Determination of Voriconazole in Human Plasma by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry: Application in Therapeutic Drug Monitoring

A sensitive, accurate and robust Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry method has been developed and validated to measure voriconazole trough levels in human plasma. The plasma samples were mixed with fluconazole as an Internal Standard and directed to protein precipitation and drug extraction. An aliquot of 1 μl was injected into the chromatographic system and separated by the Acquity BEH C18 column at a flow rate of 0.30 ml/min in a gradient mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile, Ultrapure water (UPW), methanol and formic acid. Voriconazole was detected by a Triple Quadrupole Detector (TQD) operating on Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) and a positive ion mode Electrospray ionization (ESI) Q1 mass: 350.1 m/z, Q3 mass: 281.1 m/z. Method linearity of the calibration curve (0.10 - 8.00 μg/ml) indicated a correlation coefficient r ≥ 0.99. The intra and inter-assay accuracy was within 85% - 115% and the intra and inter-assay precision was ≤5.76%. Voriconazole recovery percentage was between 97.69 - 119.62%. The method was successively applied in routine voriconazole TDM.

Offline two-dimensional liquid chromatography coupled with ion mobility-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry enabling fourdimensional separation and characterization of the multicomponents from white ginseng and red ginseng

Inherent complexity of plant metabolites necessitates the use of multi-dimensional information to accomplish comprehensive profiling and confirmative identification.A dimension-enhanced strategy,by offline two-dimensional liquid chromatography/ion mobility-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry(2 D-LC/IM-QTOF-MS)enabling four-dimensional separations(2 D-LC,IM,and MS),is proposed.In combination with in-house database-driven automated peak annotation,this strategy was utilized to characterize ginsenosides simultaneously from white ginseng(WG)and red ginseng(RG).An offline 2 DLC system configuring an Xbridge Amide column and an HSS T3 column showed orthogonality 0.76 in the resolution of ginsenosides.Ginsenoside analysis was performed by data-independent high-definition MSE(HDMSE)in the negative ESI mode on a Vion?IMS-QTOF hybrid high-resolution mass spectrometer,which could better resolve ginsenosides than MSEand directly give the CCS information.An in-house ginsenoside database recording 504 known ginsenosides and 58 reference compounds,was established to assist the identification of ginsenosides.Streamlined workflows,by applying UNIFI?to automatedly annotate the HDMSEdata,were proposed.We could separate and characterize 323 ginsenosides(including 286 from WG and 306 from RG),and 125 thereof may have not been isolated from the Panax genus.The established 2 D-LC/IM-QTOF-HDMSEapproach could also act as a magnifier to probe differentiated components between WG and RG.Compared with conventional approaches,this dimensionenhanced strategy could better resolve coeluting herbal components and more efficiently,more reliably identify the multicomponents,which,we believe,offers more possibilities for the systematic exposure and confirmative identification of plant metabolites.

Rapid analysis of fifteen sulfonamide residues in pork and fish samples by automated on-line solid phase extraction coupled to liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry

The aim of this work was to develop an automated on-line solid phase extraction(SPE)with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the detection of fifteen sulfonamides in pork and fish samples.Samples were extracted with 0.2%formic acid acetonitrile solution,purified by on-line SPE device with HLB column,then separated by XBridge C18 column,using 0.1%formic acid solution and acetonitrile as the mobile phase.Mass spectrometric data was acquired under multiple reaction monitoring(MRM)mode using positive ionization electrospray.Internal standard method was used in the quantification,good linear relationship was got in range of 0.1–100 ng/mL and correlation coefficient was higher than 0.9990.The limits of detection were in the range of 0.125–2.00g/kg and the limits of quantitation were in the range of 0.250–5.00g/kg.Recoveries of the method were in range of 78.3%–99.3%,relative standard deviation were lower than 10%.The method was simple,sensitivity,and could be used for routine supervision and analysis of fifteen sulfonamides in pork and fish.

Measurement of Arsenic Species in Infant Rice Cereals by Liquid Chromatography Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Infant rice cereals were analyzed for total arsenic, inorganic arsenic (i-As) and the organic arsenic species monomethylarsonoic acid (MMA) and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) using liquid chromatography inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LC-ICP-MS). Total arsenic concentrations in the samples ranged from 110 ng/gup to 420 ng/g. The i-As in the rice cereals accounted for 33% to 77% of the total arsenic. The observed variability between infant rice cereals makes a dietary survey approach to accessing arsenic exposures difficult.

Rapid Screening of 26 Organophosphorus Pesticides in Fresh Milk by Ultra Liquid Chromatography Coupled With Quadrupole-Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry

[Objectives]A rapid screening and analysis method for 26 organophosphorus agrochemicals in fresh milk was established using ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time of flight mass spectrometry.[Methods]Raw milk was extracted with acetonitrile solution containing 0.2%formic acid by volume,and purified with a Dikma ProElut QuECHERS solid phase extraction cartridge.Target compounds were separated on a Waters ACQUITY UPLC HSS T3 chromatographic column(2.1 mm×50 mm,1.8μm)with methanol-water solution as a mobile phase for gradient elution,and through scanning with an electrospray ion source in positive ion mode,26 kinds of organophosphorus agrochemicals could be accurately qualitatively determined within 10 min.[Results]When using formic acid acetonitrile with a volume fraction of 0.2%,there were more types of detected compounds and a greater recovery;and using B cartridge could effectively eliminate the interference of non-polar substances such as phospholipids,achieve higher number of detected compounds than those of A and C,and well separate the 26 kinds of agrochemical residues.[Conclusions]This study provides a reference method for the rapid screening of agrochemical residues in dairy cows in the future.

Lysophosphatidylcholine Biomarkers of Lung Cancer Detected by Ultra-performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Quadrupole Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry

Centrifugal ultrafiltration after methanol extraction of whole plasma was used as an optimal condition for the preparation of blood plasma before metabonomic studies. The plasma samples from 102 lung cancer patients and 34 healthy volunteers were prepared with this approach. With ultra-performance liquid chromatography（UPLC） coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry（Q-TOF MS） analysis, the samples were investigated in order to find potential disease biomarkers. After data acquisition, orthogonal signal correction partial least squares models were built to differentiate the healthy volunteers from lung cancer patients and to identify metabolites that showed significantly different expression between the two groups. Several metabolite ions were identified as potential biomarkers according to the variable importance in the project（VIP） value in both ion modes. Five lysophosphatidylcholines were further identified as specifically lysoPC 16：0, isomer of lysoPC 16：0, lysoPC 18：0, lysoPC 18：1 and lysoPC 18：2. These results suggest that UPLC coupled with Q-TOF MS is an effective technique for the analysis of plasma metabolites in metabonomic studies.

Screening and Identifying of Nephrotoxic Compounds in Lithospermum erythrorhizon Using Live-cell Fluorescence Imaging and Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Tandem Mass Spectrometry

In order to identify the potential nephrotoxic compounds in traditional Chinese medicine Lithospermum erythrorhizon,it was separated into serial fractions according to their polarities.An in vitro method was utilized to determine the nephrotoxicity of these fractions with the help of fluorescence image analysis.As a result,the primary fraction A05 and its secondary fractions C06 ＂C09 and C12 ＂C14 were found to have significant toxicity to LLC-PK1 cell line,as determined by the survive rate less than 20% after they were treated with these fractions.These potential nephrotoxic fractions were further analyzed by multistage and high resolution mass spectrometry.The main compounds in these fractions were tentatively identified to be acetylshikonin,isobutyrylshikonin,β,β＇-dimethyla-cryloylshikonin,and isovalerylshikonin,which may bring nephrotoxicity.

Screening potential mitochondria-targeting compounds from traditional Chinese medicines using a mitochondria-based centrifugal ultrafiltration/liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry method

Mitochondria regulate numerous crucial cell processes, including energy production, apoptotic cell death, oxidative stress, calcium homeostasis and lipid metabolism. Here, we applied an efficient mitochondria-based centrifugal ultrafiltration/liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry（LC/MS） method,also known as screening method for mitochondria-targeted bioactive constituents（SM-MBC）. This method allowed searching natural mitochondria-targeting compounds from traditional Chinese medicines（TCMs）, including Puerariae Radix（PR） and Chuanxiong Radix（CR）. A total of 23 active compounds were successfully discovered from the two TCMs extracts. Among these 23 hit compounds, 17 were identified by LC/MS, 12 of which were novel mitochondria-targeting compounds. Among these, 6 active compounds were analyzed in vitro for pharmacological tests and found able to affect mitochondrial functions. We also investigated the effects of the hit compounds on Hep G2 cell proliferation and on loss of cardiomyocyte viability induced by hypoxia/reoxygenation injury. The results obtained are useful for in-depth understanding of mechanisms underlying TCMs therapeutic effects at mitochondria level and for developing novel potential drugs using TCMs as lead compounds. Finally, we showed that SM-MBC was an efficient protocol for the rapid screening of mitochondria-targeting constituents from complex samples such as PR and CR extracts.

Simultaneous determination of 15 pesticide residues in Chinese cabbage and cucumber by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry utilizing online turbulent flow chromatography

In this experiment,a liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method was built to determine 15 pesticide residues in Chinese cabbage and cucumber samples based on online turbulent flow chromatography purification.After modified quick,easy,cheap,effective,rugged,and safe(QuEChERS)extraction,extracts were directly injected to the TLX(TurboFlow Liquid Xcalibur)system and brought to TurboFlow™columns for on-line purification and then transferred to analytical column for further separation and analysis.TurboFlow™columns types,transfer flow rate,and transfer time were optimized.Limits of detection and limits of quantification of the method obtained for 15 pesticide residues were ranged between 0.2–1.0μg/kg and 0.5–2.0μg/kg in Chinese cabbage and cucumber samples.Recoveries of pesticide residues were in range of 75.3%–103.7%.Matrix effects for 15 pesticides were in range of 5.6%–106.6%.The developed method has been successfully used for the determination of 15 pesticide residues in real samples.

Bio-analytical method development and validation of Rasagiline by high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry detection and its application to pharmacokinetic study

The most suitable bio-analytical method based on liquid liquid extraction has been developed and validated for quantification of Rasagiline in human plasma. Rasagiline-13C3 mesylate was used as an internal standard for Rasagiline. Zorbax Eclipse Plus C18 （2.1 mm × 50 mm, 3.5 um） column provided chromatographic separation of analyte followed by detection with mass spectrometry. The method involved simple isocratic chromatographic condition and mass spectrometric detection in the positive ionization mode using an API-4000 system. The lotal run time was 3.0 min. The proposed method has been validated with the linear range of 5 12000 pg/mL for Rasagiline. The intra-run and inter-run precision values were within 1.3% 2.9% and 1.6% 2.2% respectively for Rasagiline. The overall recovery for Rasagiline and Rasagiline-13C3 mesylate analog was 96.9% and 96.7% respectively. This validated method was successfully applied to the bioequivalence and pharmacokinetic study of human volunteers under fasting condition.

Determination of Steroid Hormone Residues in Fish Tissues Using Gel Permeation Chromatography and Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

A highly sensitive method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 8 steroid hormones in high-fat fish tissues using ultra high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(UPLC-MS/MS).The 8 steroid hormones were extracted from the tissues with diethyl ether.Differing from other common purification methods,the extract solutions were cleaned by gel permeation chromatography(GPC) using ethyl acetate-cyclohexane solution(1:1,v/v) as the mobile phase.The separation of target compounds was carried out by a BEH C18 column and a gradient elution consisting of acetonitrile and 0.2% aqueous formic acid(v/v).The compounds were detected under the multiple reaction monitoring(MRM) mode and quantified with external standard method.This method was validated with respect to linearity,specificity,accuracy and precision.A linearity with correlation coefficient larger than 0.995 was achieved in the range of 0.5 to 50 ng m L^(-1).The average recoveries at the spiked levels of 1.0,5.0,and 10.0 μg kg^(–1) varied between 81.7% and 90.8%,with the relative standard deviations(n=5) ranged from 3.50% to 10.0%.The limit of quantification(LOQ) for 8 steroid hormones ranged from 0.2 to 1.5 μg kg^(-1).It was concluded that this method can be successfully applied for the determination of 8 steroid hormones in complicated matrices including high-fat fish tissues.

Determination of urine catecholamines and metanephrines by reversed-phase liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

The measurement of urine catecholamine and metanephrine concentrations is important for biochemical screening and diagnosis of pheochromocytoma.The goal of this work was to develop a simple liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS)method for determining catecholamines and metanephrines in urine to replace an existing liquid chromatographic method using electrochemical detection.Urine samples were prepared using Oasis weak-cation-exchange cartridges.The eluate was analyzed on an Agilent ZORBAX Eclipse Plus Phenyl-Hexyl column in 3 min.Adrenaline,noradrenaline,dopamine,metanephrine,normetanephrine,and their deuterated internal standards were monitored in positive electrospray ionization mode by multiple reaction monitoring(MRM).No evidence of ion suppression was observed.The assay was linear up to 5μmol/L for adrenaline,5μmol/L for noradrenaline,6.1μmol/L for dopamine,5.6μmol/L for metanephrine,and 34.6μmol/L for normetanephrine,with lower limits of quantification of 5,5,12,6 and 7nmol/L,respectively.The intra-day and inter-day precisions for all analytes ranged from 0.59%to 4.64%and1.98%to 4.80%,respectively.External quality assurance samples were assayed and showed excellent agreement with the target values.This simple method provides an improved assay for determining urine catecholamines and metanephrines.

Analyzing crude oils from the Junggar Basin(NW China) using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry(GC×GC-TOFMS)

As a new technology of analyzing crude oils, comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography cou- pled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry （GCxGC- TOFMS） has received much research attention. Here we present a case study in the Junggar Basin of NW China. Results show that the hydrocarbons, including saturates and aromatics, were all well-separated without large co- elution, which cannot be realized by conventional one-dimensional GC-MS. The GC×GC technique is especially effective for analyzing aromatics and low-to-middle- molecular-weight hydrocarbons, such as diamondoids. The geochemical characteristics of crude oils in the study area were investigated through geochemical parameters extracted by GC×GC-TOFMS, improving upon the understanding obtained by GC-MS. Thus, the work here represents a new successful application of GC×GC- TOFMS, showing its broad usefulness in petroleum geochemistry.

A liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method for quantitating total and unbound ceritinib in patient plasma and brain tumor

A rapid, sensitive, and robust reversed-phase liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the determination of total and unbound ceritinib, a secondgeneration ALK inhibitor, in patient plasma and brain tumor tissue samples. Sample preparation involved simple protein precipitation with acetonitrile. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH C_(18) column using a 4-min gradient elution consisting of mobile phase A(0.1% formic acid in water) and mobile phase B(0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile), at a flow rate of 0.4 m L/min. Ceritinib and the internal standard([^(13)C_6]ceritinib) were monitored using multiple reaction monitoring mode under positive electrospray ionization. The lower limit of quantitation(LLOQ) was 1 n M of ceritinib in plasma. The calibration curve was linear over ceritinib concentration range of 1–2000 n M in plasma. The intra-and interday precision and accuracy were within the generally accepted criteria for bioanalytical method( o15%).The method was successfully applied to assess ceritinib brain tumor penetration, as assessed by the unbound drug brain concentration to unbound drug plasma concentration ratio, in patients with brain tumors.

Analysis of ganciclovir and its related substances using high performance liquid chromatography and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry methods

Objective High performance liquid chromatography(HPLC)and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry(LC/MS)methods were developed for the determination of ganciclovir and its related substances.Methods A Hypersil ODS2 column(4.6 mm×250 mm,5 μm)was used with a mobile phase of 0.02 M potassium dihydrogen phosphate buffer(pH 6.0)-methanol(92∶8)at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min,and UV detector set at 254 nm was used for monitoring the eluents.Results The method was simple,rapid,selective and capable of separating all related substances at trace level with a detection limit of 0.04 μg/mL.It has been validated with respect to accuracy,precision,linearity,and limits of detection and quantification.The linearity range was 10.2-153.0 μg/mL with r=0.9998.The percentage recoveries ranged from 96.7% to 101.6%,and RSD was 1.24%-1.96%(n=5).Conclusion The method was found to be suitable not only for monitoring the reactions during the process development but also for quality control of ganciclovir.For identification of related substances,LC/MS was used.The mainly related substances of ganciclovir active pharmaceutical ingredients(API)were determined as guanine,(1,3-dioxolan-4-yl)methyl acetate,and diacetyl guanine.

Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method for the estimation of lamotrigine in human plasma:Application to a pharmacokinetic study

A reliable,selective and sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the quantification of lamotrigine in human plasma using lamotrigine13C3,d3 as an internal standard.Analyte and internal standard were extracted from human plasma by solid-phase extraction and detected in positive ion mode by tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization（ESI） interface.Chromatographic separation was performed on a Chromolith s SpeedROD;RP-18e column（50-4.6 mm i.d.） using acetonitrile：570.1 mM ammonium formate solution（90：10,v/v） as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.500 mL/min.The calibration curves were linear over the range of 5.02-1226.47 ng/mL with the lower limit of quantitation validated at 5.02 ng/mL.The analytes were found stable in human plasma through three freeze（-20℃）-thaw（ice-cold water bath） cycles and under storage on bench-top in ice-cold water bath for at least 6.8 h,and also in the mobile phase at 10℃ for at least 57h.The method has shown good reproducibility,as the intra-and inter-day precisions were within 3.0%,while the accuracies were within 76.0% of nominal values.The validated LC-MS/MS method was applied for the evaluation of pharmacokinetic and bioequivalence parameters of lamotrigine after an oral administration of 50mg lamotrigine tablet to thirty-two healthy adult male volunteers.

Simultaneous determination of seven flavonoids in Epimedium by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method

In this paper, a sensitive and specific liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry （LC-ESI-MS） method has been developed and validated for the identification and determination of seven flavonoids, namely epimedin A, epimedin B, epimedin C, icariin, sagittatoside B, 2＂-O-rhamnosyl icariside II, and baohuoside I in Epimedium from different sources.

Determination of Sex Hormones in Antler Velvet by High Performance Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Eighteen sex hormones in antler velvet were determined by high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.The solid phase extraction was applied to eliminating the matrix effect.The experimental conditions were examined and optimized.Under the optimal conditions,the proposed method provides the good linearities and determination limits（0.2―1.0 μg/kg） of the analytes investigated.The recoveries ranging from 72.3% to 149.5% were obtained for the target analytes at two concentration levels.This method was applied to the determination of eighteen sex hormones in different kinds of antler velvet samples and the obtained results are satisfactory.The results indicate that the proposed method is suitable for the determination of sex hormones in antler velvet samples.

Uncertainty Evaluation of Determination of Microcystin MC-LR in Environmental Samples by Solid Phase Extraction-Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

To assess uncertainty of determination of MC-LR in environmental samples by solid phase extraction- ultra performance liquid chromatography- tandem mass spectrometry,the sources of the uncertainty were evaluated firstly,and the expanded uncertainty was calculated finally.The results show that when MC-LR concentration in the water samples was 0.50 μg/L,the expanded uncertainty was 0.00628 μg/L(k=2).

Metabolism Study on Tobacco-specific N-Nitrosamines in Rabbit by Solid-phase Extraction and Liquid Chromatography-electrospray Ionization-mass Spectrometry Method

Metabolism of four tobacco-specific N-nitrosamines （TSNAs）, N＇-nitrosonornicotine （NNN）, N＇-nitrosoanatabine （NAT）, N＇-nitrosoanabasine （NAB） and 4-（methyl nitrosamino）-1- （3-pyridyl）-1-butanone （NNK） was studied by solid-phase extraction （SPE） and liquid chromato- graphy-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry （LC-ESI-MS）. SPE and LC-ESI-MS method was evaluated to be rapid, simple, sensitive and selective for analysis of TSNAs in rabbit serum. The doses of TSNAs administrated were 4.666 μg/kg and 11.665 μg/kg according to different levels in cigarettes. Metabolic curves of four TSNAs and 4-（methyl nitrosamino）-1-（3-pyridyl）- 1-butanone （NNAL）, the metabolite of NNK, were obtained.