Automated precolumn derivatization system for analyzing physiological amino acids by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry

An automated method for high‐throughput amino acid analysis, using precolumn derivatization high‐performance liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI‐MS), was developed and evaluated. The precolumn derivatization step was performed in the reaction port of a home‐built auto‐sampler system. Amino acids were derivatized with 3‐aminopyridyl‐N‐hydroxysuccinimidyl carbamate, and a 3 μm Wakosil‐II 3C8‐100HG column (100 × 2.1 mm i.d.) was used for separation. To achieve a 13 min cycle for each sample, the derivatization and separation steps were performed in parallel. The results of the method evaluation, including the linearity, and the intra‐ and inter‐precision, were sufficient to measure physiological amino acids in human plasma samples. The relative standard deviations of typical amino acids in actual human plasma samples were below 10%. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A fully automated amino acid analyzer using NBD-F as a fluorescent derivatization reagent

A fully automated amino acid analyzer using NBD-F (4- fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole) as a fluorescent derivatization reagent was developed. The whole analytical process was fully automated from derivatization, injection to HPLC separation and quantitation. The derivatization reaction conditions were re-evaluated and optimized. Amino acids were derivatized by NBD-F for 40 min at room temperature in the borate buffer (pH 9.5). The derivatives were separated within 100 min and fluorometrically detected at 540 nm with excitation at 470 nm. The detection limits for amino acids were in the range of 2.8-20 fmol. The calibration curves were linear over the range of 20 fmol to 20 pmol on column with the correlation coefficients of 0.999. The coefficients of variation were less than 5% at 3 pmol injection for all amino acids. Amino acids in rat plasma were determined by the proposed HPLC method.     

Development of single‐drop microextraction and simultaneous derivatization followed by GC‐MS for the determination of aliphatic amines in tobacco

In this work, for the first time, headspace (HS) single‐drop microextraction and simultaneous derivatization followed by GC‐MS was developed to determine the aliphatic amines in tobacco samples. In the HS extraction procedure, the mixture of derivatization reagent and organic solvent was employed as the extraction solvent for HS single‐drop microextraction and in situ derivatization of aliphatic amine in the samples. Fast extraction and simultaneous derivatization of the analytes were performed in a single step, and the obtained derivatives in the microdrop extraction solvent were analyzed by GC‐MS. The optimized experiment conditions were: sample preparation temperature of 80°C and time of 30 min, HS extraction solvent (the mixture of benzyl alcohol and 2,3,4,5,6‐pentafluorobenzaldehyde) volume of 2.0 μL, extraction time of 90 s. With the optimal conditions, the method validations were also studied. The method has good linearity (R² more than 0.99), accepted precision (RSD less than 13%), good recovery (98–104%) and low limit of detection (0.11–0.97 μg/g). Finally, the proposed technique was successfully applied to the analyses of aliphatic amines in tobacco samples of seven different brands. It was further demonstrated that the proposed method offered a simple, low‐cost and reliable approach to determine aliphatic amines in tobacco samples.     

Coupling of sequential injection with liquid chromatography for the automated derivatization and on-line determination of amino acids

The principle of sequential injection (SI) was exploited to develop a fully automated pre-column derivatization procedure combined on-line to liquid chromatography (LC). Using SI-LC derivatization 14 amino acids were determined fluorimetrically in pharmaceuticals with o-phthaldialdehyde (OPA) as the derivatization reagent. The SI system was used for the handling of samples and reagents, on-line mixing and introduction to the LC injection system. Chemical (pH and reagents concentrations) and instrumental variables (sample and reagent volumes, reaction time and flow rate) were optimized to attain the highest reaction yield and detector signal. Reversed phase chromatographic resolution of 14 amino acids was achieved within 35 min using gradient elution. The automated operation of the coupled SI-LC system resulted in very satisfactory performance. The method was applied for the simultaneous determination of amino acids in pharmaceutical formulations.     

Precolumn derivatization reagents for high‐speed analysis of amines and amino acids in biological fluid using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid analytical method for amines and amino acids was developed, involving derivatization with the novel reagent 3‐aminopyridyl‐N‐hydroxysuccinimidyl carbamate (APDS), followed by reversed‐phase high‐performance liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI‐MS/MS). More than 100 different analytes with amino groups, including amino acids in biological fluids such as mammalian plasma, could be measured within 10 min. The analytes were easily derivatized with APDS under the mild conditions. Selective reaction monitoring of ESI‐MS/MS in positive mode was carried out to include the transitions of all of the protonated molecular ions of analytes derivatized with APDS to the common fragment at m/z 121, which was derived from the amino pyridyl moiety of the reagent. We evaluated the retention time precision, the quantification limits, the linearity, the intra‐ and inter‐day precisions and the accuracy of 22 typical amino acids found in biological fluids, by analyzing a standard amino acid mixture and rat plasma. The intra‐day relative standard deviations (RSDs) of the retention times of the 22 amino acids and their internal standards were within 0.9% and the inter‐day RSDs were less than 1.1%, except for asparagines, with an RSD of 1.9%. The intra‐day and inter‐day RSDs of amino acid analyses in rat plasma were within 8.0% and 4.5%, respectively. The method, which facilitates the amino acid analysis of more than 100 samples in a day, represents an alternative to traditional amino acid analysis techniques, such as chromatography using postcolumn derivatization by ninhydrin. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Interlaboratory comparison for quantitative primary metabolite profiling in Pichia pastoris

For the first time, an interlaboratory comparison was performed in the field of quantitative metabolite profiling in Pichia pastoris. The study was designed for the evaluation of different measurement platforms integrating different quantification strategies using internal standardization. Nineteen primary metabolites including amino acids and organic acids were selected for the study. Homogenous samples were obtained from chemostat fermentations after rapid sampling, quenching and filtration, and hot ethanol extraction. Laboratory 1 (BOKU) employed an in vivo-synthesized fully labeled U¹³C cell extracts of P. pastoris for immediate internal standardization upon cell extraction. Quantification was carried out using orthogonal reversed-phase (RP-LC) and hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) in combination with tandem mass spectrometry. Laboratory 2 (Biocrates) applied a metabolomics kit allowing fully automated, rapid derivatization, solid phase extraction and internal standardization in 96-well plates with immobilized isotopically enriched internal standards in combination with HILIC-MS-MS and RP-LC-MS-MS for organic acids and derivatized amino acids, respectively. In this study, the obtained intracellular concentrations ranged from 0.2 to 108 μmol?g^?1 cell dry weight. The total combined uncertainty was estimated including uncertainty contributions from the corresponding MS-based measurement and sample preparation for each metabolite. Evidently, the uncertainty contribution of sample preparation was lower for the values obtained by laboratory 1, implementing isotope dilution upon extraction. Total combined uncertainties (K?=?2) ranging from 21 to 48 % and from 30 to 57 % were assessed for the quantitative results obtained in laboratories 1 and 2, respectively. The major contribution arose from sample preparation, hence from repeatability precision of the extraction procedure. Finally, the laboratory intercomparison was successful as most of the investigated metabolites showed concentration levels agreeing within their total combined uncertainty, implying that accurate quantification was given. The application of isotope dilution upon extraction was an absolute prerequisite for the quantification of the redox-sensitive amino acid methionine, where no agreement between the two laboratories could be achieved.     

Automated high‐speed CE system for multiple samples

A high‐speed CE system for multiple samples was developed based on a short capillary and an automated sample introduction device consisting of a commercial multi‐well plate and an x‐y‐z translation stage. The spontaneous injection method was used to achieve picoliter‐scale sample injection from different sample wells. Under the optimized conditions, a 40 μm‐long sample plug (corresponding to 78‐pL plug volume) was obtained in a 50 μm id capillary, which ensured both the high separation speed and high separation efficiency. The performance of the system was demonstrated in the separation of FITC‐labeled amino acids with LIF detection. Five FITC‐labeled amino acids including arginine, phenylalanine, glycine, glutamic acid, and asparagine were separated within 15 s with an effective separation length of 1.5 cm. The separation efficiency ranged from 7.96 × 10⁵/m to 1.12 × 10⁶ /m (corresponding to 1.26–0.89 μm plate heights). The repeatability of the peak heights calibrated with an inner standard for different sample wells was 2.4 and 2.7% (n = 20) for arginine and phenylalanine, respectively. The present system was also applied in consecutive separations of 20 different samples of FITC‐labeled amino acids with a whole separation time of less than 6 min.     

Comparison of silylation and esterification/acylation procedures in GC‐MS analysis of amino acids

Three derivatization agents used in GC analysis of amino acids were compared: N,O‐bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide, (BSTFA), N‐methyl‐N‐(tert‐butyldimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MTBSTFA), and isobutyl chloroformate (iBuCF). It was shown that the analytical characteristics achieved in the case of silylation with MTBSTFA are comparable to those obtained for esterification/acylation. However, since the former approach requires laborious sample preparation to isolate the compounds in question prior to derivatization, determination of amino acids as N(O,S)‐alkoxycarbonyl alkyl esters seems to be preferable in many cases. Application of the esterification/acylation procedure to analysis of lyophilized E. coli microbial culture was demonstrated.     

Immersed sol‐gel based amino‐functionalized SPME fiber and HPLC combined with post‐column photochemically induced fluorimetry derivatization and fluorescence detection of pyrethroid insecticides from water samples

A method based on direct immersion solid‐phase microextraction (DI‐SPME) coupled with high performance liquid chromatography combined with post‐column photochemically induced fluorimetry derivatization and fluorescence detection (HPLC‐PIF‐FD) was developed to extract three pyrethroid insecticides, i.e. cyfluthrin, cypermethrin, and flumethrin from water samples. A sol‐gel based coating fiber using 3‐(trimethoxysilyl propyl) amine as precursor was prepared and used for the extraction of the pyrethroids from groundwater samples. A post‐column photochemical reactor was designed and constructed for the derivatization of these environmentally important pollutants to increase their fluorescence sensitivity and determination in HPLC. The parameters affecting extraction process (extraction time and temperature, pH, salt addition, and co‐solvent) and desorption step (solvent, desorption time, and temperature) of the analytes from the sol‐gel‐based fiber, along with photochemical reaction conditions were investigated. The developed method proved to be relatively rapid, simple, and easy and offers high sensitivity and reproducibility. Linear dynamic ranges (LDR) for these insecticides were ranged between 0.25 to 50 μg/L. The regression coefficients were satisfactory (R² > 0.984) for these pyrethroids. The limits of detection and limits of quantification varied between 0.09 and 0.35 μg/L and 0.25 and 1.00 μg/L, respectively. Relative standard deviation RSDs values varied between 4.41% and 6.20%. Relative recoveries obtained from analysis of Jajroud river water sample ranged between 94% and 104%.     

A Sensitive Derivatization Method for the Determination of the Sugar Composition after Pre-column Reductive Amination with 3-Amino-9-ethylcarbazole （AEC） by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

3-Amino-9-ethylcarbazole （AEC） was employed for monosaccharide derivatization. The derivatives can be analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography （HPLC） with an ultraviolet detection （wavelength： 254 nm）. Monosaccharides were quantitatively derivatized with 3-amino-9-ethylcarbazole （AEC） at 70 ℃ for 60 min. The method was linear for all samples over the concentration range tested （r〉0.999）, the precision was found to be satisfactory （R.S.D. 〈 3%）, and the recovery ratios were 〉98.62%. The stability analysis showed R.S.D. was between 1.81%-3.16%. Detection limits for the samples （D-glucose, L-xylose, D-mannose, L-arabinose, and L-rhamnose） ranged from 0.06 to 1.97 ng/mL （S/N=3）. Under the optimized derivatization and HPLC conditions, five monosaccharides were well separated using a narrow bore C18 column （250 mm×4.6 mm） with 0.1 mol/L ammonium acetate containing 25% acetonitrile at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. As an application, the method has been successfully applied to the determination of monosaccharide compositions of three polysaccharides SPPA-1, SPPB-1 and SPPC- 1 of Spirulina platensis. This method also has potential application to oligosaccharide or glycan analyses.     

反相高效液相色谱法测定不同烟叶中的游离氨基酸

用乙醇水溶液提取烟叶中的游离氨基酸并通过阳离子交换柱纯化后,采用OPA(邻苯二甲醛丹酰氯)、FMOC(9-芴基甲氧基羰酰氯)联合在线衍生反相高效液相色谱法对烤烟、白肋烟和香料烟中的游离氨基酸进行了对比研究,发现白肋烟、香料烟和烤烟的烟叶中所含游离氨基酸总量分别为14.0mg/g、7.7mg/g和3.3mg/g;三者在所含主要氨基酸种类上存在显著差别。用该方法考察了不同产地烟叶中游离氨基酸的含量。     

Inexpensive,Computer-Automated HPLC for Ion Exchange Separation and Quantification of Amino Acids in Physiological Fluids

Abstract

An inexpensive, computer-automated HPLC for separation and quantification of amino acids in physiological fluids is described. The system offers fully automated equipment control, data collection, processing and storage capabilities. The component nature of the system and the software flexibility permit extensive system modification, accomodating a wide variety of different separatory procedures which are not possible with many dedicated amino acid analysers. The system uses a lithium-based ion exchange column with post-column o-phthalaldehyde derivatization. A time of 128 minutes, including column regeneration, is required for separation of all amino acids through to arginine. The advantages of post-column derivatization over pre-column derivatization methods for post-separatory amino acid techniques are discussed. Accurate quantification of radiolabel in amino acids is demonstrated.     

A novelty strategy for the fast analysis of sulfonamide antibiotics in fish tissue using magnetic separation with high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

A simple, fast and low‐cost extraction method with high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC‐MS/MS) determination was developed on sulfonamide antibiotics (SAs) in fish tissue. Magnetic separation was first introduced into the rapid sample preparation procedure combined with acetonitrile extraction for the analysis of SAs. Partitioning was rapidly achieved between acetonitrile solution and solid matrix by applying an external magnetic field. Acetonitrile solution was collected and concentrated under a nitrogen stream. The residue was redissolved with 1‰ formic acid aqueous solution and defatted with n‐hexane before analysis. The recoveries of SAs were in the range of 74.87–104.74%, with relative standard deviations <13%. The limits of quantification and the limits of detection for SAs ranged from 5.0 to 25.0 μg ^kg?1 and from 2.5 to 10.0 μg ^kg?1, respectively. The presented extraction method proved to be a rapid method which only took 20 min for one sample preparation procedure. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development and validation of a reversed‐phase HPLC method for licarbazepine monitoring in serum of patients under oxcarbazepine treatment

Licarbazepine is the pharmacologically active metabolite of oxcarbazepine, a drug indicated for the treatment of partial seizures and bipolar disorders. Several HPLC methods have been developed thus far but there is lack of control for interferences from antipsychotic drugs. The aim of the present study was to develop a simple, low‐cost and reliable HPLC‐UV method for the determination of licarbazepine in human serum in the presence of co‐administered antiepileptic, antipsychotic and commonly prescribed drugs. Sample preparation consisted of a single protein precipitation step with methanol. Separation lasted ~9 min on a reversed‐phase C₁₈ column using a mobile phase composed of 50 mm sodium‐dihydrogen‐phosphate‐monohydrate/acetonitrile (70:30, v/v) delivered isocratically at 0.9 mL/min and 30°C. Wavelength was 210 nm and calibration curve was linear with r ² 0.998 over the range 0.2–50.0 μg/mL. Coefficient of variation was <5.03% and bias <−4.92%. Recovery ranged from 99.49 to 104.52% and the limit of detection was 0.0182 μg/mL. No interferences from the matrix or from antiepileptic, antipsychotic and commonly prescribed drugs were observed. The method was applied to serum samples of patients under oxcarbazepine treatment and proved to be a useful tool for the therapeutic drug monitoring of licarbazepine during monotherapy or adjunctive treatment of seizures or affective disorders.     

Determination of amino acid neurotransmitters in rat hippocampi by HPLC‐UV using NBD‐F as a derivative

A simple, rapid and accurate high‐performance liquid chromatography method with ultraviolet–visible detection was developed for the determination of five amino acid neurotransmitters – aspartate, glutamic acid, glycine, taurine and γ‐aminobutyric acid – in rat hippocampi with pre‐column derivatization with 4‐fluoro‐7‐nitrobenzofurazan. Several conditions which influenced derivatization and separation, such as pH, temperature, acetonitrile percentage mobile phase and flow rate, were optimized to obtain a suitable protocol for amino acids quantification in samples. The separation of the five neurotransmitter derivatives was performed on a C₁₈ column using a mobile phase consisting of phosphate buffer (0.02 mol/L, pH 6.0)–acetonitrile (84:16, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min with the column temperature at 30°C. The detection wavelength was 472 nm. Without gradient elution, the five neurotransmitter derivatives were completely separated within 15 min. The linear relation was good in the range from 0.50 to 500 µmol/L, and the correlation coefficients were ≥0.999. Intra‐day precision was between 1.8 and 3.2%, and inter‐day precision was between 2.4 and 4.7%. The limits of detection (signal‐to‐noise ratio 3) were from 0.02 to 0.15 µmol/L. The established method was used to determine amino acid neurotransmitters in rat hippocampi with satisfactory recoveries varying from 94.9 to 105.2%. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Full automatic determination of chlorophenols in water using solid-phase microextraction/on-fiber derivatization and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A fully automated combination of solid-phase microextraction and on-fiber derivatization coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was developed to determine 17 chlorophenols in aqueous samples. Optimal parameters for the automated process, such as fiber coating (polyacrylate), derivatization reagent (N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl) trifluoroacetamide), extraction time (60 min), derivatization time (5 min), incubation temperature (35°C), sample pH (3), and ionic strength (300 g L(-1) of NaCl), as well as desorption time (5 min) and desorption temperature (270°C) were established. The whole procedure took only 90 min and was performed automatically. The shortcomings of silylation derivatives, like incompleteness and instability, were overcome by using solid-phase microextraction on-fiber silylation in this study. The results from both pure water and river water samples showed that the method had a good linearity (r(2) = 0.9993-1.0000), ranging from 0.01 to 100 μg L(-1). The related standard deviations were between 3.6 and 10.0%. The limits of detections and qualifications ranged from 0.03 to 3.11 ng L(-1) and 0.09 to 10.4 ng L(-1) for the CPs, respectively. The proposed method is superior to traditional solid phase extraction procedure.     

High‐speed separation and detection of amino acids in laver using a short capillary electrophoresis system

A high‐speed separation method of capillary MEKC with LIF detection had been developed for separation and determination of amino acids in laver. The CE system comprised a manual slotted‐vial array (SVA) for sample introduction that could improve the separation efficiency by reducing injection volume. Using a capillary with 80 mm effective separation length, the separation conditions for amino acids were optimized. Applied with the separation electric field strength of 300 V/cm, the ten amino acids could be completely separated within 2.5 min with 10 mol/L Na₂HPO₄–NaOH buffer (pH = 11.5) including 30 mmol/L SDS. Theoretical plates for amino acids ranged from 72 000 to 40 000 (corresponding to 1.1–2.0 μm plate heights) and the detection limits were between 25 and 80 nmol/L. Finally, this method was applied to analyze the composition of amino acids in laver and eight known amino acids could be found in the sample. The contents of five amino acids, tyrosine, glutamic acid, glycine, lysine, and aspartic acid that could be completely separated in real sample were determined. The recoveries ranged from 82.3% to 123% that indicated the good reliability for this method in laver sample analysis.     

Simultaneous derivatization and air‐assisted liquid–liquid microextraction of some parabens in personal care products and their determination by GC with flame ionization detection

A simultaneous derivatization/air‐assisted liquid–liquid microextraction technique has been developed for the sample pretreatment of some parabens in aqueous samples. The analytes were derivatized and extracted simultaneously by a fast reaction/extraction with butylchloroformate (derivatization agent/extraction solvent) from the aqueous samples and then analyzed by GC with flame ionization detection. The effect of catalyst type and volume, derivatization agent/extraction solvent volume, ionic strength of aqueous solution, pH, numbers of extraction, aqueous sample volume, etc. on the method efficiency was investigated. Calibration graphs were linear in the range of 2–5000 μg/L with squared correlation coefficients >0.990. Enhancement factors and enrichment factors ranged from 1535 to 1941 and 268 to 343, respectively. Detection limits were obtained in the range of 0.41–0.62 μg/L. The RSDs for the extraction and determination of 250 μg/L of each paraben were <4.9% (n = 6). In this method, the derivatization agent and extraction solvent were the same and there is no need for a dispersive solvent, which is common in a traditional dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction technique. Furthermore, the sample preparation time is very short.     

Rapid and sensitive double‐label based immunochromatographic assay for zearalenone detection in cereals

A double‐label immunochromatographic based assay (DL‐ICA) was developed to monitor zearalenone (ZEN) levels in cereals, based on Eu³⁺ nanoparticles (EuNP). The DL‐ICA exhibited excellent sensitivity, reliability and selectivity in real samples. It showed low limits of detection (0.21–0.25 μg/kg) and broad analytical ranges (up to 120 μg/kg). The total analytical time, including sample preparation and DL‐ICA execution, was reduced by 15 min compared with HPLC. The recovery rates ranged from 95.0–118.4%, with relative standard deviations (RSD) <11.6%. Inter‐ and intra‐day validations were assessed, recovery rates of 89.3–106.9% and RSD of 2.3–9.7% were obtained, suggesting considerable stability and reliability for the assay. An excellent correlation was observed between DL‐ICA and a reference HPLC method (R² = 0.9899). Compared to current immunoassays, the current DL‐ICA is inexpensive, highly sensitive, and rapid. Therefore, DL‐ICA constitutes a novel tool for monitoring mycotoxins in food and feed to ensure safety.