Application of passive sampling devices for screening of micro-pollutants in marine aquaculture using LC-MS/MS

Knowledge on the presence of micro-pollutants, in particular emerging contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals, biocides or some pesticides, in semi-enclosed coastal areas, where fish farms are installed, is very limited. This article shows data on the presence of micro-pollutants over 1 year monitoring campaign carried out in a fish farm placed on the Mediterranean Sea. With this work, the results of the development of an analytical procedure which, makes use of passive sampling techniques (with polar organic chemical integrative samplers, POCIS, pharmaceutical configuration) and of the LC-QLIT-MS system, are presented. The development of the analytical procedure entail laboratory-based calibration with the samplers POCIS, for calculating uptake rates and sampling rates of compounds representative of a wide range of polarity (4.56 ≥ log K_ow ≥ −0.12). The uptake of the target compounds in the sampler POCIS, follows a linear pattern for most compounds, and sampling rates varied from 0.001 to 0.319 l/d. The calibration experiments have shown that POCIS pharmaceutical configuration could be used for sampling other non-target compounds, such as pesticides and biocides with a log K_ow ≤ 4. The sampling rates for each selected compound were obtained using spiked seawater for further estimation of time-weighted average (TWA) concentration of micro-pollutants in the water column, during the field study. An analytical method was developed with the LC-QLIT-MS system and validated to ensure a satisfactory performance for the detection of the target micro-pollutants in water. The limits of detection (LODs) achieved were between 0.01 and 1.50 μg/l. During the monitoring campaign, among the selected compounds, metronidazole, erythromycin, simazine, atrazine, diuron, terbutryn, irgarol, trimethoprim, carbaryl, flumequine, TCMTB and diphenyl sulphone (DPS) were detected. Most of target compounds found were at average concentrations which ranged from 0.01 to 75 ng/l. Irgarol, simazine, diuron, atrazine and DPS were the micro-pollutants most frequently detected over the period of the monitoring programme carried out.     

液相色谱-串联质谱法测定中成药中马兜铃酸A含量

中成药样品用丙酮作为溶剂进行超声波萃取,所得提取液在不超过50℃的水浴中加热减压蒸发至干。加入水-乙酸-乙腈(49+1+50)混合溶液2.0 mL溶解残渣,所得溶液供液相色谱-串联质谱(LC-MS/MS)分析用,上述混合溶液在以后分析中用作流动相。Kromasil C_(18)柱用作色谱柱固定相,在MS/MS分析中,选择大气压化学电离为离子源,以正离子扫描,选择离子检测模式和二级选择反应检测模式对马兜铃酸A进行定量和定性检测。以[M+NH_4]+(m/z 359)为母离子,选择其二级离子中信号较强的碎片离子[M—NO_2+H]+(m/z 298)作为定量及定性离子,并以碎片离子[M—CO_2+H]+(m/z 296)为辅助定性离子。测定马兜铃酸A的线性范围在0.2～10.5 mg·L~(-1)之间,方法的测定下限(10S/N)为0.07 mg·L~(-1)。在3种不同浓度水平的标准加入量的条件下进行回收试验,测得回收率在89%～95%之间,测定值的相对标准偏差(n=6)均小于5.5%。     

Sensitive method for the determination of lipophilic marine biotoxins in extracts of mussels and processed shellfish by high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry based on enrichment by solid-phase extraction

A solid-phase extraction (SPE) method for the enrichment and clean-up of lipophilic marine biotoxins from extracts of different species of bivalve molluscs and processed shellfish products was developed. Okadaic acid (OA), pectenotoxin2 (PTX2), azaspiracid1 (AZA1) and yessotoxin (YTX) were determined by LC–MS/MS in hydrolyzed and non-hydrolyzed extracts. Applying a concentration factor of 10 the limit of quantification for the four toxins was determined to be 1 μg/kg. An organized in-house ring trial proved transferability of the method protocol and satisfactory results for all four toxins with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 5–12%. The precision of the whole method including LC–MS detection was determined by processing seven independent extractions analyzed in independent sequences. RSD ranged between 12% and 24%. This SPE method was tested within a concentration range corresponding to the range of the current European Union regulatory limits (up to 160 μg/kg for the OA group), but it would also be applicable to a lower μg/kg range which is important in view of a possible decrease of regulatory limits as proposed by a working group of the European Food Safety Authority. The potential of SPE as a cleaning tool to cope with matrix effects in LC–MS/MS was studied and compared to liquid–liquid portioning.     

Development,Validation, and Application of the LC-MS/MS Method for Determination of 4-Acetamidobenzoic Acid in Pharmacokinetic Pilot Studies in Pigs

Each drug has pharmacokinetics that must be defined for the substance to be used in humans and animals. Currently, one of the basic analytical tools for pharmacokinetics studies is high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. For this analytical method to be fully reliable, it must be properly validated. Therefore, the aims of this study were to develop and validate a novel analytical method for 4-acetamidobenzoic acid, a component of the antiviral and immunostimulatory drug Inosine Pranobex, and to apply the method in the first pharmacokinetics study of 4-acetamidobenzoic acid in pigs after oral administration. Inosine Pranobex was administered under farm conditions to pigs via drinking water 2 h after morning feeding at doses of 20, 40, and 80 mg/kg. For sample preparation, we used liquid–liquid extraction with only one step—protein precipitation with 1 mL of acetonitrile. As an internal standard, we used deuterium labeled 4-acetamidobenzoic acid. The results indicate that the described method is replicable, linear (r² ≥ 0.99), precise (2.11% to 13.81%), accurate (89% to 98.57%), selective, and sensitive (limit of quantitation = 10 ng/mL). As sample preparation requires only one step, the method is simple, effective, cheap, and rapid. The results of the pilot pharmacokinetics study indicate that the compound is quickly eliminated (elimination half-life from 0.85 to 1.42 h) and rapidly absorbed (absorption half-life from 0.36 to 2.57 h), and that its absorption increases exponentially as the dose is increased.     

Residues of 165 pesticides in citrus fruits using LC-MS/MS: a study of the pesticides distribution from the peel to the pulp

Abstract

A sensitive LC–ESI-MS/MS method was developed for the determination of 165 pesticides in 50 citrus fruit samples collected in Sicily. Moreover, an evaluation of pesticides levels in the citrus layers (peel, albedo, and pulp) was carried out. The method presented acceptable trueness, precision, and linearity with LOQ of 5?μg/kg. The results obtained showed a high frequency of fungicides class pesticides in all the citrus samples examined (>95%) with the highest concentrations in the peel (4468?µg/Kg). A significant difference of concentrations was found between the layers of the citrus fruits analysed (p?<?0.05). In particular, the peel and albedo present higher pesticides significantly higher than the pulp. Our findings confirming the widespread use of these substances in citrus cultivation and suggesting the importance of pesticides analysis in all the citrus fruit layers separately, considering the different interactions between the physicochemical characteristics of the matrices and the pesticides.     

Establishment of an LC-MS/MS Method for the Determination of 45 Pesticide Residues in Fruits and Vegetables from Fujian,China

Pesticide residues in food have become an important factor seriously threatening human health. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables commonly found in Fujian, China, with the aim of constructing a simple and rapid method for pesticide residue monitoring. We collected 5607 samples from local markets and analyzed them for the presence of 45 pesticide residues. A fast, easy, inexpensive, effective, robust, and safe (QuEChERS) multi-residue extraction method followed by liquid chromatography equipped with triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was successfully established. This 12-min-long analytical method detects and quantifies pesticide residues with acceptable validation performance parameters in terms of sensitivity, selectivity, linearity, the limit of quantification, accuracy, and precision. The linear range of the calibration curves ranged from 5 to 200 mg/L, the limits of detection for all pesticides ranged from 0.02 to 1.90 μg/kg, and the limits of quantification for the pesticides were 10 μg/kg. The recovery rates for the three levels of fortification ranged from 72.0% to 118.0%, with precision values (expressed as RSD%) less than 20% for all of the investigated analytes. The results showed that 726 (12.95%) samples were contaminated with pesticide residues, 94 (1.68%) samples exceeded the maximum residue limit (MRL) of the national standard (GB 2763-2021, China), 632 (11.23%) samples were contaminated with residues below the MRL, and 4881 (87.05%) samples were pesticide residue-free. In addition, the highest number of multiple pesticide residues was observed in bananas and peppers, which were contaminated with acetamiprid, imidacloprid, pyraclostrobin, and thiacloprid.     

The Development of New Methodology for Determination of Vincristine (VCR) in Human Serum Using LC-MS/MS-Based Method for Medical Diagnostics

In this article, we have presented the development and validation of a rapid and sensitive reversed-phase liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the determination of vincristine (VCR) in patient serum samples. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Kinetex^® (Singapore) column using a mobile phase consisting of 25 mM acetic acid and 0.3% formic acid (A) and methanol (B) in a gradient elution mode at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. The VCR and internal standard (vinblastine) were monitored using the multiple reaction monitoring mode under positive electrospray ionization. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.67 ng/mL, and the upper limit of quantification (ULOQ) was 250 ng/mL for VCR. The calculated values of LOD and LOQ for VCR were 0.075 and 0.228 ng/mL, respectively. The calibration curve was linear over the VCR concentration range of 1.0–250 ng/mL in serum. The intra- and inter-day precision and precision were within the generally accepted criteria for the bioanalytical method (<15%). The method was successfully applied to the analysis of serum samples in clinical practice.     

Silica stationary phase-based on-line sample enrichment coupled with LC-MS/MS for the quantification of dopamine,serotonin and their metabolites in rat brain microdialysates

Accurate measurement of trace levels of endogenous compounds remains challenging despite advancements in analytical technologies. In particular, monoamine neurotransmitters such as dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) are polar compounds with low molecular weights, which complicates the optimization of retention and detection on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Microdialysis is an important sampling technique to collect extracellular fluid from the brain of living animals. However, the very low basal concentrations of the neurotransmitters, small sample volume (maximum 30 μL) and the absence of matrix-matching calibrators are limitations of a microdialysate as an analytical sample. In the present study, an LC-MS/MS method was developed and fully validated for the quantification of DA, 5-HT and their main metabolites, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), homovanillic acid (HVA) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), in microdialysates from the rat nucleus accumbens shell. To improve the method sensitivity and accuracy, on-line sample enrichment using silica stationary phase was employed, before which any other sample pretreatment was not performed. The validation results proved the method to be selective, sensitive, accurate and precise, with acceptable linearity within calibration ranges. The lower limits of quantification were 0.025, 0.1, 0.5, 25 and 2.5 ng/mL for 5-HT, DA, 5-HIAA, HVA and DOPAC, respectively. This is a powerful analytical method to determine endogenous concentrations of those compounds in microdialysates from the rat nucleus accumbens and will be very useful to further study on the pathophysiological functions of monoamine neurotramsmitters in vivo.     

液相色谱-串联质谱法检测动物源性食品中激素残留所遇到问题的探讨

探讨了液相色谱-串联质谱法用于动物源性食品中激素残留检测时关于样品的提取与净化、酶解、基质效应和激素来源等问题(引用文献29篇)。     

Determination of the Peptide AWRK6 in Rat Plasma by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and Its Application to Pharmacokinetics

AWRK6 was a synthesized peptide developed based on the natural occurring peptide dybowskin-2CDYa, which was discovered in frog skin in our previous study. Here, a quantitative determination method for AWRK6 analysis in rat plasma by using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was established and validated following U.S. FDA guidelines. A combination of plasma precipitation and liquid–liquid extraction was applied for the extraction. For pharmacokinetics study, the rats were administrated with AWRK6 via intraperitoneal and intravenous injection. The prepared plasma samples were separated on an ODS column and analyzed by tandem MS using precursor-to-product ion pairs of m/z: 533.4→84.2 for AWRK6 and m/z: 401.9→101.1 for internal standard Polymyxin B sulfate in multiple reaction monitoring mode. AWRK6 concentrations in rat plasma peaked at about 1.2 h after intraperitoneal injections at 2.35, 4.7 and 9.4 mg/kg bodyweight. The terminal half-life was around 2.8 h. The absolute bioavailability of AWRK6 was 50% after 3 doses via injection, and the apparent volume of distribution was 4.884 ± 1.736 L. The obtained determination method and pharmacokinetics profiles of AWRK6 provides a basis for further development, and forms a benchmark reference for peptide quantification.     

液相色谱-串联质谱法测定偶氮染料橙黄G的Fenton法降解氧化产物苯胺

采用液相色谱-串联质谱法测定偶氮染料橙黄G的Fenton法降解氧化产物苯胺的含量。采用OnGuard II H固相萃取柱去除Fenton反应液中的亚铁离子,然后在XR-ODS II色谱柱上,采用电喷雾电离正离子扫描多反应监测模式测定。苯胺的线性范围为2.0~100.0μg·L-1,方法的检出限(3S/N)为0.6μg·L-1。加标回收率在94.0%~98.4%之间,日内相对标准偏差在2.8%~6.4%之间,日间相对标准偏差在5.2%~8.6%之间。     

Volumetric Absorptive Microsampling (VAMS) for Targeted LC-MS/MS Determination of Tryptophan-Related Biomarkers

L-Tryptophan (TRP) metabolites and related biomarkers play crucial roles in physiological functions, and their imbalances are implicated in central nervous system pathologies and neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia and depression. The measurement of TRP metabolites and related biomarkers possesses great potential to elucidate the disease mechanisms, aid preclinical drug development, highlight potential therapeutic targets and evaluate the outcomes of therapeutic interventions. An effective, straightforward, sensitive and selective liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 24 TRP-related compounds in miniaturised murine whole blood samples. Sampling and sample pretreatment miniaturisation were achieved thanks to the development of a volumetric dried blood microsampling approach. Volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS) allows the accurate sampling of microvolumes of blood with advantages including, but not limited to, minimal sampling invasiveness, logistical improvements, method sustainability in terms of solvents and energy consumption, and improvement of animal studies in the framework of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement) principles on animal welfare. The VAMS-LC-MS/MS method exhibited good selectivity, and correlation coefficient values for the calibration curves of each analyte were >0.9987. The limits of quantitation ranged from 0.1 to 25 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precisions in terms of RSD were <9.6%. All analytes were stable in whole blood VAMS samples stored at room temperature for at least 30 days with analyte losses < 14%. The developed method was successfully applied to the analysis of biological samples from mice, leading to the unambiguous determination of all the considered target analytes. This method can therefore be applied to analyse TRP metabolites and related biomarkers levels to monitor disease states, perform mechanistic studies and investigate the outcomes of therapeutic interventions.     

Simultaneous LC-MS/MS Determination of Danshensu and Paeoniflorin for Permeability Studies in Caco-2 Intestinal Absorption Model

A high sensitive method based on liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry（LC-MS/MS） was developed and validated for the study of permeability of danshensu（DS） and paeoniflorin（PF） in Caco-2 intestinal absorption model. The DS and PF were extracted from cell culture by vacuum-lyophilizing and then separated on a Zorbax Stable Bond C18 column with 0.1% acetic acid aqueous solution and methanol as mobile phase. Detection was carried out by negative electrospray ionization（ESI ） with selected reaction monitoring（SRM） mode. The apparent permeability coefficients（Papp） of DS and PF in Caco-2 cell medium were calculated and the effects of verapamil on the coefficients Papp of the two test compounds were also illustrated. The permeability of PF was much better than that of DS when the two compounds were administrated individually. Co-administration of DS and PF led to the decrease of the transport from apical side to basolateral side for both the compounds. However, the transport in the contrary direction were accelerated. It was also observed that verapamil could accelerate the transport of the test compounds from apical side to basolateral side. However, the absorption-enhanced effect of verapamil was attenuated when DS and PF were co-administrated. These observations suggest that both passive diffusion and active efflux involved in P-gp would effect the passage of DS and PF across Caco-2 cell monolayer. At the same time, the co-administration of DS and PF to an alteration of transport behavior, which suggests that the interaction must be taken into account when ‘n-in-one＇ samples were used in Caco-2 intestinal model.     

On-line solid phase extraction LC-MS/MS analysis of pharmaceutical indicators in water: A green alternative to conventional methods

A method using automated on-line solid phase extraction (SPE) directly coupled to liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) has been developed for the analysis of six pharmaceuticals by isotope dilution. These selected pharmaceuticals were chosen as representative indicator compounds and were used to evaluate the performance of the on-line SPE method in four distinct water matrices. Method reporting limits (MRLs) ranged from 10 to 25 ng/L, based on a 1 mL extraction volume. Matrix spike recoveries ranged from 88 to 118% for all matrices investigated, including finished drinking water, surface water, wastewater effluent and septic tank influent. Precision tests were performed at 50 and 1000 ng/L with relative standard deviations (RSDs) between 1.3 and 5.7%. A variety of samples were also extracted using a traditional off-line automated SPE method for comparison. Results for both extraction methods were in good agreement; however, on-line SPE used approximately 98% less solvent and less time. On-line SPE coupled to LC-MS/MS analysis for selected indicators offers an alternative, more environmentally friendly, method for pharmaceutical analysis in water by saving time and costs while reducing hazardous waste and potential environmental pollution as compared with off-line SPE methods.     

LC-MS/MS Method for the Quantitation of Cefotetan in Human Plasma and Its Application to Pharmacokinetic Study

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry（LC-MS/MS） method for the de- termination of cefotetan in human plasma was developed and validated. After the protein precipitation of sample with acetonitrile, the analyte and internal standard（IS）, tramadol, were separated on a Zorbax XDB C8 column using ace- tonitrile/1%（volume fraction） formic acid（volume ratio 35：65, pH=2.5） as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min with a 1 ： 1 split. The detection was performed by electrospray ionization with positive ion mode, followed by multiple reaction monitoring of the transitions for cefotetan at m/z 576.3→460.2（quantifier） and m/z 576.3→432.2（qualifier） and for IS at m/z 264.1→58.1. Cefotetan and IS were eluted at 1.86 and 1.87 rain, respectively. The assay was linear over the concentration range of 0.1-100 gg/mL for 20 μL of human plasma only with intra- and inter-day preci- sions（expressed as the relative standard deviation） of less than 6.62% and accuracies（as relative error） of ＋1.31%. The method was applied to the pharmacokinetic study of a l-h intravenous infusion of 1.0 g of cefotetan disodium for human volunteers（n=6）.     

石墨烯-管尖固相萃取-液相色谱-串联质谱法测定贝类中10种脂溶性贝类毒素

以石墨烯为吸附剂，制作了石墨烯-管尖固相萃取装置，结合液相色谱-串联质谱，建立了一种同时测定贝类中10种脂溶性贝类毒素的方法。实验对提取剂、石墨烯的用量、淋洗剂的种类和用量、洗脱剂的种类和用量等实验参数进行了详细优化。在最优的实验条件下，10种脂溶性贝类毒素在各自相应浓度范围内线性良好，相关系数均大于0.99，方法检出限（LOD）和定量限（LOQ）分别在0.1~1.1 μg/kg和0.3~3.2 μg/kg之间；对阴性牡蛎样品进行3个水平的加标回收实验，10种脂溶性贝类毒素的回收率在72.0%~101.2%之间，相对标准偏差小于15%。结果表明，该方法灵敏度高，操作简单高效，适用于贝类水产品中脂溶性贝类毒素的检测分析。     

Rapid and Sensitive LC-MS/MS Method for Quantification of Fexofenadine in Human Plasma——Application to a Bioequivalence Study in Chinese Volunteers

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method（LC-MS/MS）was developed and validated for the quantification of fexofenadine in human plasma,to conduct comparative bioavailability studies.Human plasma was extracted with a mixture of dichloromethane-diethyl ether（volume ratio 2∶3）in a basic environment and the extract was separated on a C18 column with a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile-methanol-10 mmol/L ammonium acetate（volume ratio 45∶45∶10）.The analytes were detected via electrospray ionization（ESI）tandem mass spectrometry in the multiple-reaction-monitoring（MRM）mode.The linearity was within a range of 1-1000 ng/mL.The intra-and inter-day precision were〈4.1% and〈4.8%,respectively,and the accuracy was in the range of 95.0%-105%.The method was applied to the quantification of fexofenadine human plasma from 20 healthy male Chinese volunteers,according to a single dose,randomized,two-way crossover design with a two-week washout period.The mean values of major pharmacokinetic parameters of ρmax,AUC0-48,AUC0-∞,tmax,and t1/2 were determined from the plasma concentration.The analysis of variance（ANOVA）did not show any significant difference between the two products of fexofenadine and 90% confidence intervals fell within the acceptable range for bioequivalence.     

Determination of the furaltadone metabolite 5-methylmorpholino-3-amino-2-oxazolidinone (AMOZ) using liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray tandem mass spectrometry during the nitrofuran crisis in Portugal

The use of nitrofuran veterinary drugs as antibacterial compounds in food-producing animals has been banned in the EU since 1995. As nitrofurans are extensive and rapidly metabolized, control of their illegal use in animal production must be done in edible tissues by LC-MS/MS analysis in order to determine persistent tissue-bound metabolites. The introduction during 2002 of the multi-residue detection of nitrofuran tissue-bound metabolites by LC-MS/MS for nitrofuran control in Portuguese Residues Monitoring Plan, revealed the presence of 5-morpholinomethyl-3-amino-2-oxozolidinone (AMOZ), the bound residue of furaltadone, in a large number of samples, namely in meat poultry samples. From the 226 analysed samples in the last 4 months of 2002, 78 were non-compliant due to the presence of AMOZ (61 broilers, 11 turkeys, 5 quails and 1 pig). In this context, the aim of this paper is to describe the analytical data obtained on meat samples collected from various animal species under official Portuguese control for nitrofuran drug residues during the so-called “Portuguese nitrofuran crisis”. Presented at the AOAC Europe Workshop, November 2006, Limassol, Cyprus.     

Biological activity and LC-MS/MS profiling of extracts from the Australian medicinal plant Acacia ligulata (Fabaceae)

Acacia ligulata A.Cunn. ex Benth. (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) is a native Australian plant used traditionally by Australian Aboriginal groups. This study was undertaken to investigate the bioactivity of A. ligulata extracts and to evaluate their chemical composition. Potential antibacterial, cytotoxic and enzyme inhibitory effects relevant to traditional medicinal and food uses of the species were examined and LC-MS/MS was performed to investigate the chemical composition. Antibacterial activity was observed for bark and leaf extracts with an MIC for the bark extract of 62.5 μg/mL against Streptococcus pyogenes. Pod extracts showed cytotoxic effects against cancer cells, with the highest activity against melanoma SK-MEL28 cells with IC₅₀ values between 40.8 and 80.6 μg/mL. Further, the leaf and pod extracts also inhibited α-amylase EC-3.2.1.1 and α-glucosidase EC-3.2.1.20 with IC₅₀ values between 9.7–34.8 and 12.6–64.3 μg/mL, respectively. The LC-MS/MS profiling indicated that several different saponins were present in the active extracts.     

A Sensitive LC-MS/MS Method for the Simultaneous Determination of Two Thia-Analogous Indirubin N-Glycosides and Indirubin-3′-Monoxime in Plasma and Cell Culture Medium

Indirubin was identified as an active component of Danggui Longhui Wan, an herbal mixture used in traditional Chinese medicine, and showed anticancer activity in clinical trials in patients with chronic leukemia. Investigations on the mechanisms of antitumor action of indirubins have mainly focused on the indirubin derivative indirubin-3′-monoxime (I3M). Meanwhile, antiproliferative and cytotoxic properties on cancer cells have also been demonstrated for several synthetic indirubin N-glycosides. In the present study, we demonstrate cytotoxic activity of the thia-analogous indirubin N-glycosides KD87 (3-[3′-oxo-benzo[b]thiophen-2′-(Z)-ylidene]-1-(β-d-glucopyranosyl)-oxindole) and KD85 (3-[3′-oxo-benzo[b]thiophen-2′-(Z)-ylidene]-1-(β-d-mannopyranosyl)-oxindole) against melanoma and squamous cell carcinoma cells as well as lung cancer and glioblastoma cells. The advanced state of preclinical studies on the effects of indirubins conducted to date underscores the need for pharmacokinetic data from cellular, animal, and human studies for which reliable quantification is required. Therefore, a sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the simultaneous measurement of KD87, KD85, and I3M in plasma and cell culture medium. Experimental conditions for sample preparation were optimized for human plasma protein precipitation and liquid-liquid extraction from plasma and cell culture medium. The methods were successfully validated in accordance with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Bioanalytical Method Validation and evaluated for selectivity, sensitivity, matrix effect, recovery, carryover, calibration curve linearity, accuracy, precision, and stability. The applicability of the methods was demonstrated by the determination of KD87 in mouse plasma after prior intraperitoneal administration to mice.