Enzymatic fluorimetric determination of the individual bile acids in blood serum

An enzymatic fluorimetric method is described for the determination of total bile acids (cholic acid and deoxycholic acid), primary bile acids (cholic and chen acids and individual bile acids in serum without prior separation of the acids. Total and primary bile acids are determined by equilibrium procedures by conver of the 3α- and 7α-hydroxy bile acids to 3-oxo and 7-oxo bile acids by α-NAD⁺, in the presence of 3α- and 7α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD), respectively, and measurement of the generated NADH fluorimetrically. Chenodeoxycholic acid is determined with 7α-HSD in the presence of cholic and deoxycholic acids by a differential kinetic procedure, and cholic and deoxycholic acids are calculated by difference. Interferents are removed by treatment of serum with Sachrom rein. Only 1.00 ml of serum is required. Low cost, simplicity and reliability are the main features of the method. The recovery of bile acids added to serum averaged 103% (range 83–122%). The method is suitable for routine use in small clinical laboratories.     

High-performance ion-pair chromatographic behaviour of conjugated bile acids with di-n-butylamine acetate

This paper dealt with a simple and efficient method for separating a mixture of different series of ionic, high polar, and hydrophilic conjugates of bile acids by high-performance ion-pair chromatography (HPIPC) with a new volatile ion-pair chromatographic reagent, di-n-butylamine acetate (DBAA), as a mobile phase additive. The substrates examined included eleven different classes of C-24 glycine- or taurine-amidated, 3-sulfated, 3-glucosylated, 3-N-acetylglucosaminidated, and 3-glucuronidated conjugates of cholic, chenodeoxycholic, urosodeoxycholic, and deoxycholic acids, as well as their double-conjugated forms. The anionic conjugated bile acids were chromatographed on a C18, reversed-phase ion-pair column, eluting with methanol-water (65:35, v/v) containing 5 mM of DBAA as a counter ion. Satisfactory chromatographic separation and column performance were attained by DBAA, compared with conventionally used non-volatile tetra-n-butylammonium phosphate. The present HPIPC method with DBAA provides an insight into the separation and structural elucidation of these biologically important bile acid conjugates and may be proved to be applied to HPLC-mass spectrometric analysis.     

A New Method of Bile Acid Silylation for Their GLC–MS Analysis

The trimethylsilyl (TMS) derivatives of a mixture of nine bile acids (six free and three conjugated), namely lithocholic, deoxycholic, chenocholic, cholic, hyodeoxycholic, ursodeoxycholic, glycodeoxycholic, glycocholic and glycochenodeoxycholic acids, have been prepared by a new, simple, efficient derivatization procedure, based on the use of a mixture of N -methyl- N -trimethylsilyl-1,1,1- trifluoroacetamide and 1-(trimethylsilyl)imidazole, as the silylating agent. The above-mentioned bile acids were completely trimethylsilylated on all hydroxyl and carboxyl groups whereas carbonyl and amino groups remained untouched.     

Design and synthesis of bile acid-peptide conjugates linked via triazole moiety

A conjugation of bile acids with peptides via Cu(I)-catalyzed click chemistry has been described. Novel bile acid-peptide conjugates linked via a 1,2,3-triazole moiety based on cholic, deoxycholic and lithocholic acid derivatives were synthesized using Cu(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition ("click" reaction). It was shown that up to three peptide fragments can be attached to a central steroid core, thus forming complex three-dimensional polyconjugate structures, which can find important applications in biochemistry, medicinal chemistry, and coordination chemistry.     

Rapid and accurate reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of conjugated bile acids in human bile for routine clinical applications. Therapeutic control during gallstone dissolution therapy

This paper introduces a new method to detect the taurine and glycine conjugates of five different bile acids (cholic acid, deoxycholic acid, chenodeoxycholic acid, ursodeoxycholic acid and lithocholic acid) in human bile. Advantages of this method are sufficient separation of compounds within a short period of time and a high rate of reproducibility. Using a mobile phase gradient of acetonitrile and water, modified with tetrabutylammonium hydrogen sulphate (0.0075 mol/l), we were able to maximize the differentiation between ursodeoxycholic acid and lithocholic acid, which is of primary interest during conservative gallstone dissolution therapy. Use of this gradient reduced analysis time to less than 0.5 h. Recovery rates for this modified method ranged from 94% to 100%, and reproducibility was 98%, sufficient for routine clinical applications.     

Simultaneous quantification of the major bile acids in Artificial Calculus bovis by high‐performance liquid chromatography with precolumn derivatization and its application in quality control

An accurate and sensitive high‐performance liquid chromatography method coupled with ultralviolet detection and precolumn derivatization was developed for the simultaneous quantification of the major bile acids in Artificial Calculus bovis, including cholic acid, hyodeoxycholic acid, chenodeoxycholic acid, and deoxycholic acid. The extraction, derivatization, chromatographic separation, and detection parameters were fully optimized. The samples were extracted with methanol by ultrasonic extraction. Then, 2‐bromine‐4’‐nitroacetophenone and 18‐crown ether‐6 were used for derivatization. The chromatographic separation was performed on an Agilent SB‐C18 column (250 × 4.6 mm id, 5 μm) at a column temperature of 30°C and liquid flow rate of 1.0 mL/min using water and methanol as the mobile phase with a gradient elution. The detection wavelength was 263 nm. The method was extensively validated by evaluating the linearity (r² ≥ 0.9980), recovery (94.24–98.91%), limits of detection (0.25–0.31 ng) and limits of quantification (0.83–1.02 ng). Seventeen samples were analyzed using the developed and validated method. Then, the amounts of bile acids were analyzed by hierarchical agglomerative clustering analysis and principal component analysis. The results of the chemometric analysis showed that the contents of these compounds reflect the intrinsic quality of artificial Calculus bovis, and two compounds (hyodeoxycholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid) were the most important markers for quality evaluating.     

Design and Synthesis of New Bile AcidSterol Conjugates Linked via 1,2,3‐Triazole Ring

A new steroid conjugates have been obtained from bile acids and sterol derivatives using ‘click chemistry’. Intermolecular 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition of the propargyl ester of bile acids (lithocholic, deoxycholic, and cholic acid) and azide derivatives of sterols (ergosterol and cholesterol) gave a new bile acid? sterol conjugates linked with a 1,2,3‐triazole ring. The structures of all products were confirmed by spectroscopic (¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR, and FT‐IR) analyses, mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS), and in silico biological activity evaluation methods (PASS), as well as PM5 semiempirical methods.     

Studies on adsorption characteristics of bile acids and methotrexate to a new type of anion-exchange resin, colestimide

The adsorption characteristics of various bile acids and methotrexate to a new type of anion-exchange resin, colestimide, were studied in vitro and compared with those to cholestyramine. For bile acids, colestimide was shown to have a higher capacity than cholestyramine. For example, approximately 1.4-fold higher for cholic acid and 2.0-fold for deoxycholic acid in water. In the presence of physiological anions, the degree of adsorption of cholic acid to both resins was greatly reduced, whereas adsorption of deoxycholic acid was only slightly reduced. Furthermore, the bed-volume of colestimide swelled about 6.8-fold in water, hence the anion-exchange groups of this resin are expected to be able to function effectively in adsorption of bile acids in the gut. In addition, colestimide was found to have high adsorption capacity for methotrexate, not only in water but also in media containing various physiological anions, and thus it is suggested that colestimide is a potential oral antidote to reduce possible toxicity by methotrexate through interruption of enterohepatic circulation.     

Quantification of bile acids directly from plasma by MALDI-TOF-MS

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MS) has proved to be a useful method for the quantification of bile acids directly from plasma. Six cholic acid derivatives were selected for analysis: taurocholic acid, taurochenodeoxycholic acid, taurolithocholic acid, glycocholic acid, glycochenodeoxycholic acid, and glycolithocholic acid. Solid-phase extraction (SPE) columns were used to preconcentrate and purify the plasma samples. Calibration curves averaged from 3 days were obtained for the bile acids, and then tested for their ability to accurately determine concentrations from one measurement. In summary, a simple, rapid method has been developed for the quantification of bile salts from plasma by MALDI-MS with SPE cleanup.     

Determination of diagnostically important free and conjugated bile acids in blood plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography

A procedure was proposed for the determination of free bile acids and their conjugates in blood plasma by the reversed-phase HPLC using the column Lichrospher 100 RP-18 (250 + 4.6 mm) with gradient elution and UV-detection at 206 nm. The procedure allowed the simultaneous determination of diagnostically important cholic acids, tauro-and glyco-cholates in blood plasma of patients with no preliminary separation of the analytes into subtypes. The bile acids and their conjugates were isolated from the sample matrix by solid phase extraction in a Sep-Pack C18 cartridge. The limits of detection were 0.11–0.15 mM for free acids and 0.015–0.025 mM for conjugates.     

Targeted Metabolomics Based on LC-MS/MS Revealing Alteration of Bile Acids in Male Migraine Patients

Migraine is an episodic neurological disorder and the second most disabling disease with unclear pathogenesis. Since dietary adjustment and probiotics supplement can improve the symptoms of migraine, the intestinal flora metabolites of bile acids(BAs) attract attentions in this work. 21 BAs, including cholic acid(CA), chenodeoxycholic acid(CDCA), deoxycholic acid (DCA), lithocholic acid(LCA), ursodeoxycholic acid(UDCA), hyocholic acid(HCA), hyodeoxycholic acid(HDCA) and their glycine- and taurine-conjugated species, were compared in serum of migraine patients and healthy controls using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS), which is the first study about the correlation between BAs and migraine. Two secondary BAs, DCA and LCA as well as their glycine- and taurine-conjugated forms, were demonstrated with significant difference between male patients and male controls, while no obvious difference was found in the two female groups. The result indicated that the variation of BAs might be gender-related when referred to migraine, which would emphasize the importance of gender-stratified analysis for the disease with varying morbidity in male and female. Five differential metabolites may serve as potential serum biomarkers for the male migraine patients, providing a new sight for the understanding and biomarker exploring of the migraine in male.     

Determination of bile acids in pig liver, pig kidney and bovine liver by gas chromatography-chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometry with total ion chromatograms and extraction ion chromatograms

An effective method has been developed for quantitative determination of six bile acids including lithocholic acid (LCA), deoxycholic acid (DCA), chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), hydodeoxycholic acid (HDCA), cholic acid (CA) and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) in biological tissues including pig liver, pig kidney and bovine liver by gas chromatography-chemical ionization/tandem mass spectrometry (GC-CI/MS/MS). Camphor-10-sulphonic acid (CSA) was proposed as effective catalyst for bile acid derivatization. Reactions were accelerated ultrasonically. The effects of different catalysts and reaction times on derivatization efficiency were evaluated and optimized. Bile acids were determined as methyl ester-trimethylsilyl ether and methyl ester-acetate derivatives. The efficiency of trimethylsilylation and acetylation was evaluated. Trimethylsilylation was done with N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) as the trimethylsilyl donating reagent in a ultrasonic bath for 20 min. Acetylation was done in pyridine with acetic anhydride at 40-45°C for 4 h. The former reaction was faster than the latter. Thus, trimethylsilylation was employed for the quantitative analysis. Negligible interferences from sterols in biological matrices were observed when the biological samples were treated with solid phase extraction before GC-CI/MS/MS. The linearity, reproducibility, detection limit and recovery were evaluated under the optimized conditions. Satisfactory results were obtained when bile acid derivatives of LCA, CDCA, HDCA, and UDCA were determined with total ion chromatograms (TIC) while DCA and CA were determined with extracted ion chromatograms (EIC), respectively. The detection limits (S/N=3) for six bile acids in biological tissues were ranging from 0.40 to 1.6 ng/mL and the recoveries indicated that the proposed method was feasible for the determination of trace bile acids in the biological samples studied. The experimental results for the animal tissues purchased from five different markets were compared. Interestingly, all of the six bile acids were present in pig liver while only the dihydroxy bile acids, DCA, CDCA and HDCA were found in pig kidney. In addition to DCA and CDCA, trihydroxy bile acid, CA, are the major bile acids in bovine liver.     

Comparative study on major bioactive components in natural, artificial and in-vitro cultured Calculus Bovis

Major bioactive components in various Calculus Bovis, including natural, artificial and in-vitro cultured Calculus Bovis, were comparatively studied. An approach of high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet and evaporative light scattering detections (HPLC/UV/ELSD) was established to simultaneously determinate six bioactive components thereof, including five bile acids (cholic acid, deoxycholic acid, ursodeoxycholic, chenodeoxycholic acid, hyodeoxycholic acid) and bilirubin. ELSD and UV detector were applied to detect bile acids and bilirubin respectively. The assay was performed on a C(18) column with water-acetonitrile gradient elution and the investigated constituents were authenticated by comparing retention times and mass spectra with those of reference compounds. The proposed method was applied to analyze twenty-one Calculus Bovis extraction samples, and produced data with acceptable linearity, precision, repeatability and accuracy. The result indicated the variations among Calculus Bovis samples under different developmental conditions. Artificial and in-vitro cultured Calculus Bovis, especially in-vitro cultured ones, which contain total bioactive constituents no less than natural products and have the best batch-to-batch uniformity, suffice to be used as substitutes of natural Calculus Bovis.     

Enzymatic fluorimetric determination of cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid in aqueous solutions and blood serum using a differential kinetic method

An enzymatic fluorimetric method is described for the determination of chenodeoxycholic acid and its conjugates and of cholic acid and its conjugates in aqueous solutions and serum. The method is based on the oxidation of 7 α-hydroxy bile acids by β-NAD⁺ in the presence of 7 α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase; the NADH produced is monitored fluorimetrically. Chenodeoxycholic acid is determined in the presence of cholic acid by a differential kinetic procedure; the sum of the two acids (primary bile acids) is determined by an equilibrium procedure, and cholic acid is calculated by difference. The r.s.d. was ca. 3% and 10% for aqueous solutions and sera, respectively. Recoveries of chenodeoxycholic acid, cholic acid and primary bile acids added to serum samples averaged 100.5, 105.1, and 102.9%, respectively. Ten samples can be analyzed per working day.     

Fluorescence properties of trans-ethyl-p-(dimethylamino) cinnamate in presence of bile acid host

The knowledge of the formation of bile acid micellar aggregates is of great importance because of the biological significance of these compounds and their pharmacological applications. The intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) fluorescence property of trans-ethyl-p-(dimethylamino) cinnamate is used to study the micelles formed by aggregation of three most important bile acids, viz. cholic acid, deoxycholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid by steady state and picosecond time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. The ICT fluorescence band intensity was found to increase with concomitant blue shift with the addition of bile acids. The blue shift in ICT fluorescence maxima as well as decrease in nonradiative decay constants in presence of bile acids indicate the passage of the probe towards the micro domains formed from the aggregated bile acids. Binding constant of the probe with micelles as well as critical micelle concentration and average polarity parameter of the micellar environments were obtained from the variation of fluorescence intensity on increasing concentration of bile acids in the medium.     

Bile acid acyl adenylate: a possible intermediate to produce a protein-bound bile acid

The non-enzymatic production of a protein-bound adduct by the action of the acyl adenylate of bile acids is described. On incubation of deoxycholyl adenylate with substance P in phosphate buffer, peptides covalently bound with one or two molecules of the bile acid were detected. The modified peptides were structurally characterized by time-of-flight mass spectrometry with matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI-TOFMS) in the post-source decay mode, and by liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization MS/MS. The deoxycholic acid was bound on substance P through the amino group at Arg-1 and/or Lys-3. The adenylate of cholic acid also produced the protein-bound bile acid on incubation with lysozyme, and the binding sites of the cholic acid appeared to be the lysine residues at 1, 33, 97 and 116. The results clearly suggest that bile acid adenylates in vivo may act as active intermediates to produce covalently bound bile acid adducts with peptides and proteins by nucleophilic displacement of the 5'-adenylic acid through the free amino groups.     

Determination of bile acids and lysolecithin in artificial and natural gastric juice by HPLC for characterization of antacida

Work-up procedures and HPLC separation systems for determination of taurocholic, glycocholic, chenodeoxycholic, and cholic acids and lysolecithin in artificial and natural gastric juice are described. These compounds are used for testing the binding capacity of antacida to the individual analytes. Work-up is simple, no extraction or filtration being required. The optimized combinations of stationary and mobile phases allow selective and sensitive determination of the respective bile acids in gastric juice. For optimization, the capacity factors of two related bile acids were evaluated for numerous commercial stationary phases. The mechanism of retention is different for free and conjugated bile acids. Special aspects of routine analysis are discussed.     

Exhaustively substituted bile acids as chiral selectors for enantioselective chromatography. Aim, use and perspectives

The use of chiral stationary phases (CSPs) obtained from cholic and deoxycholic acid derivatives in the HPLC resolution of racemic compounds is presented. The CSPs containing arylcarbamoyl derivatives of bile acids show enantiodiscriminating capabilities depending on the electronic character of the aryl substituents: the CSPs obtained starting from heteroderivatized selectors, i.e. bile acid derivatives containing both pi-acidic and pi-basic arylcarbamoyl moieties, show enantiodiscriminating capabilities strongly dependent on the arrangement of the electronically different arylcarbamates on the cholestanic backbone. The CSPs obtained starting from deoxycholic acid derivatives possessing both arylamido and arycarbamoyl substituents show enantiodiscriminating capabilities restricted to the resolution of benzodiazepine derivatives. Again, the enantioresolution properties depend not only on the electronic nature of the aromatic substituents but also on their arrangement on the cholestanic backbone. The comparison among the different families of bile acid based CSPs allows us to find likeness and differences in the enantiorecognition mechanism exhibited by the different chiral selectors.     

A rapid and sensitive UPLC‐MS/MS method for quantification of two caffeoylquinic acids and four main active components in rat plasma after an intravenous administration of Qingkailing injection and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

Qingkailing (QKL) injection, a modified modern Chinese medicine preparation, is widely used in the clinic for its significant antipyretic and anti‐inflammatory effects, but its serious adverse drug reactions have attracted more and more attention. Series of caffeoylquinic acids in QKL are widely suspected to be the allergens responsible for these adverse drug reactions. Therefore, pharmacokinetic studies of the caffeoylquinic acids are needed. In this paper, a simple, rapid and sensitive ultra‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for the simultaneous determination of chlorogenic acid, neochlorogenic acid, baicalin, geniposide, cholic acid and hyodeoxycholic acid in rat plasma. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a BEH C₁₈ column by a gradient elution at a flow rate of 0.40 mL/min in only 6.0 min. All analytes were monitored by multiple reaction monitoring mode with negative electrospray ionization. The calibration curves of these analytes were all linear (r > 0.9978) over wide concentration ranges. The intra‐ and inter‐ day precisions (relative standard deviations) were within 14.3% and accuracy (relative error) ranged from ?6.8 to 4.8%. The mean recoveries ranged from 74.5 to 105.6%. This validated method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of the six analytes in rats following an intravenous administration of QKL injection. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.