Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry for the determination of salvianolic acid B,a natural compound from the herb Danshen in rat plasma and application to pharmacokinetic study

A sensitive and specific liquid chromatographic–electrospray ionization mass spectrometric method was developed for quantification of salvianolic acid B in rat plasma with resveratrol as the internal standard. The analytes were separated on a reversed‐phase column with acetonitrile (40%) and water (60%) containing 0.75% formic acid as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Liquid–liquid extraction was adopted for the sample preparation, and the analytes were determined using electrospray negative ionization mass spectrometry in the selective monitoring mode. The method was validated over the concentration range 0.1–40 µg/mL using 0.1 mL of plasma with coefficients of correlation >0.999. The intra‐ and inter‐day precisions of analysis were <10%, and accuracy ranged from 94 to 101%. This method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetics of salvianolic acid B in rats. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A novel rearrangement in electrospray ionization multistage tandem mass spectrometry of amino acid ester cyclohexyl phosphoramidates of AZT

Several amino acid ester cyclohexyl phosphoramidates of AZT as anti-HIV prodrugs were synthesized and investigated by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS(n)). A novel methoxy group migration from the carbonyl group to the phosphoryl group was observed in ESI-MS2. This migration is believed to be a general pathway for ions with a methyl ester moiety at the gamma-position to a phosphoric acid moiety, which is assisted with metal ions such as Li(+), Na(+) and K(+). Coordination between metal ions with both the carbonyl oxygen and phosphoryl oxygen might be a key factor responsible for this migration.     

Compounds having thiourea moiety as derivatization reagents in liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI‐MS/MS): synthesis of derivatization reagents for carboxylic acids

The derivatization reagents for carboxylic acids, N‐(Pyridin‐3‐yl)hydrazinecarbothioamide, N‐[4‐(dimethylamino)phenyl]hydrazinecarbothioamide, 1‐(2‐aminoethyl)‐3‐(pyridin‐3‐yl)thiourea, 1‐(2‐aminoethyl)‐3‐[4‐(dimethylamino)phenyl]thiourea and 4‐(2‐aminoethyl)‐N‐phenylpiperazine‐1‐carbothioamide were synthesized. These reagents reacted with carboxylic acids at 60°C for 45 min in the presence of the condensation reagents. The generated derivatives were favorably separated on the reversed‐phase column and sensitively detected by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. These reagents enhanced the electrospray ionization response of the analyte and generated a particular product ion efficiently by collision‐induced dissociation, and thus they were suitable for MS/MS detection. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

One step purification of the grape vacuolar invertase

Invertase is a major protein of grape juice and wine. Accordingly, in order to study the biochemical and structural characteristics of this protein and for a better understanding of its physico-chemical properties, large amounts of the pure protein are needed. A simple method for the purification of the grape vacuolar invertase in a preparative-scale is described in this work. The grape protein was isolated and purified from must by ultrafiltration and anion exchange chromatography. The identification and purity determination of the grape invertase fraction were assessed by SDS-PAGE, and were then confirmed using nanoLC-chip-MS/MS analysis. The laboratory fractionation procedure presented in this work generated large quantities of pure grape vacuolar invertase from must.     

高效液相色谱-电喷雾串联质谱法测定饲料中的N-氨基甲酰-L-谷氨酸

建立了高效液相色谱-电喷雾串联质谱(HPLC-ESI-MS/MS)测定饲料中N-氨基甲酰-L-谷氨酸(NCG)含量的方法。饲料样品经甲醇提取、混合型强阴离子交换反相固相萃取(PXA)柱净化、HPLC分离后,采用ESI-MS/MS在正离子多反应监测(MRM)模式下进行检测,以碎片离子m/z 148.0和m/z 84.0进行定性,以碎片离子m/z 130.0进行定量。NCG的检出限(S/N >3)为24 μg/kg,定量限(S/N >10)为80 μg/kg,在20~1000 μg/L的质量浓度范围内峰面积与含量的线性关系良好,相关系数为0.9999。对饲料中NCG在80、200、500 mg/kg等3个添加水平下的回收率进行了测定,分别为104.0%、103.5%、95.3%,相对标准偏差分别为7.5%、6.3%、5.8%。结果表明,该方法操作简单,净化效果好,快速,灵敏度和准确度高,符合对饲料样品中NCG检测分析的要求。     

Analysis of peptides and protein digests by reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry using neutral pH elution conditions

In this study, the advantages of carrying out the analysis of peptides and tryptic digests of proteins under gradient elution conditions at pH 6.5 by reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and in-line electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) are documented. For these RP separations, a double endcapped, bidentate anchored n-octadecyl wide pore silica adsorbent was employed in a capillary column format. Compared to the corresponding analysis of the same peptides and protein tryptic digests using low pH elution conditions for their RP-HPLC separation, this alternative approach provides improved selectivity and more efficient separation of these analytes, thus allowing a more sensitive identification of proteins at different abundance levels, i.e. more tryptic peptides from the same protein could be confidently identified, enabling higher sequence coverage of the protein to be obtained. This approach was further evaluated with very complex tryptic digests derived from a human plasma protein sample using an online two-dimensional (2D) strong cation-exchange (SCX)-RP-HPLC-ESI-MS/MS system. Again, at pH 6.5, with mobile phases of different compositions, improved chromatographic selectivities were obtained, concomitant with more sensitive on-line electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometric (ESI-MS/MS) analysis. As a consequence, more plasma proteins could be confidently identified, highlighting the potential of these RP-HPLC methods with elution at pH 6.5 to extend further the scope of proteomic investigations.     

Atmospheric pressure photoionization for coupling liquid-chromatography to mass spectrometry: A review

This review presents the state-of-the-art techniques that couple liquid chromatography (LC) and mass spectrometry (MS) via atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI). The different ionization mechanisms are discussed as well as the influence of the mobile phase composition, the nature of the dopant, etc. A comparison with other ionization sources, such as electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI), is reported, and the combination of APPI with these sources is also discussed. Several applications, covering the time period of 2005-2008, for the analysis of drugs, lipids, natural compounds, pesticides, synthetic organics, petroleum derivatives, and other substances are presented.     

Absolute quantification of superoxide dismutase in cytosol and mitochondria of mice hepatic cells exposed to mercury by a novel metallomic approach

In the last years, the development of new methods for analyzing accurate and precise individual metalloproteins is of increasing importance, since numerous metalloproteins are excellent biomarkers of oxidative stress and diseases. In that way, methods based on the use of post column isotopic dilution analysis (IDA) or enriched protein standards are required to obtain a sufficient degree of accuracy, precision and high limits of detection. This paper reports the identification and absolute quantification of Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase (Cu,Zn-SOD) in cytosol and mitochondria from mice hepatic cells using a innovative column switching analytical approach. The method consisted of orthogonal chromatographic systems coupled to inductively coupling plasma-mass spectrometry equipped with a octopole reaction systems (ICP-ORS-MS) and UV detectors: size exclusion fractionation (SEC) of the cytosolic and mitochondrial extracts followed by online anion exchange chromatographic (AEC) separation of Cu/Zn containing species. After purification, Cu,Zn-SOD was identified after tryptic digestion by molecular mass spectrometry (MS). The MS/MS spectrum of a doubly charged peptide was used to obtain the sequence of the protein using the MASCOT searching engine. This optimized methodology reduces the time of analysis and avoids the use of sample preconcentration and clean-up procedures, such as cut-off centrifuged filters, solid phase extraction (SPE), precipitation procedures, off-line fractions insolates, etc. In this sense, the method is robust, reliable and fast with typical chromatographic run time less than 20 min. Precision in terms of relative standard deviation (n = 5) is of 3–5% and detection limits is 0.21 ng Cu g⁻¹.     

Evaluation of isotope-coded protein labeling (ICPL) in the quantitative analysis of complex proteomes

An evaluation of the ICPL (isotope-coded protein labeling) non-isobaric labeling technique was performed using two different biological models. Two samples containing phage T4 capsids were mixed in a 1:1 ratio after being labeled with the light or heavy versions of the ICPL reagent. The analysis of this proteome demonstrated the feasibility of this approach for differential quantitative proteomics and was employed to optimize the experimental parameters of the ICPL workflow. ICPL-mediated analysis of two more complex proteomes, those of a Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium virulent strain and an isogenic attenuated mutant, and its comparison with the results obtained in a 2D-PAGE “classical” approach confirmed that ICPL is a valuable alternative to other labeling techniques currently in use. In addition, our results suggest that labeling at the peptide level instead of following the standard ICPL workflow should increase both the number of proteins quantified and the reliability of the quantification.     

Sample cleanup-free determination of mycophenolic acid and its glucuronide in serum and plasma using the novel technology of ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

Mycophenolic acid (MPA) is an immunosuppressant drug which powerfully inhibits lymphocyte proliferation. Since the early 1990s it has been used to prevent rejection in organ transplantation. The requirement of therapeutic drug monitoring shown in previous studies raises the necessity of acquiring accurate and sensitive methods to measure MPA and its major metabolite mycophenolic acid glucuronide (MPAG).The authors developed a sample cleanup-free, rapid, and highly specific method for simultaneous measurement of MPA and MPAG in human plasma and serum using the novel technology of ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. MPA- and MPAG-determinations were performed during a 2.0-min run time. Multiple calibration curves for the analysis of MPA and MPAG exhibited consistent linearity and reproducibility in the range of 0.05-100 (r > 0.999) mg L⁻¹ and 4-4000 mg L⁻¹ (r > 0.999), respectively. Limits of Detection were 0.014 mg L⁻¹ for MPA and 1.85 mg L⁻¹ for MPAG. Lower Limits of Quantification were 0.05 mg L⁻¹ for MPA and 2.30 mg L⁻¹ for MPAG. Interassay imprecision was <10% for both substances. Mean recovery was 103.6% (range 78.1-129.7%) for MPA and 111.1% (range 73.0-139.6%) for MPAG. Agreement was good for MPA and MPAG between the presented method and a validated HPLC-MS/MS method. The Passing-Bablok regression line for MPA and MPAG was HPLC-MS/MS = 1.14 UPLC-MS/MS—0.14 [mg L⁻¹], r = 0.96, and HPLC-MS/MS = 0.77 UPLC-MS/MS + 0.50 [mg L⁻¹], r = 0.97, respectively. This sample cleanup-free and robust LC-MS/MS assay facilitates the rapid, accurate and simultaneous determination of MPA and MPAG in human body fluids.     

Isoliquiritigenin (4,2′,4′-trihydroxychalcone): A new matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization matrix with outstanding properties for the analysis of neutral oligosaccharides

A novel matrix of isoliquiritigenin (ISL), a flavonoid with a chalcone structure (4,2′,4′-trihydroxychalcone), was demonstrated to be advantageous in the analysis of neutral oligosaccharides by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). With ISL as a matrix, adequate signal for an analyte can be obtained in much lower matrix concentrations and laser intensity compared to commonly used MALDI matrices. Four different sample preparation methods were tested, and the dried droplet method exhibited the best performance on MALDI-TOF-MS analysis of oligosaccharides with ISL as a matrix. For the analysis of carbohydrates, compared with popular matrices such as 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (DHB) and 2,4,6-trihydroxyacetophenone (THAP), ISL exhibited outstanding matrix properties as follows: (1) higher homogeneity of crystallization thus allowing automatic data acquisition, (2) better spectral quality in terms of resolution and signal to noise ratio (S N⁻¹), (3) better salt tolerance, (4) higher sensitivity, and (5) enough fragmentation yield to use LIFT-TOF/TOF MS to get richer structural information. In addition, reliable quantitative analysis of oligosaccharides with a good linearity over two concentration orders (1–100 pmol μL⁻¹) and good reproducibility of the signal intensity (RSD less than 15%) were achieved using this matrix. These results give a new outlook on high-speed analysis of neutral carbohydrates by MALDI-TOF MS.     

Determination of technetium-99 in environmental samples: A review

Due to the lack of a stable technetium isotope, and the high mobility and long half-life, ⁹⁹Tc is considered to be one of the most important radionuclides in safety assessment of environmental radioactivity as well as nuclear waste management. ⁹⁹Tc is also an important tracer for oceanographic research due to the high technetium solubility in seawater as TcO₄⁻. A number of analytical methods, using chemical separation combined with radiometric and mass spectrometric measurement techniques, have been developed over the past decades for determination of ⁹⁹Tc in different environmental samples. This article summarizes and compares recently reported chemical separation procedures and measurement methods for determination of ⁹⁹Tc. Due to the extremely low concentration of ⁹⁹Tc in environmental samples, the sample preparation, pre-concentration, chemical separation and purification for removal of the interferences for detection of ⁹⁹Tc are the most important issues governing the accurate determination of ⁹⁹Tc. These aspects are discussed in detail in this article. Meanwhile, the different measurement techniques for ⁹⁹Tc are also compared with respect to advantages and drawbacks. Novel automated analytical methods for rapid determination of ⁹⁹Tc using solid extraction or ion exchange chromatography for separation of ⁹⁹Tc, employing flow injection or sequential injection approaches are also discussed.     

Recent advances in sample preparation techniques and methods of sulfonamides detection – A review

Sulfonamides (SAs) have been the most widely used antimicrobial drugs for more than 70 years, and their residues in foodstuffs and environmental samples pose serious health hazards. For this reason, sensitive and specific methods for the quantification of these compounds in numerous matrices have been developed. This review intends to provide an updated overview of the recent trends over the past five years in sample preparation techniques and methods for detecting SAs. Examples of the sample preparation techniques, including liquid–liquid and solid-phase extraction, dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction and QuEChERS, are given. Different methods of detecting the SAs present in food and feed and in environmental, pharmaceutical and biological samples are discussed.     

“Polymeromics”: Mass spectrometry based strategies in polymer science toward complete sequencing approaches: A review

Mass spectrometry (MS) is the most versatile and comprehensive method in “OMICS” sciences (i.e. in proteomics, genomics, metabolomics and lipidomics). The applications of MS and tandem MS (MS/MS or MSⁿ) provide sequence information of the full complement of biological samples in order to understand the importance of the sequences on their precise and specific functions. Nowadays, the control of polymer sequences and their accurate characterization is one of the significant challenges of current polymer science. Therefore, a similar approach can be very beneficial for characterizing and understanding the complex structures of synthetic macromolecules. MS-based strategies allow a relatively precise examination of polymeric structures (e.g. their molar mass distributions, monomer units, side chain substituents, end-group functionalities, and copolymer compositions). Moreover, tandem MS offer accurate structural information from intricate macromolecular structures; however, it produces vast amount of data to interpret. In “OMICS” sciences, the software application to interpret the obtained data has developed satisfyingly (e.g. in proteomics), because it is not possible to handle the amount of data acquired via (tandem) MS studies on the biological samples manually. It can be expected that special software tools will improve the interpretation of (tandem) MS output from the investigations of synthetic polymers as well. Eventually, the MS/MS field will also open up for polymer scientists who are not MS-specialists. In this review, we dissect the overall framework of the MS and MS/MS analysis of synthetic polymers into its key components. We discuss the fundamentals of polymer analyses as well as recent advances in the areas of tandem mass spectrometry, software developments, and the overall future perspectives on the way to polymer sequencing, one of the last Holy Grail in polymer science.     

Ultra high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight analysis for the identification and the determination of resveratrol and its metabolites in mouse plasma

Resveratrol is a polyphenol that has numerous interesting biological properties, but, per os, it is quickly metabolized. Some of its metabolites are more concentrated than resveratrol, may have greater biological activities, and may act as a kind of store for resveratrol. Thus, to understand the biological impact of resveratrol on a physiological system, it is crucial to simultaneously analyze resveratrol and its metabolites in plasma. This study presents an analytical method based on UHPLC-Q-TOF mass spectrometry for the quantification of resveratrol and of its most common hydrophilic metabolites. The use of ¹³C- and D-labeled standards specific to each molecule led to a linear calibration curve on a larger concentration range than described previously. The use of high resolution mass spectrometry in the full scan mode enabled simultaneous identification and quantification of some hydrophilic metabolites not previously described in mice. In addition, UHPLC separation, allowing run times lower than 10 min, can be used in studies that requiring analysis of many samples.     

Multi-analyte high performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution tandem mass spectrometry method for control of pesticide residues,mycotoxins, and pyrrolizidine alkaloids

A new reliable and highly sensitive method based on high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) separation and high resolution tandem mass spectrometric detection (HRMS/MS) has been developed and validated for determination of 323 pesticide residues, 55 mycotoxins, and 11 plant toxins represented by pyrrolizidine alkaloids. The method was validated for three matrices, leek, wheat, and tea differing in nature/amount of co-extracts that may cause various matrix effects. For target analytes isolation, optimized QuEChERS-based (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) extraction procedure was employed. Spectral HRMS/MS library has been established providing an entire spectrum of fragment ions for each analyte, which allows unbiased identification and confirmation of target compounds. The limits of quantification (LOQs) of target analytes were below 10 μg kg⁻¹ for 82%, 81%, and 61% for matrices leek, wheat, and tea, respectively. Recoveries were in the acceptable range (70–120%) according to SANCO/12571/2013 for most of target analytes, except for highly polar ‘masked’ mycotoxin deoxynivalenol-3-glucoside with recoveries 35%, 47%, and 42% for matrices leek, wheat, and tea, respectively. The linearities of calibration curves expressed as coefficients of determination were in the range of 0.9661–1.000, and repeatabilities expressed as relative standard deviations (RSDs) at LOQs lied in the range of 0.25–13.51%. The trueness of the method was verified using several certified reference materials (CRMs) and proficiency test samples.     

Zirconium silicate assisted removal of residual proteins after organic solvent deproteinization of human plasma,enhancing the stability of the LC–ESI-MS response for the bioanalysis of small molecules

An efficient blood plasma clean-up method was developed, where methanol protein precipitation was applied, followed by zirconium silicate assisted exclusion of residual proteins. A strong binding of zirconium (IV) silicate to the proteins enabled the elimination of remaining proteins after solvent deproteinization through a rapid solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI/TOF MS) was used for monitoring the proteins during clean-up practice applied to human plasma samples. The proteins were quantified by colorimetric detection using the bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay. The presented analytical strategy resulted in the depletion of >99.6% proteins from human plasma samples. Furthermore, high-performance liquid chromatography hyphenated to diode-array and electrospray ionization mass spectrometric detection (HPLC–DAD/ESI MS) was applied for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the caffeoylquinic acids (CQAs) and their metabolites in human plasma. The procedure demonstrated high recoveries for the standard compounds spiked at different concentrations. Cynarin and chlorogenic acid were recovered in the range of 81–86% and 78–83%, respectively. Caffeic acid was extracted in the excess of 89–92%, while ferulic acid and dihydroxyhydrocinnamic acid showed a recovery of 87–91% and 92–95%, respectively. The method was partially validated in accordance with FDA-Industry Guidelines for Bioanalytical Method Validation (2001). The presented scheme improves the clean-up efficacy of the methanol deproteinization, significantly reduces the matrix effects and provides a great analytical tool for the isolation of small molecules from human plasma.     

Identification of novel circulating coffee metabolites in human plasma by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

This study reports a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method for the detection of polyphenol-derived metabolites in human plasma without enzymatic treatment after coffee consumption. Separation of available standards was achieved by reversed-phase ultra performance liquid chromatography and detection was performed by high resolution mass spectrometry in negative electrospray ionization mode. This analytical method was then applied for the identification and relative quantification of circulating coffee metabolites. A total of 34 coffee metabolites (mainly reduced, sulfated and methylated forms of caffeic acid, coumaric acid, caffeoylquinic acid and caffeoylquinic acid lactone) were identified based on mass accuracy (<4 ppm for most metabolites), specific fragmentation pattern and co-chromatography (when standard available). Among them, 19 circulating coffee metabolites were identified for the first time in human plasma such as feruloylquinic acid lactone, sulfated and glucuronidated forms of feruloylquinic acid lactone and sulfated forms of coumaric acid. Phenolic acid derivatives such as dihydroferulic acid, dihydroferulic acid 4'-O-sulfate, caffeic acid 3'-O-sulfate, dimethoxycinnamic acid, dihydrocaffeic acid and coumaric acid O-sulfate appeared to be the main metabolites circulating in human plasma after coffee consumption. The described method is a sensitive and reliable approach for the identification of coffee metabolites in biological fluids. In future, this analytical method will give more confidence in compound identification to provide a more comprehensive assessment of coffee polyphenol bioavailability studies in humans.     

A sensitive and simple ultra-high-performance-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry based method for the quantification of D-amino acids in body fluids

D-Amino acids are increasingly being recognized as important signaling molecules in mammals, including humans. D-Serine and D-aspartate are believed to act as signaling molecules in the central nervous system. Interestingly, several other D-amino acids also occur in human plasma, but very little is currently known regarding their function and origin. Abnormal levels of D-amino acids have been implicated in the pathogenesis of different diseases, including schizophrenia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), indicating that D-amino acid levels hold potential as diagnostic markers. Research into the biological functions of D-amino acids is hindered, however, by the lack of sufficiently sensitive, high-throughput analytical methods. In particular, the interference of large amounts of L-amino acids in biological samples and the low concentrations of D-amino acids are challenging. In this paper, we compared 7 different chiral derivatization agents for the analysis of D-amino acids and show that the chiral reagent (S)-NIFE offers outstanding performance in terms of sensitivity and enantioselectivity. An UPLC-MS/MS based method for the quantification of D-amino acids human biological fluids was then developed using (S)-NIFE. Baseline separation (R(s)>2.45) was achieved for the isomers of all 19 chiral proteinogenic amino acids. The limit of detection was <1 nM for all amino acids except d-alanine (1.98 nM), d-methionine (1.18 nM) and d-asparagine (5.15 nM). For measurements in human plasma, cerebrospinal fluid and urine, the accuracy ranged between 85% and 107%. The intra-assay and inter-assay were both <16% RSD for these three different matrices. Importantly, the method does not suffer from spontaneous racemization during sample preparation and derivatization. Using the described method, D-amino acid levels in human cerebrospinal fluid, plasma and urine were measured.