Quantitative multiresidue method for about 100 veterinary drugs in different meat matrices by sub 2-microm particulate high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to time of flight mass spectrometry

A quantitative multiresidue method covering more than 100 veterinary drugs, belonging to different drug families, has been developed. The proposed approach uses an liquid-liquid-solid extraction technique (bi-polarity extraction) which is capable in recovering polar, medium polar and apolar compounds. A thorough generic reversed phase solid-phase extraction (SPE) clean-up removes interfering proteins and provides clean and stable extracts. Dedicated rinsing steps are proposed to reduce analyte adsorption on glass walls and on precipitating proteins. The resulting extract is analyzed by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) coupled to time of flight mass spectrometry (TOF). The method was validated according to the Commission Decision 2002/657/EEC. Validation coved the relevant meat matrices (muscle, kidney and liver).     

Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole-orthogonal time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) utilizes sub-2 microm particles with high linear solvent velocities to effect dramatic increases in resolution, sensitivity and speed of analysis. The reduction in particle size to below 2 microm requires instrumentation that can operate at pressures in the 6000-15,000 psi range. The typical peak widths generated by the UPLC system are in the order of 1-2 s for a 10-min separation. In the present work this technology has been applied to the study of in vivo drug metabolism, in particular the analysis of drug metabolites in bile. The reduction in peak width significantly increases analytical sensitivity by three- to five-fold, and the reduction in peak width, and concomitant increase in peak capacity, significantly reduces spectral overlap resulting in superior spectral quality in both MS and MS/MS modes. The application of UPLC/MS resulted in the detection of additional drug metabolites, superior separation and improved spectral quality.     

Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry: a novel challenge in multiresidue pesticide analysis in food

Potential of ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) separation strategy coupled with tandem (in space) mass spectrometric detection (MS/MS) in multiresidue pesticide analysis was critically assessed. Performance parameters such as number of theoretical plates, height of theoretical plate, peak symmetry and peak capacity were measured/calculated on the basis of data generated by analysis of apple extracts containing 17 (semi)polar pesticides representing various classes of active ingredients of widely used crop protective preparations. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) procedure provided improved chromatographic parameters resulting in significantly increased sample throughput including lower solvent consumption and lower limits of quantitation (LOQs) for most of target analytes compared to common method employing conventional high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) separation.     

Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry as a sensitive and powerful technology for metabolomic studies

Metabolomics is the comprehensive assessment of endogenous metabolites of a biological system. These large-scale analyses of metabolites are intimately bound to advancements in ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray (UPLC) technologies and have emerged in parallel with the development of novel mass analyzers and hyphenated techniques. Recently, the combination of UPLC with MS covers a number of polar metabolites, thus enlarging the number of detected analytes in the widely used separation sciences. This technology has rapidly been accepted by the analytical community and is being gradually applied to various fields such as metabolomics and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Given the power of the technology, metabolomics has become increasingly popular in drug development, molecular medicine, traditional medicine and other biotechnology fields, since it profiles directly the phenotype and changes thereof in contrast to other "-omics" technologies. Hyphenated UPLC/MS technique is becoming a useful tool in the study of body fluids, represents a promising hyphenated microseparation platform in metabolomics and has a strong potential to contribute to disease diagnosis. This review describes the applications of UPLC/MS in metabolomic research, and comparison role of HPLC/MS, NMR and GC/MS, highlights its advantages and limitations with certain characteristic examples in the life and TCM sciences.     

液相色谱-四极杆飞行时间质谱法快速筛查与确证中华鳖中未知着色剂

建立了液相色谱-四极杆飞行时间质谱(LC-Q-TOF MS)对中华鳖中未知着色剂的快速筛查方法。20个中华鳖样品经过简易的乙腈提取净化后,利用液相色谱-二极管阵列检测器(LC-DAD)对未知着色剂进行定位。选定其中响应最强的样品S7,同时在线获取其在不同洗脱程序下未知着色剂定位时间段的质谱信息,经阴性样品扣除本底后匹配获得一对精确质量数差异在5 mDa以内的特征提取离子(分别为564.39773 Da和564.39561 Da)。通过质谱定性分析处理软件对上述特征提取离子对进行分子式生成,确认两者分子式为C₄₀H₅₂O₂,推测其同为未知着色剂。结合该未知着色剂的紫外-可见光谱信息与文献资料,推断该化合物可能为角黄素。通过角黄素标准品建立的飞行时间质谱"二级确证谱库"对样品中未知着色剂进行进一步的匹配确证,最终确证其为角黄素。本研究讨论了基于LC-Q-TOF MS方法的化合物筛查策略,实验表明其可快速对中华鳖中的未知着色剂进行筛查和确证。     

超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱法快速筛查牛奶中的农药和兽药残留

利用超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS)技术建立了牛奶中42种农药和兽药残留的快速检测方法。目标药物包括常用的13种农药和29种兽药,采用QuEChERS（Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe）方法进行样品前处理。牛奶样品经含1%甲酸的乙腈溶液提取,同时加入无水硫酸钠和氯化钾盐析,提取液经C18填料净化后直接测定。目标药物经ACQUITY UPLCTMBEH C18柱分离,以乙腈和0.1%甲酸水溶液为流动相进行梯度洗脱,采用正离子全信息串联质谱扫描模式(MSE)进行检测。结果表明,牛奶中42种农药和兽药的定量限(LOQ, S/N=10)为1～100 μg/kg; 3个加标水平的平均回收率为68.2%～129.1%,相对标准偏差为2.8%～30.8%。该方法快速简便、灵敏度较高,可用于牛奶中42种农兽药的快速筛查。     

Fast screening and quantitation of microcystins in microalgae dietary supplement products and water by liquid chromatography coupled to time of flight mass spectrometry

Cyanobacteria, commonly called "blue-green algae", may accumulate in surface water supplies as "blooms" and may concentrate on the surface as blue-green "scums". Some species of cyanobacteria produce toxins and are of relevance to water supplies and to microalgae dietary supplements. To ensure the safety of drinking water and blue-green algae products, analyses are the only way to determine the presence or absence of toxins. This paper shows the use of ultra performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) coupled to orthogonal acceleration time of flight (TOF) mass spectrometry for the detection and quantitation of microcystins. The method presented is very sensitive, simple, fast, robust and did not require fastidious clean-up step. Limits of detection of 0.1 microg L(-1) in water and 0.1-0.2 microg g(-1) in microalgae samples were achieved. Method performances were satisfactory and appropriate for monitoring of water and dietary supplements. The method was applied in routine to samples taken from Swiss market or buy on internet website. Among 19 samples, six showed the presence of microcystins LR and LA at harmful levels.     

Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to linear ion trap mass spectrometry for the identification of drug metabolites in biological samples

The coupling of ultra-performance liquid chromatography, operating at elevated pressures, to a linear ion trap mass spectrometer provides a high-performance system suitable for drug metabolite characterisation. This system demonstrates improved chromatographic efficiency and sensitivity and at the same time provides diagnostic MSn data often critical for metabolite structural assignment. The linear ion trap was capable of dealing with the high chromatographic efficiencies and hence narrow peak widths associated with 1.7 microm particle-packed column separations. Polarity switching and data-dependent MSn data were generated with ease, and applied to the identification of metabolites found in human plasma.     

基于非靶标筛查的超高效液相色谱-三重四极杆质谱法检测尿液样品中的酰基肉碱

建立了一种基于母离子扫描模式的超高效液相色谱-三重四极杆质谱检测尿液中酰基肉碱的分析方法。对酰基肉碱类化合物所共有的m/z为60、85和144的碎片离子进行选择性检测,结合化合物母离子扫描的结果及其对应的保留时间,选取一致性较好的化合物进行筛选,再利用高分辨质谱确认,最终检测到37种酰基肉碱化合物,其中有14种尚未被HMDB和LIPID MAPS数据库收录。该方法可应用于其他生物样本(如血液、组织)中酰基肉碱的定性、定量分析,可作为检测酰基肉碱化合物的新选择。     

Multi-residue screening of veterinary drugs in egg,fish and meat using high-resolution liquid chromatography accurate mass time-of-flight mass spectrometry

The last 2 years multi-compound methods are gaining ground as screening methods. In this study a high-resolution liquid chromatography combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HRLC–ToF-MS) is tested for the screening of about 100 veterinary drugs in three matrices, meat, fish and egg. While the results are satisfactory for 70–90% of the veterinary drugs, a more efficient sample preparation or extract purification is required for quantitative analysis of all analytes in more difficult matrices like egg. The average mass measurement error of the ToF-MS for the veterinary drugs spiked at concentrations ranging from 4 to 400 μg/kg, is 3.0 ppm (median 2.5 ppm) with little difference between the three matrices, but slightly decreases with increasing concentration. The SigmaFit value, a new feature for isotope pattern matching, also decreases with increasing concentration and, in addition, shows an increase with increasing matrix complexity. While the average SigmaFit value is 0.04, the median is 0.01 indicating some high individual deviations. As with the mass measurement error, the highest deviations are found in those regions of the chromatogram where most compounds elute from the column, be it analytes or matrix compounds. The median repeatability of the method ranges from 8% to 15%, decreasing with increasing concentration, while the median reproducibility ranges from 15% to 20% with little difference between matrices and concentrations. The median accuracy is in between 70% and 100% with a few compounds showing higher values due to matrix interference. The squared regression coefficient is >0.99 for 92% of the compounds showing a good overall linearity for most compounds. The detection capability, CCβ, is within 2 times the associated validation level for >90% of the compounds studied. By changing a few conditions in the analyses protocol and analysing a number of blank samples, it was determined that the method is robust as well as specific. Finally, an alternative validation strategy is proposed and tested for screening methods. While the results calculated for repeatability, within-lab reproducibility and CCβ show a good comparison for the matrices meat and fish, and a reasonable comparison for the matrix egg, only 27 analyses are required to obtain these results versus 63 analysis in the traditional, 2002/657/EC, approach. This alternative is suggested as a cost-effective validation procedure for screening methods.     

Metabonomics: the use of electrospray mass spectrometry coupled to reversed-phase liquid chromatography shows potential for the screening of rat urine in drug development

The application of liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) followed by principal components analysis (PCA) has been successfully applied to the screening of rat urine following the administration of three candidate pharmaceuticals. With this methodology it was possible to differentiate the control samples from the dosed samples and to identify the components of the mass spectrum responsible for the separation. These data clearly show that LC/MS is a viable alternative, or complementary, technique to proton NMR for metabonomics applications in drug discovery and development.     

Quantitative determination of uridine in rabbit plasma and urine by liquid chromatography coupled to a tandem mass spectrometry

Recently a pyrimidine nucleoside, uridine, has been show to have a protective effect on cultured human corneal epithelial cells, and on dry eye animal model and patients. In this study, we introduce a sensitive liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of uridine in rabbit plasma and urine. After protein precipitation with methanol including methaqualone (internal standard), the analyte was chromatographed on a reversed-phase column with a mobile phase of 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution and methanol (1:4, v/v). The accuracy and precision of the assay were in accordance with Food and Drug Administration regulations for the validation of bioanalytical methods. This method was used to measure the concentrations of uridine in plasma and urine after a single oral administration of 450 mg/kg uridine in rabbits.     

超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱法同时测定猪肉中多类兽药残留

建立了超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱(UPLC-Q-TOF MS)快速检测猪肉中6类33种兽药残留的分析方法。样品采用QuEChERS方法进行前处理(5%(v/v)乙酸乙腈溶液提取,C18和NH₂吸附剂净化),采用ZORBAX SB-C18色谱柱(100 mm×2.1 mm, 3.5 μm)分离,以乙腈-0.1%(v/v)甲酸水溶液(含5 mmol/L乙酸铵)为流动相,梯度洗脱,Q-TOF MS电喷雾正离子模式分析检测。在全扫描采集模式下,以准分子离子峰的峰面积定量,以化合物的色谱保留时间和精确质量数定性。在Target MS/MS采集模式下,通过碎片离子的精确质量数进一步确证化合物。33种化合物在各自的线性范围内均呈现良好的线性关系,相关系数均大于0.99, 33种化合物的定量限(S/N=10)为2.5~100 μg/kg,添加回收率为67.0%~109.0%,相对标准偏差(RSD,n=6)均不高于15.1%。该方法简便、快速、灵敏,适用于猪肉中多类兽药残留的同时检测。     

Single‐step multiresidue determination of ten multiclass veterinary drugs in pork,milk, and eggs using liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

A multiclass, multiresidue determination method is reported for the detection of ten veterinary drugs, including scopolamine, metoclopramide, acriflavine, berberine, tripelennamine, diphenhydramine, acrinol, triamcinolone, loperamide, and roxithromycin in pork, milk, and eggs. The method involves a simple extraction using 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile, followed by defatting with n‐hexane, centrifugation, and filtration prior to liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometric analysis. As ion suppression and enhancement effects are reported, matrix‐matched calibrations are used for quantification, with determination coefficients ≥0.9765. For the majority of the tested analytes, the intra‐ and interday accuracy (expressed as recovery %) range from 70.6 to 94.6% and from 70.1 to 93.3%, respectively, and the precision (expressed as relative standard deviation) ranges from 0.5 to 19.8% and from 2.8 to 18.4% in all matrices. The limits of quantification range between 0.5 and 10 ng/g. The validated tandem mass spectrometry method is successfully applied to market samples; the target analytes are not detected in any of the tested samples. In terms of accuracy, no extract cleanup is deemed necessary. The developed method is feasible for the simultaneous detection of the tested analytes in pork, milk, and eggs.     

超高效液相色谱-四极杆飞行时间质谱法用于食物中毒的快速筛查与确证

建立了一种利用超高效液相色谱-四极杆飞行时间质谱筛查食物中毒的方法。试样用乙腈提取,QuEChERS净化,以0.1%(v/v)甲酸水溶液和0.1%(v/v)甲酸乙腈溶液为流动相进行梯度洗脱,经Acquity UPLC BEH C18柱(100 mm×2.1 mm,1.7μm)分离。采用四极杆飞行时间质谱信息依赖性扫描(information dependent acquisition,IDA)模式进行分析。该模式可以实现一次进样分析同时获得分析物的一级和二级碎片的精确质量质谱图,结合SCIEX OS软件可对581种目标物质进行快速筛查,其中包括546种农药、24种真菌毒素、11种鼠药,以一级离子精确质量数、一级离子同位素丰度比以及二级碎片进行标准质谱库匹配。应用建立的快速筛选确认检测方法对一起突发性食物中毒安全事件样本进行检测,共检测11份样本,其中9份均检测出呋喃丹。进一步以呋喃丹标准品确认保留时间,结果表明,样品与标准品保留时间一致。呋喃丹的精确质量数偏差均小于3.7×10-6,在0.5~500 ng/mL范围内线性关系良好,相关系数为0.998,仪器检出限(S/N=3)为0.3μg/kg,定量限(S/N=10)为1μg/kg,在10、50、200μg/kg 3个添加水平的回收率为75.6%~95.9%,相对标准偏差为3.6%~6.9%(n=6)。该方法快速、简便、准确、灵敏,适用于突发性公共安全事件的快速筛查与检测要求。     

Development of a broad toxicological screening technique for urine using ultra-performance liquid chromatography and time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Withdrawal of the support for the REMEDi HS drug profiling system has necessitated its replacement within our laboratories with an alternative broad toxicological screening technique. To this end, a novel method, based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) and time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry, was developed for the routine analysis of urine samples. Identification was achieved by comparison of acquired data to libraries containing more than 300 common drugs and metabolites, and was based on a combination of retention time, exact mass and fragmentation patterns. Validation data for the method is presented and comprised an evaluation of the following parameters: precision; transferability of the methodology between the six collaborating laboratories; specificity; extraction recovery and stability of processed samples; matrix effects and sensitivity.This paper presents the benefits of supplementary fragmentation data with particular regard to increasing specificity and confidence of identification and its usefulness with overdosed samples. The utility of the method was assessed by the parallel analysis of 30 authentic urine samples using the REMEDi HS and UPLC-TOF. The latter provided enhanced detection, leading to the identification of twice as many drugs. Furthermore it did not miss any compounds that were identified by REMEDi HS. The UPLC-TOF findings were further verified by a combination of data from three other conventional screening techniques, i.e., GC-MS, HPLC-DAD and UPLC-MS/MS.     

A high-sensitivity ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HR-TOFMS) method for screening synthetic cannabinoids and other drugs of abuse in urine

The continuing emergence of designer drugs imposes high demands on the scope and sensitivity of toxicological drug screening procedures. An ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HR-TOFMS) method was developed for screening and simultaneous confirmation of both designer drugs and other drugs of abuse in urine samples in a single run. The method covered selected synthetic cannabinoids and cathinones, amphetamines, natural cannabinoids, opioids, cocaine and other important drugs of abuse, together with their main urinary metabolites. The database consisted of 277 compounds with molecular formula and exact monoisotopic mass; retention time was included for 192 compounds, and primary and secondary qualifier ion exact mass for 191 and 95 compounds, respectively. Following a solid-phase extraction, separation was performed by UHPLC and mass analysis by HR-TOFMS. MS, and broad-band collision-induced dissociation data were acquired at m/z range 50–700. Compound identification was based on a reverse database search with acceptance criteria for retention time, precursor ion mass accuracy, isotopic pattern and abundance of qualifier ions. Mass resolving power in spiked urine samples was on average FWHM 23,500 and mass accuracy 0.3 mDa. The mean and median cut-off concentrations determined for 75 compounds were 4.2 and 1 ng/mL, respectively. The range of cut-off concentrations for synthetic cannabinoids was 0.2–60 ng/mL and for cathinones 0.7–15 ng/mL. The method proved to combine high sensitivity and a wide scope in a manner not previously reported in drugs of abuse screening. The method’s feasibility was demonstrated with 50 authentic urine samples.

超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱法快速筛查辣椒粉中27种农药残留

建立了超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱（UPLC-Q-TOF/MS）快速筛查辣椒粉中27种农药残留的检测方法。样品采用乙腈提取,经Carb/NH₂固相萃取小柱净化,用乙腈-乙酸乙酯（3：1,v/v）洗脱,电喷雾正离子模式检测。在一级质谱模式下,以目标物的保留时间、精确质量数、同位素分布和同位素丰度比定性,以准分子离子峰的峰面积定量。在Targeted MS/MS模式下,通过相应碰撞能量下的离子碎片信息进一步确证。27种化合物在各自的线性范围内线性关系良好,相关系数均大于0.997。27种化合物的定量限为2.5~5.0 μg/kg,在3个添加水平下的回收率为72.3%~118.9%,相对标准偏差（RSD）为0.21%~12.7%（n=6）。该方法快速、灵敏、准确,适用于辣椒粉中多种农药残留的同时检测。     

Fully automated screening of veterinary drugs in milk by turbulent flow chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry

There is an increasing interest in screening methods for quick and sensitive analysis of various classes of veterinary drugs with limited sample pre-treatment. Turbulent flow chromatography in combination with tandem mass spectrometry has been applied for the first time as an efficient screening method in routine analysis of milk samples. Eight veterinary drugs, belonging to seven different classes were selected for this study. After developing and optimising the method, parameters such as linearity, repeatability, matrix effects and carry-over were studied. The screening method was then tested in the routine analysis of 12 raw milk samples. Even without internal standards, the linearity of the method was found to be good in the concentration range of 50 to 500 μg/L. Regarding repeatability, RSDs below 12% were obtained for all analytes, with only a few exceptions. The limits of detection were between 0.1 and 5.2 μg/L, far below the maximum residue levels for milk set by the EU regulations. While matrix effects—ion suppression or enhancement—are obtained for all the analytes the method has proved to be useful for screening purposes because of its sensitivity, linearity and repeatability. Furthermore, when performing the routine analysis of the raw milk samples, no false positive or negative results were obtained.