in plants has always been a difficult task due to the complex nature of the plant material and diverse structures of the compounds present in them. Flavonoids are important and diverse class of plant secondary metabolites with numerous medicinal activities. The present study focuses on the development of a high-resolution tandem mass spectral library for the rapid and authentic identification of common flavonoids. A total of forty flavonoid standards belong to class flavones, isoflavones, flavanones, flavanols and anthocyanins were pooled into two solutions applying logP-based strategy. The flavonoids were analyzed using LC-QTOF-MS high-resolution mass spectrometer with optimization of different instrumental parameters to achieve good sensitivity. The library was built by incorporating names, molecular formulae, exact masses, and MS, and MS/MS spectra of analyzed flavonoids using Bruker Library Editor tool. The fragmentation pattern observed for the standard compounds were compared to the fragments reported in the literature. To assess the practical implications, an extract of tea sample was analyzed and screened using the developed library, which resulted in the identification of three common flavonoids based on their HR-ESI-MS/MS spectral features. The established LC-HR-MS/MS method can be used for the targeted identification of flavonoids in complex samples like food material from different botanical families.     

Identification of flavonoids using liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization and ion trap tandem mass spectrometry with an MS/MS library

Searchable MS/MS spectra libraries, constructed using the results of liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization (ESI) tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) with data-dependent acquisition on an ion trap mass spectrometer, are presented with regard to the identification and confirmation of a variety of closely related flavonoids in a set of biological samples. Flavonoids were found to exhibit a maximum amount of structurally specific MS/MS spectra at 45% of normalized collision energy on the instrument used, without wideband activation. These MS/MS spectra were then searched automatically against a 297-substance MS/MS library that contains many previously acquired spectra of standard flavonoids. The possible applications of this powerful technique to biological samples are also discussed. Daidzein and genistein were identified through the MS/MS spectra library while searching through LC/MS/MS data for plant and microbial extracts. Moreover, these compounds proved completely distinguishable from other flavonoids of closely related structures in the MS/MS spectra library, using the NIST MS search program. The applicability of the library-searchable spectra at low concentrations was demonstrated by successful identification of daidzein and genistein at 0.05 and 0.5 microg/mL, respectively.     

Liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for the characterization of twenty-three flavonoids in the extract of Dalbergia odorifera

A method incorporating high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrospray ionization and tandem mass spectrometry, with parallel analysis by HPLC with UV detection using a diode-array detector, was developed for the qualitative characterization of flavonoids in D. odorifera. Twenty-three flavonoids, including six isoflavones, six neoflavones, four isoflavanones, three flavanones, two chalcones, one isoflavanonol and one pterocarpan, were unambiguously identified by comparing their retention times, UV and MS spectra with those of authentic compounds. Furthermore, the collision-induced dissociations of the [M-H]- ions were studied to clarify the MS behavior of the different types of flavonoids. In negative ion ESI-MS all the flavonoids yielded prominent [M-H]- ions in the first order mass spectra. Fragments involving losses of CH3*, H2O, CO, C2H2O, and CO2 were observed in the MS/MS spectra. Each of the seven types of flavonoid showed characteristic MS/MS fragmentation patterns. The isoflavanones, flavanones and chalcones were observed to undergo retro-Diels-Alder fragmentations. The spectra of almost all the neoflavonoids unexpectedly exhibited only [M-H-CH3]-* radical anions as base peaks without any further fragmentation. Substitution positions also remarkably influenced the fragmentation behavior, which could assist in distinction among the flavonoid isomers. The fragmentation rules deduced here could aid in the characterization of other flavonoids of these types.     

Characterization of polyphenolic compounds in unripe chinotto (Citrus myrtifolia) fruit by HPLC/PDA/ESI/MS-MS

The flavonoid and furocoumarin composition was investigated of peel and pulp tissues of unripe fruits of Citrus myrtifolia Rafinesque, an ingredient of the popular soft drink "chinotto". Compound separation and identification was made using an HPLC-PDA detector coupled to ESI/MS/MS in positive and negative mode. Eighteen compounds (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-, C- and O-glycosyl flavonoids, furocoumarins and polymethoxylated flavones) were identified and quantified. Data indicated that the overall amount of flavonoids and furocoumarins in peel was higher than in the pulp, even though their relative distribution did not significantly change, apart from a different distribution of flavones and a lower content of naringin in the peel.     

Detection of flavonoids from Spinacia oleracea leaves using HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS and UPLC-QqQLIT-MS/MS techniques

Spinacia oleracea L. (Spinach) is a leafy vegetable which is considered to have a high nutritional value. Flavonoids in spinach were reported to act as antimutagenic property. Rapid detection of these flavonoids in Spinach was achieved by using HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS. Thirty six compounds were tentatively identified based on their retention times, accurate mass and MS/MS spectra. The fragmentation patterns of known compounds were applied to elucidate the structure of their corresponding derivatives having the same basic skeleton. Out of thirty six peaks, three peaks were assigned as patuletin and six peaks were assigned as spinacetin derivatives. Twelve compounds were first time identified following the fragmentation pattern of known compounds. Five of the identified compounds i.e., spinacetin, 5,3′,4′-trihydroxy-3-methoxy-6,7-methylenedioxyflavone, protocatechuic acid, ferulic acid and coumaric acid were simultaneously quantified in spinach leaves by a validated UPLC-ESI-MS/MS method under MRM mode.     

Development of a Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry Method for Identification of Flavonoids in Ginkgo biloba

A rapid, selective and sensitive method for analysis of trace flavonoids and its glycoside derivatives in ginkgo has proposed. Ultrasonic‐assisted extraction of sample preparation was adopted to extract trace flavonoids in ginkgo leaf and its processed product. The compounds were identified using liquid chromatography negative electrospray ionization triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). The neutral loss scan mode of MS/MS was used to screen flavonoid compounds and those compounds with acid group, or having rhamnosyl, glucosyl, or coumaroyl moiety in the samples. The successive data‐dependent product ion scan mode of MS/MS was used to identify the structure of the components. The analytical results represented three aglycone flavonoids and seven flavonoid glycosides in ginkgo. The method detection limits were evaluated for the analytes analyzed in the range of 0.88 to 2.67 μg/mL.     

Screening flavonoid metabolites of naringin and narirutin in urine after human consumption of grapefruit juice by LC-MS and LC-MS/MS

The main flavonoids in grapefruit juice, naringin and narirutin, were quantified by LC-MS with structural differentiation by LC-MS/MS. After human consumption of grapefruit juice, urine samples were collected for 24 hours and screened for flavonoid metabolites by LC-MS. The metabolite structures (glucuronides, sulfates, and glucuronide sulfates) were then confirmed via their unique fragmentation patterns by LC-MS/MS. To further verify the identity of the common aglycon (naringenin) shared by the metabolites, enzymatic hydrolysis was performed and the resulting products were analyzed. This work demonstrates that LC-MS and LC-MS/MS techniques can be used for fast metabolite screening without extensive sample preparation.     

Characterization of the interglycosidic linkage in di-, tri-, tetra- and pentaglycosylated flavonoids and differentiation of positional isomers by liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

The LC/UV-DAD/ESI-MSn negative fragmentation mode of 23 O-glycosylated flavonoids with two, three, four and five hexoses was studied. The results show that it is possible to differentiate the (1-->2) and (1-->6) interglucosidic linkages and also to discern between the flavonoid isomers with two glucoses (sophorosides, gentiobiosides and X,Y-diglucosides), three glucoses (sophorotriosides and X-sophoroside-Y-glucoside) and four glucoses (X-sophorotriosides-Y-glucoside and X-sophoroside-Y-sophoroside). In the characterization of the (1-->2) and (1-->6) interglycosidic linkages, the Y1- (-162 u) and Z1- (-180 u) ions play a relevant role. In the first case ions with high relative abundance (13-79%) are found, whereas in the other cases they are in very low abundance or absent. X,Y-di-O-glucoside flavonoids can be differentiated from the O-diglucoside flavonoids by the presence of Y1- (base peak) and Y0- (approximately 30%) ions and the absence of Z1- ions. Regarding flavonoids glycosylated with three glucoses, X-sophoroside-Y-glucoside flavonoids show the Y7(0-) (-162 u) ion as the only peak in MS2 events whereas in sophorotrioside flavonoids various ions due to intermediate fragmentations are observed. These ions are characteristic of a (1-->2) interglucosidic linkage. In MS2 experiments on flavonoids with four glucoses (X-sophorotrioside-Y-glucoside and X-sophoroside-Y-sophoroside), the base peak indicated the total loss of the sugar moieties in position 7. In addition, the characterization of the type of interglycosidic linkage in flavonoids glycosylated with five sugars can be achieved. On the other hand, in tetra- and pentaglycosylated flavonoids, the ions that characterize the (1-->2) interglucosidic linkage formed by intermediate fragmentation of the oligosacharide residues (sophorosides and sophorotriosides) are found in much higher relative abundance in MS3 than in MS2 experiments, where they are almost not detected.     

Rapid Screening and Identification of Polar Constituents from Brazilian Arnica Lychnophora sp. by LC-UV/DAD-ESI-MS and LC-UV/DAD-ESI-MS/MS Analysis

This paper describes an analytical method for the rapid screening and identification of the phenolic constituents present in the polar extracts of different Lychnophora spp. using LC-UV/DAD-ESI-MS and LC-UV/DAD-ESI-MS/MS. Compounds were identified based on UV, retention time, MS experiments and MS/MS of precursor ion or standard. On-line phytochemical investigation of Lychnophora spp. allowed for the identification of flavonoids, chlorogenic acid derivatives and lactones. Some of the observed compounds were for the first time identified in Lychnophora species in a fast analytical procedure. The data obtained here may be helpful to the investigation of polar constituents from other Lychnophora species.     

Determination of flavonoids in citrus juices by micro-HPLC-ESI/MS

Flavonoids are a large class of naturally occurring aromatic secondary plant metabolites. They constitute one of the most characteristic classes found in nature and more than 4000 flavonoids have been identified and divided into several subclasses. Flavonoids have several effects on human health, mainly related to their antioxidant activity. As a result of the increased interest in the biologically active compounds in food, many research studies have investigated the detection and quantification of antioxidants. Citrus plants are of great interest since they accumulate large amounts of flavonoids and fruit and juices of these species are consumed in large quantities. Despite the extensive research performed on Citrus flavonoids, many compounds still remain unidentified. In this work, flavonoids of five citrus juices: lemon, grapefruit, bergamot, orange, and mandarin were analyzed by microHPLC coupled on-line with an MS detector equipped with an ESI source operating in negative mode. The use of microcolumn HPLC greatly enhanced detection performance. In total, 20 flavonoids of two different subclasses (flavanone and flavone glycosides) were identified with the help of retention data and MS spectral information.