Sensitive method for the analysis of phospholipid subclasses and molecular species as 1-anthroyl derivatives of their diglycerides

A sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the separation and quantitation of phospholipid subclasses and molecular species has been developed. Phospholipids for analysis are hydrolyzed to the diradyl glycerols (DGs) with phospholipase C and the resulting DGs reacted with a molar excess of 1-anthroyl nitrile in the presence of quinuclidine or 4-dimethylaminopyridine to form a stable adduct. The anthroyl-DGs were separated into alkenylacyl, alkylacyl, and diacyl subclasses either by using normal-phase HPLC or by thin-layer chromatography on silica gel G plates. Molecular species within alkenylacyl, alkylacyl, and diacyl subclasses were separated using reversed-phase HPLC. Separation of the individual subclasses was achieved for ethanolamine phosphoglycerides from bovine brain, as well as choline and ethanolamine phosphoglycerides from human neutrophils. Separation and quantitation of individual molecular species were carried out for alkenylacyl, alkylacyl, and diacyl subclasses of bovine brain ethanolamine phosphoglycerides by their absorbance at 254 nm with correction for recoveries as normalized to the internal standard 1,2-dipentadecanoyl-3-phosphatidylcholine added before the hydrolysis of phospholipids with phospholipase C or 1,2-dipentadecanoyl-3-anthroyl glycerol added after complete derivatization. The extinction coefficient of the 1-anthroyl derivatives were greater than 68,000 permitting the generation of concentration-dependent determinations which were linear to less than 1 pmol when monitored at 254 nm. Thus, this procedure provides a new and very sensitive method for the quantitation of picomole quantities of phospholipids or DGs by HPLC techniques.     

Application of liquid chromatography-thermospray mass spectrometry in the analysis of glycerophospholipid molecular species

We report the application of high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) separation with ultraviolet detection and direct, on-line, structural analyses by mass spectrometry of glycerobenzoate derivatives from complex mixtures of phospholipid molecular species. Individual phospholipids were resolved from total lipid extracts by thin-layer chromatography (TLC). Diradylglycerols were released from phospholipids by phospholipase-C treatment, converted to diradyl glycerobenzoates and subsequently separated by TLC into subclasses (alk-1-enylacyl, alkylacyl and diacyl types). The molecular species within each subclass were resolved by HPLC with an octadecyl reversed-phase column in acetonitrile-isopropanol (80:20, v/v). Individual peaks were quantitated at the picomole level by measuring absorbance at 230 nm. After post-column addition of methanol-0.2 M ammonium acetate (50:50, v/v), peaks were introduced through the thermospray interface into a VG Masslab 30-250 quadrupole mass spectrometer. Molecular species showed as base peaks the salt adducts of the molecular ion which permitted easy deduction of the overall fatty acyl composition. In addition, the diglyceride fragment of each species was found at [MH - 122]+ and two fragments formed by the loss of the fatty acyl groups (R) in the sn-1 or sn-2 position were found at [M - R1]+ and [M - R2]+, respectively. Since preferential release of either fatty acyl group was observed in positional isomers, the ratio of the intensity of these fragments gave information on the position of the fatty acyl groups in the individual HPLC peaks. We show that the use of on-line mass spectrometry, however, provides easy identification of all molecular species present in a complex phospholipid mixture, even when more than one molecular species is contained in an HPLC peak.     

High-resolution analysis by nano-electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry for the identification of molecular species of phospholipids and their oxidized metabolites

Nano-electrospray ionization (ESI) Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FTICRMS) was applied to identify the molecular species of phosphatidylethanolamine of Caenorhabditis elegans, which has a high concentration of phospholipids with a fatty acyl chain having an odd number of carbon atoms. The molecular species of diacyl phosphatidylethanolamine with one fatty acyl chain having an odd number of carbon atoms and one fatty acyl chain having an even number of carbon atoms was identified separately from alkyl-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine with an alkyl chain having an even number of carbon atoms and a fatty acyl chain having an even number of carbon atoms. Furthermore, nano-ESI-FTICRMS was applied to the direct identification of oxidized phosphatidylcholine from soybean. The mass peaks of individual molecular species of oxidative phosphatidylcholine, such as 34:3 diacyl phosphatidylcholine with peroxide (+2O) (m/z 788.544) or 34:2 diacyl phosphatidylcholine with peroxide (+2O) (m/z 790.560), can be separated from the peaks of the molecular species of the non-oxidative phospholipids. This suggests that the mass peaks with a difference of less than 0.1 mass units in their molecular weight can be separated and that their individual exact molecular compositions can be obtained by the FTICRMS analysis. The high resolution and high accuracy of FTICRMS are very effective in the analysis of molecular species of phospholipids and their derivatives.     

Structural elucidation of molecular species of pacific oyster ether amino phospholipids by normal-phase liquid chromatography/negative-ion electrospray ionization and quadrupole/multiple-stage linear ion-trap mass spectrometry

Although marine oysters contain abundant amounts of ether-linked aminophospholipids, the structural identification of the various molecular species has not been reported. We developed a normal-phase silica liquid chromatography/negative-ion electrospray ionization/quadrupole multiple-stage linear ion-trap mass spectrometric (NPLC-NI-ESI/Q-TRAP-MS³) method for the structural elucidation of ether molecular species of serine and ethanolamine phospholipids from marine oysters. The major advantages of the approach are (i) to avoid incorrect selection of isobaric precursor ions derived from different phospholipid classes in a lipid mixture, and to generate informative and clear MSⁿ product ion mass spectra of the species for the identification of the sn-1 plasmanyl or plasmenyl linkages, and (ii) to increase precursor ion intensities by “concentrating” lipid molecules of each phospholipid class for further structural determination of minor molecular species. Employing a combination of NPLC-NI-ESI/MS³ and NPLC-NI-ESI/MS², we elucidated, for the first time, the chemical structures of docosahexaenoyl and eicosapentaenoyl plasmenyl phosphatidylserine (PS) species and differentiated up to six isobaric species of diacyl/alkylacyl/alkenylacyl phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) in the US pacific oysters. The presence of a high content of both omega-3 plasmenyl PS/plasmenyl PE species and multiple isobaric molecular species isomers is the noteworthy characteristic of the marine oyster. The simple and robust NPLC-NI-ESI/MSⁿ-based methodology should be particularly valuable in the detailed characterization of marine lipid dietary supplements with respect to omega-3 aminophospholipids.     

Quantitation of phenacyl esters of retinal fatty acids by high-performance liquid chromatography.

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the separation and quantitation of retinal fatty acids containing long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids is described. Fatty acids from frog retinal lipids were converted to the corresponding phenacyl derivatives which were separated on a C18 reversed-phase column and detected at 242 nm. Molar absorptivities (peak area units/nmol) of up to seventeen fatty acid phenacyl derivatives were determined and used for quantitation of fatty acids separated by HPLC. Compared with gas chromatography, the HPLC method gave a similar molar percent distribution of the fatty acids and was twenty to fifty times more sensitive. This HPLC method provides a useful means for the study of chemistry and metabolism of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in retina and other tissues where amounts of material may be limited or recovery of individual components desirable.     

高效液相色谱法和蒸发光散射检测器分析大豆磷脂分子种

高效液相色谱法和蒸发光散射检测器分析大豆磷脂分子种     

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of alpha-keto acids in human serum and urine using 1,2-diamino-4,5-methylenedioxybenzene as a precolumn fluorescence derivatization reagent

A simple and highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for the determination of alpha-keto acids in human serum and urine is described. In an acidic solution, twelve species of alpha-keto acids examined were converted by reaction with 1,2-diamino-4,5-methylenedioxy-benzene into highly fluorescent derivatives. The derivatives were separated isocratically by reversed-phase HPLC on a TSK gel ODS-80TM column and detected fluorimetrically. Eight alpha-keto acids in human serum and eleven alpha-keto acids in human urine can be determined simultaneously. The detection limits (signal-to-noise ratio = 5) are 6-44 fmol in an injection volume of 5 microliters. The intra-assay relative standard deviations for both serum and urine sample analyses are usually ca. 5%.     

Direct qualitative analysis of triacylglycerols by electrospray mass spectrometry using a linear ion trap

Triacylglycerols (TAGs) isolated from a biological sample provide a challenge for mass spectrometric analysis because of the complexity of naturally occurring TAGs, which may contain different fatty acyl substituents resulting in a large number of molecular species having the identical elemental composition. We have investigated the use of mass spectrometry to obtain unambiguous information as to the individual TAG molecular species present in a complex mixture of triacylglycerols using a linear ion trap mass spectrometer. Ammonium adducts of TAGs, [M+NH4]+, were generated by electrospray ionization, which permitted the molecular weight of each TAG molecular species to be determined. The mechanisms involved in the decomposition of the [M+NH4]+ and subsequent fragment ions were investigated using deuterium labeling, MS/MS, and MS3 experiments. Collision induced decomposition of [M+NH4]+ ions resulted in the neutral loss of NH3 and an acyl side-chain (as a carboxylic acid) to generate a diacyl product ion. MS/MS data were used to identify each acyl group present for a given [M+NH4]+ ion, and this information could be combined with molecular weight data to identify possible TAG molecular species present in a biological extract. Subsequent MS3 experiments on the resultant diacyl product ions, which gave rise to acylium (RCO+) and related ions, enabled unambiguous TAG molecular assignments. These strategies of MS, MS/MS, and MS3 experiments were applied to identify components within a complex mixture of neutral lipids extracted from RAW 264.7 cells.     

A simple and universal method for the separation and identification of phospholipid molecular species

One of the major challenges in lipidomics is to obtain as much information about the lipidome as possible. Here, we present a simple yet universal high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) method to separate molecular species of all phospholipid classes in one single run. The method is sensitive, robust and allows lipid profiling using full scan mass spectrometry, as well as lipid class specific scanning in positive and negative ionisation mode. This allows high-throughput processing of samples for lipidomics, even if different types of MS analysis are required. Excellent separation of isobaric and even isomeric species is achieved, and original levels of lyso-lipids can be determined without interference from lyso-lipids formed from diacyl species by source fragmentation. As examples of application of this method, more than 400 phospholipid species were identified and quantified in crude phospholipid extracts from rat liver and the parasitic helminth Schistosoma mansoni.     

Precise and global identification of phospholipid molecular species by an Orbitrap mass spectrometer and automated search engine Lipid Search

In the present research, we have established a new lipidomics approach for the comprehensive and precise identification of molecular species in a crude lipid mixture using a LTQ Orbitrap mass spectrometer (MS) and reverse-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) combination with our newly developed lipid search engine “Lipid Search”. LTQ Orbitrap provides high mass accuracy MS spectra by Fourier-transform (FT) mass spectrometer mode and can perform rapid MSⁿ by ion trap (IT) mass spectrometer mode. In this study, the negative ion mode was selected to detect fragment ions from phospholipids, such as fatty acid anions, by MS2 or MS3. We selected the specific detection approach by neutral loss survey-dependent MS3, for the identification of molecular species of phosphatidylcholine, sphingomyelin and phosphatidylserine. Identification of molecular species was performed by using both the high mass accuracy of the mass spectrometric data obtained from FT mode and structural data obtained from fragments in IT mode. Some alkylacyl and alkenylacyl species have the same m/z value as molecular-related ions and fragment ions, thus, direct acid hydrolysis analysis was performed to identify alkylacyl and alkenylacyl species, and then the RPLC–LTQ Orbitrap method was applied. As a result, 290 species from mouse liver and 248 species from mouse brain were identified within six different classes of phospholipid, only those in manually detected and confirmed. Most of all manually detected mass peaks were also automatically detected by “Lipid Search”. Adding to differences in molecular species in different classes of phospholipids, many characteristic differences in molecular species were detected in mouse liver and brain. More variable number of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acid-containing molecular species were detected in mouse brain than liver.     

高效液相色谱法分析大豆中磷脂酰胆碱的分子种

用高效液相色谱法（HPLC）在正相半制备硅胶柱上将大豆磷脂酰胆碱与其它组分分离，从柱后收集磷脂酰胆碱（PC），然后在反相C18柱上分析其分子种组成，蒸发光散射检测器检测。在25min内将大豆磷脂酰胆碱分离成11个分子种组分，使用易挥发溶剂，可获得各种分子种的纯物质，供进一步分析。分子种根据HPLC峰的脂肪酸组成分析而确定。     

Molecular composition of cottonseed phosphatidylcholines

Summary The diglyceride and monoacetyldiglyceride derivatives of the phosphatidylcholines of the seed kernels of the cotton plant of variety S-6029 have been separated into individual subfractions in a thin layer of silica gel impregnated with silver nitrate.The total fatty-acid compositions of the individual subfractions and the position distributions of the fatty acids in the glyceride moiety of the molecules have been determined, and on this basis the molecular compositions of the phosphatidylcholines have been established: for the DGs 46 species and for the MADGs 43 species. It has been shown that in the cotton plant two types of molecular species are synthesized (mainly to the extent of 85%): Disaturateds and monosaturated-monosaturateds, the disaturateds being characterized by a greater diversity of species but a low amount.Institute of the Chemistry of Plant Substances, Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR, Tashkent. Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 3, pp. 324–330, May–June, 1977.     

Molecular species analysis of arachidonate containing glycerophosphocholines by tandem mass spectrometry

Carboxylate anions arising from collision-induced dissociation (CID) of the [M - 15]^- ion produced by fast atom bombardment (FAB) of glycerophosphocholine (GPCho) were previously shown to be produced in an abundance ratio of 1:3 for the carboxylic acids esterified at sn - 1 and sn - 2, respectively. This observation has been confirmed in a series of 13 synthetic GPCho molecular species. A good correlation was found between the isomeric purity of GPCho molecular species as determined by negative-ion FAB/CID analysis and the isomeric purity of the sn - 2 fatty acid using a phospholipase A₂ assay. Negative-ion FAB mass spectra of several 1-0-alkyl-2-acyl-GPCho molecular species were found to be similar to those of diacyl GPCho. However, the cm spectra from the major high-mass ions are different from those of the diacyl species in that the [M - 15]^- ion yields only one carboxylate anion and the [M - 86]^- undergoes a neutral loss of the sn - 2 carboxylic acid as a major decomposition product. These results suggest several rules useful for structural characterization of GPCho molecular species by negative-ion tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS): (1) For diacyl species, the mass of the two carboxyl anions plus the mass of the GPeho backbone (minus a methyl group) must correspond to the mass of the [M - 15] anion; (2) for diacyl species there is a carboxylate anion ratio approximately 1:3 for the substituents at sn - 1 and sn - 2; and (3) for alkylether species, only one fatty acyl group is present, and the difference between the [M - 15] ion and the GPCho backbone (minus methyl) plus the fatty acyl group at sn - 2 corresponds to an alkylether substituent. (4) Assignment of ether-linked molecular species can be made from the [M - 86]^- ion, which has a strong neutral loss of the sn - 2 fatty acid. Analysis of GPCho isolated from human neutrophils by total lipid extraction and normal-phase HPLC was carried out by negative-ion FABand MS/MS. The major arachidonate-eontaining molecular species, which comprise only 5% of total GPCho, were identified by using precursor ion scans for the arachidonate anion, m/ z 303. Decomposition of identified. precursor ions permitted the assignment of those molecular species of GPCho that contain arachidonate at sn - 2 and identification of the substituent at the sn - 1 position. These results were compared to previously identified molecular species from human neutrophils. Several minor arachidonate-containing molecular species were tentatively identified.     

Preparative separation of sphingolipids and of individual molecular species by high-performance liquid chromatography and their identification by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Six fractions containing tri- to pentaglycosylceramides were isolated from the green, fresh water alga Chlorella kessleri, grown heterotrophically, by using preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Up to twelve fractions were obtained by further reversed-phase HPLC of each glycosylceramide. The use of a polar capillary column with Supelcowax 10 as the stationary phase allowed an excellent separation of the individual molecular species of ceramides, even though the separation did not occur when the ceramides differed only in the position of the amide bond. The individual molecular species (even if present in mixtures) were identified by gas chromatography-chemical ionization mass spectrometry. The evidence for a complete structure was obtained by enzyme splitting with alpha- and beta-galactosidases (the sequence of monosaccharides) and by negative ionization fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry. More than 400 molecular species of glycosylceramides were identified.     

Synthesis, spectroscopic, and electrochemical studies of 1,2-naphthalene-ring-fused tetraazachlorins, -bacteriochlorins, and -isobacteriochlorins: the separation and characterization of structural isomers

1,2-Naphthalene-ring-expanded tetraazachlorins (TACs), tetraazabacteriochlorins (TABCs), and tetraazaisobacteriochlorins (TAiBCs) have been synthesized. Procedures for the synthesis of the starting materials, that is, derivatives of 1,2-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, have been reinvestigated and improved. Nine possible derivatives, including four, two, and three structural isomers of TACs, TABCs, and TAiBCs, respectively, were separated by using thin-layer chromatography (TLC) or high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and the structure of each isomer was determined by (1)H NMR spectroscopy combined with the NOE technique. The formation ratio of each isomer was rationalized in terms of the intramolecular steric repulsion effect, which was predicted by geometry optimizations at the DFT level. The derived compounds were characterized by using IR, electronic, and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectroscopy, and by electrochemical methods. Frequency calculations at the DFT level correctly reproduced the experimental IR spectra and, in particular, distinguished between the three isomers of the TAiBCs. In the electronic absorption and MCD spectra of the TAC and TABC species, the Q-band splits into two intense components similarly to the 2,3-naphthalene-fused derivatives described in our preceding paper, although no significant spectral differences were observed from species to species. On the other hand, the spectra of the TAiBCs showed moderate differences depending on the structure of the isomer. The spectroscopic properties as well as the electrochemical behavior of these chlorins resemble those of the corresponding benzene-fused derivatives rather than the 2,3-naphthalene-fused derivatives. Molecular-orbital and configuration-interaction calculations within the framework of the ZINDO/S method were helpful in the discussions of the above observations.     

Identification and quantification of molecular species of diacyl glyceryl ether by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with refractive index detection and mass spectrometry

We have developed a method to identify and quantify the molecular species of diacyl glyceryl ether (DAGE) using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) equipped with a refractive index detector and an electrospray ionization and time of flight mass spectrometer (LC-RI-MS). An octadecyl silica column with a mixture of acetonitrile and dichloromethane (65:35, v/v) as an eluant was used for the HPLC. When the LC-RI-MS method was applied to a mixture of synthetic DAGEs; 1-O-hexadecyl-2,3-dioleoylglycerol (O-16:0-18:1-18:18:1), 1-O-octadecyl-2,3-dioleoylglycerol (O-18:0-18:1-18:1), 1-O-octadecenyl-2,3-dioleoylglycerol (O-18:1-18:1-18:1), 1-O-octadecyl-2,3-didocodahexaenoylglycerol (O-18:0-22:6-22:6), and 1-O-octadecenyl-2,3-didocosahexaenoylglycerol (O-18:1-22:6-22:6), good separation and quantification were obtained on the refractive index chromatogram. A pseudo-molecular ion [M+NH4]+ and a monoacyl glyceryl ether ion [M-RCO2] + were observed for all synthetic DAGEs on the mass spectrum. It was found that the fatty acids and glyceryl ether in DAGE could be easily identified by these mass spectra. When this LC-RI-MS method was applied to the DAGEs extracted from muscle of Stromateus stellatus, approximately 18 peaks were observed on LC-RI-MS chromatograms and the major molecular species of DAGEs were identified as O-16:0-18:1-18:1.     

Molecular characterization of a highly heterogeneous mixture of glucosylceramides from a deep-water Mediterranean scleractinian coral Dendrophyllia cornigera

We report here on the structural characterization of a highly heterogeneous mixture of glucosylceramides (GlcCers) isolated from a deep-water Mediterranian dendrophylliid coral, Dendrophyllia cornigera. The neutral glycosphingolipid (GSL) components of the coral were separated into three HPLC fractions which were structurally characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS). NMR analysis revealed a beta-glucosylpyranose, a methyl branched conjugated sphingadienine and alpha-hydroxy fatty acid moieties characteristic for the species. Molecular mass distributions of the HPLC fractions were monitored using single-stage MS. At least 17 different GlcCer constituents with variable long-chain base and fatty acid residues were observed based on the molecular ion peaks in the liquid secondary ion (LSI) survey spectra. Structures of the individual components were revealed by product ion spectra of the alkali-cationized molecules ([M + Cat](+)), which resulted in two characteristic fragment ions, F(F) and F(S). Tandem MS of the same fragment ions formed in the ion source showed that F(F) carries the hydoxy fatty acid, while F(S) carries the long-chain sphingoid base, thus providing complementary structural information for the characterization of ceramide composition. Based on the tandem mass spectra of the molecular ions [M + Na](+), 26 different GlcCers of the coral were identified. The ceramide moiety showed heterogeneity in both the sphingoid portion (d18:2, d19:2, d20:2 and d20:3) and the alpha-hydroxy fatty acid chain (h19-h24, either saturated or unsaturated), forming an extremely heterogeneous mixture. The method is generally applicable to the characterization of structurally heterogeneous GlcCer mixtures.     

柱前衍生化高效液相色谱法分析多糖中的单糖组成

报道了多糖中单糖组成的柱前衍生化高效液相色谱测定方法。采用反向高效液相色谱250nm紫外检测和使用梯度洗脱，6种还原单糖的1－苯基－3－甲基－5－吡唑啉酮衍生实现了良好的分离并具有良好的峰形。对单糖组成的定量测定进行了方法学考察，建立了单糖组成分析的数据分析方法，并用所建立方法对一个多糖中的单糖组成进行了分析，获得良好的重复性。     

Simple method for reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of fungal pigments in fruit-bodies of Boletales (Fungi)

A reversed-phase HPLC method has been developed for the analysis of hydroxylated pulvinic acid derivatives which are responsible for the pigmentation of fruit-bodies belonging to the order Boletales (Fungi). Variegatic, xerocomic and atromentic acid as well as variegatorubin were detected and separated in methanolic extracts of Boletus permagnificus and Xerocomus parasiticus, and the pigment profile of these species was compared. The identity of the pigments was confirmed by means of LC-atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) mass spectrometry.     

Liquid chromatography with post-column electrochemical treatment and mass spectrometric detection of non-polar compounds

The first hyphenation of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), electrochemical online oxidation and mass spectrometry (MS) is described. Ferrocenecarboxylic acid esters of various alcohols and phenols have been synthesized, separated by reversed-phase HPLC and oxidized (ionized) coulometrically prior to single quadrupole MS analysis using electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) interfaces. The dependence of the ionization on the electrochemical pretreatment is demonstrated. Limits of detection for selected derivatives range from 4 x 10(-9) to 4 x 10(-7) mol dm-3 depending on the individual compound and the selected interface.