Molecularly imprinted polymers for bisphenol A for HPLC and SPE from water and milk

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for bisphenol A (BPA) were prepared by two synthetic routes: semi-covalent and noncovalent methodology. The molecular imprinting effect was evaluated using the polymers in HPLC and SPE. Polymers prepared with noncovalent mode were proven more effective. These polymers were applied in SPE facilitating selective retention of BPA from bottled water and milk. The developed sample preparation was simple and efficient comprising only dilution of milk and MISPE prior to LC-MS analysis. Overall MISPE enhanced sample clean-up. Compared with control nonimprinted polymers and conventional C18 SPE cartridges, the MIPs exhibited selective analyte recognition. The method provided quantitative BPA recoveries, very good reproducibility (% RSDs lower than 7%), and low LOD (0.2 ng/g). MIP interacts similarly with deuterated BPA allowing its use as internal standard in LC-MS. The most critical parameters of MISPE were the organic content in loading-washing medium and the washing volume. Low flow rates in the elution step enhanced extraction recovery. Important advantages of the MIP were: the high breakthrough volumes (> 500 mL of water), high mass capacity (> 10 ng/mg of MIP sorbent), good linearity, and good stability in performance for over 35 cycles of use.     

Stable Isotope Dilution Analysis of Gibberellin Residues in Tomato Paste by Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

An accurate and sensitive method for the simultaneous determination of gibberellic acid(GA₃), gibberellin A₄(GA₄) and gibberellin A₇(GA₇) residues in tomato paste was developed by coupling solid phase extraction to high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS) with electrospray ionization based stable isotope dilution analysis(SIDA). The isotope labeled internal standard can compensate for the losses during the extraction and cleanup steps and for discrimination due to ion suppression. After extraction from methanol, hydrophile lipophilic balance(HLB) solid phase extraction(SPE) column was tested for the capacity of the cleanup of the tomato paste in compared with C₁₈ SPE column which is the common way to the detection of GAs, and the former gained better result. Spiked experiments were performed in the non-contaminated tomato pastes and the recoveries of GA₃, GA₄ and GA₇ were 42.6%―75.0% in external standard method(ESM) and 91.1%―103.8% in internal standard method(ISM) respectively. The validities of this method were investigated and good analytical performance for the three GAs was obtained, including low limits of method detection(2 ng/g for GA₃ and GA₄, 0.3 ng/g for GA₇), excellent linear dynamic ranges(5―500 ng/g for GA₃ and GA₄, 1―100 ng/g for GA₇) and good relative standard deviation ranges(4.8%―9.4% for the intra-day test and 3.5%―11.9% for the inter-day test).     

液相色谱-串联质谱法测定尿液中的内源性类固醇激素

建立了液相色谱-串联质谱(LC-MS/MS)测定尿液中的内源性类固醇激素的方法。尿样经葡萄糖醛酸甙酶酶解后进行液-液提取,以甲醇-0.1%甲酸缓冲液(含0.02 mol/L乙酸铵)(体积比为68:32)为流动相,采用Cosmosil C18色谱柱分离,并以三重四极杆串联质谱多反应监测扫描方式对尿样中的脱氢表雄酮(DHEA)、睾酮、表睾酮、雄酮和苯胆烷醇酮等5种激素进行检测。方法的最低检出限为0.01～10 ng/mL,平均回收率为96.7%～106.5%,日内和日间相对标准偏差(RSD)分别小于7%和11%。应用所建立的方法测定了健康志愿者口服DHEA后尿液中内源性类固醇激素的变化情况,结果表明该方法样品处理简便,色谱分离完全,结果准确可靠,可替代气相色谱-质谱法用于体液中内源性类固醇激素兴奋剂的常规分析。     

混合无机酸消解-固相萃取-高效液相色谱-串联质谱法分析贝类壳体中的3种全氟磺酸化合物

建立了采用混合无机酸消解-固相萃取(SPE)-高效液相色谱-电喷雾电离串联质谱(HPLC-ESI-MS/MS)分析贝类壳体中的3种全氟磺酸化合物的方法。将贝壳粉经硝酸/盐酸混合酸消解,用氢氧化钠调节消解液的pH值至6后采用Oasis WAX固相萃取柱富集净化,然后采用内标法通过HPLC-ESI-MS/MS在分时段选择反应监测模式下分析上述全氟磺酸化合物。结果表明,该方法对于贝壳中全氟丁烷磺酸、全氟己烷磺酸和全氟辛烷磺酸的检出限(LOD)分别为0.28, 0.42和0.43 ng/g,加标回收率为94.88%～96.24%。采用此方法对渤海湾两种双壳贝类壳体进行的采样分析也表明,贝壳中3种目标污染物的含量范围为＜LOD～0.70 ng/g,比其在贝类软组织中的含量低约1个数量级。实验结果表明混合酸消解-SPE提取是检测贝类壳体中此类污染物的有效前处理方法。     

Simultaneous determination of isoflavones and lignans at trace levels in natural waters and wastewater samples using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization ion trap mass spectrometry

A high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization ion trap mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-MSn) method has been developed for the trace determination of phytoestrogens in aquatic environmental samples. The method includes solid-phase extraction (SPE) and analysis using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization ion trap mass spectrometry. The aquatic environmental samples, influent of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and creek water, were adjusted to pH approximately 5 before extraction. The analyzed phytoestrogens were identified by an MSn method and quantified against a deuterated internal standard (genistein-3',5',6,8-D4). In negative ion mode, 0.1% formic acid was employed in acetonitrile/water mobile phase. The method detection limits ranged from 0.5 to 10 ng/L in WWTP influent and from 0.1 to 5 ng/L in creek water. Average SPE recoveries for the analyzed phytoestrogens ranged from 85 to 95%, with a relative standard deviation (RSD) (%) ranging from 3.9 to 6.5. The concentrations of the six analyzed phytoestrogens varied from 0.2 to 600 ng/L with high levels of enterolignans (enterolactone and enterodiol) found in the collected wastewater. The method is shown to be suitable for the determination of phytoestrogens in aquatic environmental samples at nano- and sub-nanogram per liter levels.     

Sample preparation for determination of macrocyclic lactone mycotoxins in fish tissue, based on on-line matrix solid-phase dispersion and solid-phase extraction cleanup followed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A new method based on matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) on-line with a solid-phase extraction (SPE) cleanup process followed by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) is presented for the determination of 3 macrocyclic lactone mycotoxins in fish tissues: zearalenone, alpha-zearalenol, and beta-zearalenol. The sample was prepared in a device that used a reversed-phase material (C18) or a normal-phase material (neutral alumina) as a matrix dispersing agent, and a graphitized carbon black cartridge was used for sequential cleanup by SPE. LC/MS/MS was used for selective determination. Isocratic elution with acetonitrile-methanol-water was used for LC separation; for MS/MS, 2 types of interfaces (a pneumatically assisted electrospray ionization interface or an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization interface) were evaluated and compared in terms of the intensity of the total ion current produced by each analyte. The use of highly selective MSPD on-line with SPE for sample preparation before analysis allowed the removal of interfering matrix compounds present in tissue extracts that would otherwise cause severe ionization suppression of zearalenone and its metabolites during the ionization process. Average recoveries at 100 ng/g were between 83 and 103% with C18 and > or = 67% with neutral alumina; the relative standard deviations were < 11% with C18 and < 18% with alumina. The limits of detection ranged from 0.1 to 1.0 ng/g. Sample preparation is simple to perform, no special technical equipment is required, and solvent volumes are minimal.     

A simple; efficient and environmentally friendly method for the extraction of pesticides from onion by matrix solid-phase dispersion with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric detection

An evaluation of the extraction of pesticides from onion by matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) with the determination by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry using electrospray as the ionization source (LC-ESI-MS/MS) was carried out. The performance of different sorbents, including reused C18 bonded silica, was evaluated. Different parameters affecting the extraction efficiency were evaluated, such as the type and amount of sorbent, the time of interaction after the fortification step, the time of sample dispersion and the elution solvent. The matrix effect regarding the recovery of the pesticides by MSPD was also investigated. The best results were obtained using 0.5 g of sample, 1.0 g reused C18, interaction time of 1 h, dispersion time of 5 min, and acetonitrile as the elution solvent. The method was validated by the fortification of the onion sample, free of pesticides, at different concentration levels (0.01, 0.1 and 1.0 mg kg⁻¹). Average recoveries ranged from 78.3 to 120.4% and relative standard deviation below 20% was obtained. Detection and quantification limits ranged from 0.003 to 0.03 mg kg⁻¹ and from 0.01 to 0.1 mg kg⁻¹, respectively.     

Determination of HX0969w in rabbit whole blood by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and its application in a pharmacokinetic study

HX0969w is a novel carboxylate ester prodrug of propofol. After intravenous administration of HX0969w, the compound is rapidly hydrolyzed to its active metabolite propofol. A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method with electrospray ionization has been developed for determination of HX0969w in rabbit whole blood. Protein precipitation with methanol was used for sample preparation and 7-hydroxycoumarin served as internal standard. The standard curve ranged from 50.1 to 15,030 ng mL(-1). The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) for HX0969w was 50.1 ng mL(-1). The intra- and inter-day accuracies were within ± 10% and precisions were below 5.52%. The method was successfully applied to samples from a rabbit pharmacokinetic study.     

Determination of lamivudine/stavudine/efavirenz in human serum using liquid chromatography/electrospray tandem mass spectrometry with ionization polarity switch

A high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) method with ionization polarity switch was developed and validated in human serum for the determination of a lamivudine (3TC)/stavudine (d4T)/efavirenz combination HIV therapy. Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used to extract these anti-HIV drugs and internal standard aprobarbital. A gradient mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and 20 mM ammonium acetate buffer with pH adjusted to 4.5 using glacial acetic acid was utilized to separate these drugs on a hexylsilane column (150 x 2.0 mm i.d.). The total run time between injections was 18 min. The precursor and major product ions of these drugs were monitored on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer in the multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode. Ionization polarity was switched in the middle of the LC run allowing these anti-HIV drugs with different physicochemical properties to be detected simultaneously. The effect of ion suppression from human serum was studied and no interference with the analysis was noted. The method was validated over the range of 1.1-540 ng/mL for 3TC, 12.5-6228 ng/mL for d4T and 1.0-519 ng/mL for efavirenz. The method was shown to be accurate, with intra-day and inter-day accuracy less than 14.0% and precise, with intra-day and inter-day precision less than 13.1%. The extraction recoveries of all analytes were higher than 90%.     

老鼠血清中苯扎贝特的HPLC-MS法测定

建立一种简便、快速、灵敏的高效液相色谱-质谱联用测定老鼠血清中苯扎贝特的方法。 采用Gemini C18色谱柱;流动相：V(乙腈)∶V(甲醇)∶V(水)=60∶15∶25(0.03%甲酸水溶液);柱温35 ℃,流速0.3 mL/min;紫外吸收波长为235 nm;进样量5 μL。 质谱采用电喷雾电离负离子模式,用于定量分析的离子分别为[M-H]- m/z 359.65→273.70(苯扎贝特)和[M-H]- m/z 212.95→127.08(氯贝酸)。 对苯扎贝特检测的线性范围为0.073~7.884 mg/L,r=0.9995。 得到苯扎贝特的平均回收率为94.3%~103.1%;方法的日内和日间的相对标准偏差(RSD)均小于6%;最低检测限(LOD)与定量限(LOQ)分别为9.0和30 μg/L;为临床上人体血清中苯扎贝特的浓度检测提供了一种重现性好、灵敏度高的分析方法。     

Determination of Chlorzoxazone in Rat Plasma by LC-ESI-MS/MS and Its Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study

A sensitive LC-ESI-MS/MS method for determination of chlorzoxazone in rat plasma has been developed. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Zorbax SB-C₁₈ column, with 45:55 (v/v) acetonitrile–water as the mobile phase. A LC-ESI-MS/MS was performed in a multiple reactions monitoring (MRM) mode using target ions m/z 167.5→131.6 for chlorzoxazone and m/z 230.7→185.6 for phenobarbital (internal standard). The calibration plots were linear over the range of 10.0–2,000 ng/mL. Intra-day and inter-day precisions were better than 5.1% and 6.8%, respectively. The validated method was successfully used to analyze the drug in samples of rat plasma for pharmacokinetic study.     

Simultaneous Determination of Enalapril and Enalaprilat in Human Plasma by LC-MS: Application to a Bioequivalence Study

A rapid, simple and specific liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) method has been developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of enalapril and its major active metabolite enalaprilat in human plasma. Benazepril hydrochloride was used as the internal standard. Plasma was deproteinized with acetone and centrifuged. The supernatant was transferred and evaporated to dryness and the residue dissolved in mobile phase. Samples were separated on a C18 column with a mobile phase of methanol–20 mM ammonium acetate (53:47, v/v) containing 0.15% trifluoracetic acid (v/v) with a pH of 3.0. Enalapril, enalaprilat and the internal standard were measured by electrospray positive selective ion monitoring mode. The method was validated over a linear range of 1.56–400 ng mL⁻¹ and the limits of quantification were 1.56 ng mL⁻¹ for both enalapril and enalaprilat using 0.1 mL plasma. Extraction efficiency was more than 84% and recoveries were in range of 93.65–101.17%. The intra-day relative standard deviations (RSD) were less than 8.16 and 7.05% and inter-day RSDs were within 8.42 and 5.72% for enalapril and enalaprilat, respectively. The storage stability of QC samples was investigated under various conditions. The method was successfully applied for the evaluation of the pharmacokinetics and bioequivalence of enalapril and enalaprilat in 20 healthy volunteers after an oral dose of 20 mg enalapril maleate.     

超高效液相色谱-三重四极杆/复合线性离子阱质谱法同时快速测定血浆和尿液中84种有毒植物成分

采用超高效液相色谱-三重四极杆/复合线性离子阱的质谱联用技术,建立了同时快速测定血浆和尿液中84种有毒植物成分的方法。血浆样品经乙腈沉淀去蛋白和除磷脂、尿液样品经甲醇稀释后直接进样,以含0.1%（体积分数,下同）甲酸和2 mmol/L甲酸铵的97%乙腈水溶液、含0.1%甲酸的2 mmol/L甲酸铵水溶液作为流动相进行梯度洗脱,在Acquity BEH C₁₈色谱柱上实现分离,在电喷雾正离子多离子监测触发的增强子离子扫描（MRM-IDA-EPI）模式下检测,基质工作曲线内标法定量。血浆和尿液中84种待测物在相应的浓度范围内线性关系良好,相关系数均大于或等于0.9911,血浆和尿液中的检出限（S/N=3）分别为0.01~1和0.03~2 μg/L,准确度（平均加标回收率）为70.6%~124.5%,日内和日间精密度分别为0.7%~18.4%和1.1%~18.5%。该法简单、快速、灵敏、准确,可用于血浆和尿液中84种有毒植物成分的中毒检测。     

Determination of bisphenol A in sewage effluent and sludge by solid-phase and supercritical fluid extraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

Methods have been developed for the determination of bisphenol A (BPA) residues in municipal sewage and sludge samples. BPA in wastewater samples was enriched with a C18 solid-phase extraction cartridge, eluted with acetone, and converted to the pentafluoropropionyl derivative. For sludge samples, BPA was acetylated and extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide. In both cases, BPA-d16 was used as a surrogate to monitor extraction efficiency. Final analyses of derivatized sample extracts were performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry operating in the electron impact mode. For water samples, mean recoveries and standard deviations were 89 +/- 6, 94 +/- 4, and 85 +/- 7% at fortification levels of 1, 0.1, and 0.025 microg/L, respectively, with a method detection limit of 0.006 microg/L. For solid waste samples, mean recoveries and standard deviations were 93 +/- 5 and 92 +/- 6% at fortification levels of 2.5 and 0.25 microg/g, respectively, and the method detection limit was 0.05 microg/g. For the Canadian samples under investigation, concentrations of BPA ranged from 49.9 to 0.031 microg/L in sewage influent and effluent, and from 36.7 to 0.104 microg/g in sludge.     

Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry for the simultaneous determination of opiates and cocaine in human hair

A fast and highly sensitive electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of morphine, 6-methylacetylmorphine (6-MAM), codeine, cocaine and benzoylecgonine (BZE) in hair from drug abusers. Pulverized hair samples were subjected to an optimized matrix solid phase dispersion (MSPD) procedure with alumina, followed by diluted hydrochloric acid elution on column solid-phase extraction (SPE) clean-up/pre-concentration. Alternatively, samples were also subjected to an optimized ultrasound assisted enzymatic hydrolysis (USEH) with Pronase E, followed by an off-line SPE clean up/pre-concentration procedure. Positive electrospray ionization and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) with one precursor ion/product ion transition were used for the identification and quantification (deuterated analogues of each target as internal standards) of each analyte. The chromatographic pump and the autosampler were used for injecting the standards and the hair extracts (20 μL) as a flow injection analysis mode. The highest sensitivity was achieved when delivering the targets with an acetonitrile/water/formic acid (80/19.875/0.125) mixture. The limits of detection of the method were 39.2, 4.4, 6.8, 7.0 and 7.4 ng g(-1) for morphine, 6-MAM, codeine, cocaine and BZE, respectively. Relative standard deviations of intra- and inter-day precision were lower than 9 and 12%, respectively; whereas, analytical recoveries ranged from 96±5 to 106±4%. The developed method (MSPD-ESI-MS/MS) was applied to different hair samples from polydrug abusers, and results were statistically compared to those obtained after a conventional gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis and also after USEH and ESI-MS/MS or GC-MS determinations.     

Quantitative analysis of the antifungal drug anidulafungin by LC-online SPE-MS/MS in human plasma

The objective of this study was to develop a fast and robust method for the quantitation of the antifungal drug anidulafungin in human plasma samples by generic two-dimensional liquid chromatography (online-SPE/reversed phase LC) coupled to a tandem-quadrupole mass spectrometer (LC-online SPE-MS/MS). Online SPE was performed using an Oasis HLB cartridge column and for reversed-phase chromatography a Nucleodur Gravity C(18) column was used. A 100 μL aliquot of human plasma was extracted with 200 μL of 80:20 MeOH-0.2 M ZnSO(4) (v/v) as precipitation reagent containing ascomycin as internal standard (IS). The supernatant was directly injected for analysis. The total run time was 4.5 min. Anidulafungin and ascomycin were detected in the positive ionization mode. The method performance data for anidulafungin, such as limit of detection (0.013 μg/mL), lower limit of quantitation (0.04 μg/mL), linearity (R(2) = 0.9999) and concentration range (0.04-10 μg/mL) were ascertained. Intra- and inter-day precisions were ≤6.6% and intra- and inter-day accuracies were 98.5-101.0 and 100.0-102.5%, respectively. The assay was successfully applied for quantitation of anidulafungin in patient plasma samples.     

Determination of perfluorinated chemicals in food and drinking water using high-flow solid-phase extraction and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

For this study, we developed methods of determining ten perfluorinated chemicals in drinking water, milk, fish, beef, and pig liver using high-flow automated solid-phase extraction (SPE) and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. The analytes were separated on a core-shell Kinetex C18 column. The mobile phase was composed of methanol and 10-mM N-methylmorpholine. Milk was digested with 0.5 N potassium hydroxide in Milli-Q water, and was extracted with an Atlantic HLB disk to perform automated SPE at a flow rate ranged from 70 to 86 mL/min. Drinking water was directly extracted by the SPE. Solid food samples were digested in alkaline methanol and their supernatants were diluted and also processed by SPE. The disks were washed with 40% methanol/60% water and then eluted with 0.1% ammonium hydroxide in methanol. Suppression of signal intensity of most analytes by matrixes was lower than 50%; it was generally lower in fish and drinking water but higher in liver. Most quantitative biases and relative standard deviations were lower than 15%. The limits of detection for most analytes were sub-nanograms per liter for drinking water and sub-nanograms per gram for solid food samples. This method greatly shortened the time and labor needed for digestion, SPE, and liquid chromatography. This method has been applied to analyze 14 types of food samples. Perfluorooctanoic acid was found to be the highest among the analytes (median at 3.2-64 ng/g wet weight), followed by perfluorodecanoic acid (0.7-25 ng/g) and perfluorododecanoic acid (0.6-15 ng/g).     

Simultaneous determination of bisphenol A and alkylphenol in plant oil by gel permeation chromatography and isotopic dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

A simple analytical method was developed for the simultaneous analysis of bisphenol A (BPA), nonylphenol (NP) and octylphenol (OP) in plant oil. The target compounds were extracted by cyclohexane/ethyl acetate (1:1), purified by gel permeation chromatography (GPC), and analyzed by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS) in the negative ion mode. An isolator column was attached in front of the injection valve of the LC to separate background contaminants. Recovery studies were performed at three fortification levels. Mean recoveries were from 92.9% to 119.0%, with an acceptable coefficient of variation (4.4-18.5%, n=6). The limits of quantification of the method were 2, 2 and 0.5 μg/kg for BPA, NP and OP, respectively. This method can be applied for screening and confirming target compounds in plant oil.     

超高效液相色谱-电喷雾质谱法结合同位素稀释技术检测动物源性食品中的六溴环十二烷异构体

建立了使用超高效液相色谱-电喷雾四极杆质谱(UPLC-ESI-MS)结合同位素稀释技术准确测定动物源性食品中六溴环十二烷(HBCD)的3种非对映异构体的方法。试样在加入同位素内标13C-HBCD后进行索氏提取,提取液去除脂肪后经硅胶固相萃取柱浓缩、净化后,通过Waters ACQUITY UPLCTM BEH C18色谱柱分离,以甲醇-乙腈混合液和水为流动相进行梯度洗脱。在UPLC-MS分析过程中以保留时间和母离子信息进行定性,选择离子记录(SIR)方式定量。该法对于所测试的鲜奶、鱼肉等样品,检出限为0.1～0.4 ng/g,定量限为0.4～1.2 ng/g。对于加标鱼肉样品,添加水平为0.6,2.0和6.0 ng/g时,3种被测物的加标回收率为92.9%～99.3%,相对标准偏差为3.1%～8.0%。     

Direct determination of the estrogenic compounds 8-prenylnaringenin, zearalenone, alpha- and beta-zearalenol in beer by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

A novel LC-ESI-MS method for the simultaneous determination of four of the most significant estrogenic compounds naturally occurring in beer, 8-prenylnaringenin (8-PN), zearalenone (ZON), alpha-zearalenol (alpha-ZOL) and beta-zearalenol (beta-ZOL) which requires minimal sample preparation was developed using a chemometric approach. Experimental design was applied to assess the effects of the LC-ESI-MS parameters (mobile phase flow rate, drying gas flow, nebuliser pressure and capillary potential) on the obtained signal and to optimize the values in order to provide maximum sensitivity and detectability. The proposed method is simple, consisting only of degassing the beer and diluting with water (1:1, v/v) before injection. Comparison between the two internal standards used, zearalanone (ZAN) and 4,2'-dihydroxychalcone (4,2'-DHC), showed that ZAN performs better as internal standard not only for the mycotoxins but for 8-PN as well, giving lower % RSDs. Under inter-day conditions mean recoveries were 107% for ZON, 87.8% for alpha-ZOL, 72.8% for beta-ZOL, and 77.5% for 8-PN. The corresponding % RSDs ranged between 5.0 and 8.0. The method limits of detection were 1.3, 1.4, 1.0 and 0.8 ng mL(-1) for ZON, alpha-ZOL, beta-ZOL and 8-PN, respectively. The method was applied to 15 beer samples obtained from local supermarkets and the concentration of the phytoestrogen 8-PN in beer ranged between <0.8 and 38.6 ng mL(-1), while neither ZON nor its metabolites, alpha-ZOL and beta-ZOL, were detected.