LC-MS/MS-based multibiomarker approaches for the assessment of human exposure to mycotoxins

Mycotoxins are toxic fungal secondary metabolites that frequently contaminate food and feed worldwide, and hence represent a major hazard for food and feed safety. To estimate human exposure arising from contaminated food, so-called biomarker approaches have been developed as a complementary biomonitoring tool besides traditional food analysis. The first methods based on radioimmunoassays and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays as well as on liquid chromatography were developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s for the carcinogenic aflatoxins and in the last two decades further tailor-made methods for some major mycotoxins have been published. Since 2010, there has been a clear trend towards the development and application of multianalyte methods based on liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry for assessment of mycotoxin exposure made possible by the increased sensitivity and selectivity of modern mass spectrometry instrumentation and sophisticated sample cleanup approaches. With use of these advanced methods, traces of mycotoxins and relevant breakdown and conjugation products can be quantified simultaneously in human urine as so-called biomarkers and can be used to precisely describe the real exposure, toxicokinetics, and bioavailability of the toxins present. In this article, a short overview and comparison of published multibiomarker methods focusing on the determination of mycotoxins and relevant excretion products in human urine is presented. Special attention is paid to the main challenges when analyzing these toxic food contaminants in urine, i.e., very low analyte concentrations, appropriate sample preparation, matrix effects, and a lack of authentic, NMR-confirmed calibrants and reference materials. Finally, the progress in human exposure assessment studies facilitated by these analytical methods is described and an outlook on probable developments and possibilities is presented.

Measuring methotrexate polyglutamates in red blood cells: a new LC-MS/MS-based method

The folate antagonist methotrexate (MTX) is the anchor drug in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. The therapeutic effects of MTX are attributed to the intracellular levels of MTX, present in the cell as polyglutamates (MTXPGn). We developed a new liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS)-based assay to separately quantitate MTXPGn in red blood cells using stable-isotope-labelled internal standards. Samples were analyzed by LC-ESI-MS/MS using a Waters Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column with a 5–100% organic gradient of 10 mM ammonium bicarbonate (pH 10) and methanol. The analysis consisted of simple sample preparation and a 6-min run time. Detection was done using a Waters Acquity UPLC coupled to a Waters Quattro Premier XE with electrospray ionization operating in the positive ionization mode. Assay validation was performed following recent Food and Drug Administration guidelines. The method was linear from 1–1,000 nM for all MTXPGn (R ²?>?0.99). The coefficient of variation ranged from 1–4% for intraday precision and 6–15% for interday precision. Samples were stable for at least 1 month at ?80 °C. Recovery ranged from 98–100%, and the relative matrix-effect varied from 95–99%. The lower limit of quantitation was 1 nM for each MTXPGn. Fifty patient samples from the tREACH study were analyzed. The MTXPGn concentration and distribution of these samples were comparable with values reported in literature. The developed LC-ESI-MS/MS method for the quantitative measurement of MTXPGn in red blood cells is both sensitive and precise within the clinically relevant range. The method can be easily applied in clinical laboratories due to the combination of simple pre-treatment with robust LC-ESI-MS/MS.

Improved and simplified tissue extraction method for quantitating long-chain acyl-coenzyme A thioesters with picomolar detection using high-performance liquid chromatography.

A method has been developed that permits rapid and easy tissue extraction of long-chain acyl-coenzyme A (acyl-CoA) thioesters with sensitive quantitation by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Tissue homogenants are extracted using a reserve Bligh-Dyer technique, and long-chain acyl-CoA esters are harvested in the methanolic aqueous phase. Complex lipids and phospholipids are removed in the chloroform-rich organic Bligh-Dyer second phase, and long-chain acyl-CoA compounds are further purified from the methanolic aqueous Bligh-Dyer first phase on C18 extraction columns after removal of the methanol. The eluted and purified acyl-CoA esters are then quantitated by RP-HPLC using heptadecanoyl-CoA as an internal standard resulting in a detector sensitivity of about 12 pmol. Ten long-chain acyl-CoA esters from C12:0 to C20:4 were identified and separated from canine renal cortex and murine liver samples. The predominant acyl-CoA peaks from both kidney and liver were 14:0, 16:1, 16:0, 18:1, 18:2 and 20:4. Murine liver also produced 18:0 and all peaks disappeared after alkaline hydrolysis of the samples. This extraction and quantitation technique can successfully be used for tissue samples as small as 20 mg, and many samples can be processed in a short period of time. The simplicity of the extraction procedure and the sensitivity of the assay make this an attractive alternative approach to quantitating long-chain acyl-CoA thioesters from complex biological samples such as tissues.     

Sensitive and selective analysis of coenzyme Q10 in human serum by negative APCI LC-MS

Two new sensitive and selective LC-MS methods have been developed for the quantification of the total coenzyme Q(10) concentration in human blood serum. The sensitivity of the methods is based on the very efficient formation of the radical anions of CoQ(10)[M(-)[radical dot]] by negative atmospheric pressure ionisation, APCI(-). The mass detection of the [M(-)[radical dot]] ions, m/z= 862.6, was performed either in selective ion monitoring (SIM) or in MS(2) mode (m/z= 862.6 [rightward arrow]m/z= 847.6) using an LCQ-deca ion-trap mass spectrometer. Two standard serum samples with medium (0.73 [micro sign]g ml(-1)) and high (1.96 [micro sign]g ml(-1)) total CoQ(10) concentrations were analysed by LC-APCI(-)-SIM and LC-APCI(-)-MS(2) and the results compared with a HPLC literature procedure with electrochemical detection (ECD). Both the LC-MS methods were shown to be more selective and with comparable or better sensitivity than the HPLC-ECD method. The LC-MS-SIM and LC-MS(2) chromatograms of the medium concentration sample showed CoQ(10) signal to noise ratios of 25 and 625, respectively. In addition, a simple and fast serum pre-treatment procedure was developed, in which the serum CoQ(10)H(2) content was quantitatively oxidised quantitatively to CoQ(10) in less than 15 min by 1,4-benzoquinone.     

A novel approach for LC-MS/MS-based chiral metabolomics fingerprinting and chiral metabolomics extraction using a pair of enantiomers of chiral derivatization reagents

Chiral metabolites are found in a wide variety of living organisms and some of them are understood to be physiologically active compounds and biomarkers. However, the overall analysis of chiral metabolomics is quite difficult due to the high number of metabolites, the significant diversity in their physicochemical properties, and concentration range from metabolite-to-metabolite. To solve this difficulty, we developed a novel approach for chiral metabolomics fingerprinting and chiral metabolomics extraction, which is based on the labeling of a pair of enantiomers of chiral derivatization reagents (i.e., DMT-(S,R)-Pro-OSu and DMT-3(S,R)-Apy) and precursor ion scan chromatography of the derivatives. The multivariate statistics is also required for this strategy. The proposed procedures were evaluated by the detection of a diagnostic marker (i.e., d-lactic acid) using the saliva of diabetic patients. This method was used for the determination of biomarker candidates of chiral amines and carboxyls in Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain homogenates. As the results, l-phenylalanine (L-Phe) and l-lactic acid (L-LA) were identified as the decreased and increased biomarker candidates in the AD brain, respectively. Therefore, the proposed approach seems to be helpful for the determination of non-target chiral metabolomics possessing amines and carboxyls.     

A GC/MS-based metabolomic approach for diagnosing citrin deficiency

Citrin is the hepatic mitochondrial aspartate–glutamate carrier that is encoded by the gene SLC25A13. Citrin deficiency often leads to hyperammonemia, for which the current treatment concept is different from that for primary hyperammonemias. Metabolite level diagnosis, often referred to as chemical diagnosis, is not always successful in identifying citrin deficiency immediately or in a timely fashion. We previously made the chemical diagnosis of citrin deficiency in ten patients from nine families. In order to devise a more rapid and more accurate chemical diagnosis of this disorder than is currently available, we reinvestigated the gas chromatography/mass spectrometry-based urine metabolome in these patients. In patients aged 2 to 5 months, prominent biomarkers detected included one or more of the following metabolites: tyrosine, p-hydroxyphenyllactate, p-hydroxyphenylpyruvate, and N-acetyltyrosine, galactose, galactitol and galactonate, glucose, glucitol, and cystathionine. These biomarkers are less prominent in older patients, but are not increased in argininosuccinate synthetase deficiency or other hyperammonemias. α-Ketoglutaramate (KGM), a recently recognized urinary biomarker of primary hyperammonemias associated with defects of the urea cycle, was increased in most patients with citrin deficiency studied here in spite of normal urinary levels of glutamine (the immediate precursor of KGM), 5-oxoproline, glutamate, aspartate, and asparagine. Other important urinary biomarkers that should be measured for differential diagnosis of hyperammonemias, including orotate, uracil, and β-ureidopropionate, were not increased. The presence of citrulline and citrulline-derived metabolites was noted in all cases. The present study shows that noninvasive urine metabolomics, together with an analysis of selected metabolites or groups of metabolites, provides a more reliable and rapid chemical diagnosis of citrin deficiency than was previously available and more readily differentiates this disorder from other hyperammonemic syndromes.     

A rapid and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for determination of coenzyme Q10 in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) leaves

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method with multiple reaction monitoring has been proposed for the analysis of coenzyme Q10 in (CoQ10) tobacco leaves. The method used electrospray ionization with detection in positive ion mode. Sample pretreatment involved ultrasonic extraction of fresh tobacco leaves with anhydrous ethanol for 15 min and followed by extraction of the supernatant with hexane. The separation of CoQ10 was performed on a Symmetry Shield RP18 column with a mixture of acetonitrile and isopropanol (8:7, v/v) containing 0.5% formic acid as mobile phase. Quantification of CoQ10 was performed by the standard addition method. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation of CoQ10 were, respectively, 1.2 ng/mL (S/N = 3) and 4.0 ng/mL (S/N = 10). The relative standard deviations of peak area were 0.91% and 1.21% for intra-day and inter-day, respectively. The recoveries of CoQ10 ranged from 98.2 to 99.3% and the corresponding RSDs were less than 2.4%. Analysis took 5 min, making the method suitable for rapid determination of CoQ10 in tobacco leaves. The proposed method has been successfully applied to the analysis of CoQ10 in the leaves from eight varieties of tobacco.     

Multi-mycotoxin analysis of maize silage by LC-MS/MS

This paper describes a method for determination of 27 mycotoxins and other secondary metabolites in maize silage. The method focuses on analytes which are known to be produced by common maize and maize-silage contaminants. A simple pH-buffered sample extraction was developed on the basis of a very fast and simple method for analysis of multiple pesticide residues in food known as QuEChERS. The buffering effectively ensured a stable pH in samples of both well-ensiled maize (pH < 4) and of hot spots with fungal infection (pH > 7). No further clean-up was performed before analysis using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. The method was successfully validated for determination of eight analytes qualitatively and 19 quantitatively. Matrix-matched calibration standards were used giving recoveries ranging from 37% to 201% with the majority between 60% and 115%. Repeatability (5–27% RSD_r) and intra-laboratory reproducibility (7–35% RSD_IR) was determined. The limit of detection (LOD) for the quantitatively validated analytes ranged from 1 to 739 μg kg⁻¹. Validation results for citrinin, fumonisin B₁ and fumonisin B₂ were unsatisfying. The method was applied to 20 selected silage samples and alternariol monomethyl ether, andrastin A, alternariol, citreoisocoumarin, deoxynivalenol, enniatin B, fumigaclavine A, gliotoxin, marcfortine A and B, mycophenolic acid, nivalenol, roquefortine A and C and zearalenone were detected.     

Structure characterisation of urinary metabolites of the cannabimimetic JWH-018 using chemically synthesised reference material for the support of LC-MS/MS-based drug testing

As recently reported, the synthetic cannabinoid JWH-018 is the subject of extensive phase I and II metabolic reactions in vivo. Since these studies were based on LC-MS/MS and/or GC-MS identification and characterisation of analytes, the explicit structural assignment of the metabolites was only of preliminary nature, if possible at all. Here, we report the chemical synthesis of five potential in vivo metabolites of JWH-018 derivatives featuring an alkylcarboxy (M1), a terminal alkylhydroxy (M2), a 5-indolehydroxy (M3), an N-dealkylated 5-indolehydroxy (M4) and a 2′-naphthylhydroxy (5) analogue, respectively, and their characterisation by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The collision-induced dissociation (CID) patterns of the protonated compounds were studied by high-resolution/high-accuracy tandem mass spectrometry (MS ⁿ ) applying an LTQ Orbitrap with direct infusion and electrospray ionisation of target analytes. An unusual dissociation behaviour including a reversible ion–molecule reaction between a naphthalene cation (m/z 127) and water in the gas phase of the MS was shown to be responsible for nominal neutral losses of 10 u in the course of the CID pathway. LC-MS/MS-supported comparison of synthesised reference standards with an authentic urine sample using an API 4000 QTrap mass spectrometer identified the synthetic JWH-018 analogues M1–M4 as true in vivo metabolites, presuming a chromatographic separation of potentially present regioisomeric analogues. Existing doping control methods were expanded and validated according to international guidelines in order to allow for the detection of the carboxy and the alkylhydroxy metabolites, respectively, as urinary markers for the illegal intake of the synthetic cannabinoid JWH-018. Both metabolites were quantified in authentic doping control urine samples that had been suspicious of JWH-018 abuse after routine screening procedures, and a stable isotope-labelled ¹³C₈-¹⁵N-carboxy metabolite was synthesised for future analytical applications.     

Analysis of long-chain fatty acyl coenzyme a thioesters by negative ion fast-atom bombardment mass spectrometry and tandem mass spectrometry

Long-chain acyl Coenzyme A (CoA) is essentially composed of three major chemical groups, fatty acyl-, phosphopantetheino-, and 3′, 5′,-adenosine diphospho-moieties. The negative ion fast-atom bombardment mass spectrometry spectra of long-chain acyl CoA thioesters were characterized by the formation of abundant [M ? H]^? and two distinct classes of fragment ions, one class which retained the acyl group and another class which is related to CoA that contains the phosphopantethene and adenine. The ions which retained the acyl group in the spectrum of palmitoyl CoA appeared at m/z 675, 657, 595, and 577 and were found to decompose by loss of alkylketene observed at m/z 357 and 339. Those ions which retained the adenine group were observed at m/z 426 and 408. In contrast to these ions observed following fast-atom bombardment ionization, tandem mass spectrometry of the [M ? H]^?, from palmitoyl CoA (m/z 1004), yielded the adenine-containing ions as major products and the acyl-containing ions were of low abundance or not detected. These results suggested that the formation of many characteristic ions observed in direct FAB analysis occurred during the desorption process. The unique relationship between ions which involved the transition from acyl-containing ions to only CoA-containing ions by the loss of alkylketene allowed the development of tandem mass spectrometry protocols for the analysis of acyl CoA mixtures. Precursor scans of either m/z 357 or 339 yielded the identification of each species in a complex mixture. Identification of specific species was obtained with a neutral loss scan of the mass for a specific alkylketene.     

LC-MS/MS fast analysis of androgenic steroids in urine

The liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method (LC-MS/MS) was developed and validated to detect androgenic steroids: trenbolone, nortestosterone, boldenone, methylboldenone, testosterone, methyltestosterone, 17β-1-testosterone and their metabolites in bovine urine. Sample preparation before LC-MS/MS analysis involved an enzymatic hydrolysis with glucuronidase AS-HP, isolation of free hormones from urine on C(18) SPE column and purification of the extract using liquid-liquid extraction with n-pentane and SPE NH(2) column. For the chromatographic separation of steroids, the Poroshell 120-EC C18 column (150?×?2.1 mm, 2.7 μm) was used. Mass spectrometric measurement was achieved using the API 4000 triple quadrupole (QqQ) instrument with a TurboIon-Spray source operating in positive electrospray ionization mode. The procedure was validated according to the Decision 2002/657/EC. Recovery ranged from 76.5% to 118.9% for all examined compounds. The repeatability was below 20% and reproducibility did not exceed the 25%. The linearity was good for all analytes in the whole range of tested concentrations, as proved by the correlation coefficients greater than 0.99. The decision limit (CCα) ranged from 0.10 to 0.17 μg L(-1) for all analytes, whereas the detection capability (CCβ) ranged from 0.17 to 0.29 μg L(-1). The application of an innovative Poroshell column allowed for very good chromatographic separation of steroids with a much shorter time of analysis.     

Separation and identification of organic acid-coenzyme A thioesters using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry

A method has been developed for the direct determination of coenzyme A (CoA) and organic acid-CoA thioesters in mixtures using directly combined liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS). Mixtures of CoA and organic acid-CoA thioesters were analyzed by LC/ESI-MS with detection of protonated molecular ions and characteristic fragment ions for each compound. The identities of the CoA-thioesters were established based on LC retention times and simultaneously recorded mass spectra. Monitoring of the CoA specific fragment ion at m/z 428 throughout the chromatogram provides a unique fingerprint for CoA content in the samples that corroborates the identification of organic acid-CoA thioesters in the mixtures. Furthermore, fragment ions arising from the ester linkage portion of the molecule allow unambiguous identification of the CoA esters in the samples. A second LC elution system was developed that allows the simultaneous separation and identification of 2-hydroxypropionyl-CoA (lactyl-CoA) and 3-hydroxypropionyl CoA (3HP-CoA), which have the same mass and identical MS fragmentation behavior. The utility of LC/ESI-MS employing this elution system is demonstrated by the determination of 3HP-CoA and lactyl-CoA (converted to CoA-thioesters from their corresponding free acids using CoA-transferase) in fermentation broths from Escherichia coli strains engineered for the production of 3-hydroxypropionic acid (3HP). External calibration employing a purified 3HP-CoA standard allowed indirect quantification of 3HP content in the broth with a precision of 1% (RSD). The feasibility of extending the method described above to perform LC/selected reaction monitoring-tandem mass spectrometry for direct determination of organic acid-CoA thioesters in cells was also demonstrated.     

A facile and efficient direct aldol addition of simple thioesters

[reaction: see text] Simple thioesters undergo direct aldol addition to aldehydes in the presence of MgBr(2).OEt(2) and i-Pr(2)NEt using untreated, reagent-grade CH(2)Cl(2) under atmospheric conditions. The reactions proceed extremely rapidly and in excellent yield.     

A combined LC-MS/MS and LC-MS3 multi-method for the quantification of iodothyronines in human blood serum

We report here a novel approach for the extraction and analysis of thyroid hormones (TH) and their metabolites (THM) from human serum samples. Our method features a compact, 96-well micro-titre plate-based pre-analytic extraction/clean-up workflow combined with an isotope dilution LC-MS/MS-MS³ analytical method. In particular, these features make possible the detection of iodothyronines at their endogenous concentrations in serum differing by a factor of ca. 10⁴, with potential to semi-automate the pre-analytics. The method was validated by the assessment of linearity, lower limits of quantification and detection (LLOQ and LLOD respectively), intra- and inter-day accuracy, precision, process efficiency (PE), matrix effect (ME) and relative recovery (RE). Calibration curves were linear in the concentration range in sample matrix from 0.1–250 nM for T₃, rT₃, T₄ and 3-T₁AM and from 0.005–1 nM for 3,5-T₂ and 3,3′-T₂. Using a 200-μL sample volume, the analyte dependant LLOQ were in the range 0.005 (3,5-T₂) to 0.25 (T₄) nM and LLOD were between 0.002 (3,5-T₂) and 0.052 nM (T₄). We applied the LC-MS/MS-MS³ method to the analysis of a cross section of patients with disorders of the thyroid hormone axis. T₄, T₃ and rT₃ concentrations (± standard deviation) were 120 ± 18, 1.9 ± 0.4 and 0.45 ± 0.09 nM respectively. 3,3′-T₂ concentrations (± standard deviation) were 0.079 ± 0.022 nM; 3,5-T₂ concentrations were below the LLOQ and/or LLOD in all but a single sample (0.013 nM). This method expands the analytical spectrum to endogenous thyroid hormone metabolites such as 3,5-T₂ which exert biological actions and rT₃ which may act as surrogate markers for disturbed thyroid hormone metabolism.

Graphical abstract

     

A convenient synthesis of O-alkyl thioesters from esters

O-Alkyl thioesters may be prepared from the corresponding carboxylic esters by successive treatment with lithium diisopropylamide, chlorotrimethylsilane, and hydrogen sulfide.