Structural characterization of cisplatin analogues by fast atom bombardment (FAB) and laser microprobe mass spectrometry (LAMMA)

The present study is concerned with the investigation of the potentials and limitations of fast atom bombardment (FAB) and laser microprobe mass spectrometry (LAMMA) for the structural characterization of a series of cisplatin analogues. The limiting factors for obtaining good quality FAB spectra are the solubility and the stability of the organometallic platinum complexes in the FAB matrix. In the case of a suitable matrix being found, molecular weight information is derived from the (M + H)⁺ and/or (M — H)⁻ ions. Drawbacks of the application of FAB are (i) the low signal intensities of the molecular ion-like species as compared to the matrix signals and (ii) the scarcity of fragmentation necessary for structure determination. Combination of FAB with tandem mass spectrometry was used to overcome these problems. LAMMA provides a valuable alternative for the direct mass spectral analysis of cisplatin analogues. For some compounds, LAMMA results in useful mass spectra, whereas FAB fails. The abundant fragmentation yields structural information which is complementary for positive and negative ions. The laser power density applied to the sample is of critical importance for the quality of the spectra.     

Rapid determination of medical components found in the health food for weight loss by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS)

A method for the rapid determination of 11 medical components found in health foods for weight loss using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) has been developed. HPLC separation is performed on an ODS column with the gradient elution method. The mobile phase consists of two solvents. Solvent A is water and solvent B is methanol/acetonitrile (1:1), and both contain 0.1% formic acid and 5 mmol/l of ammonium acetate. Each medical component is analyzed with multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM) in both negative and positive modes through electrospray ionization (ESI). The recovery rates of the 11 medical components added to commercially available health foods were 46.3-114% and each coefficient of variation was 13.7% or less. It was confirmed that this method is applicable to the urgent analysis of health foods that have caused damage to health.     

Identification of actinomycins by high performance liquid chromatography and fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

An actinomycin complex isolated from culture broth of a soil microorganism, SNUS 9305011 has been examined by High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). From the analysis of the fractions obtained by column chromatography of the ethyl acetate extract, three actinomycin components are confirmed. The HPLC analysis is carried out with a CN-bonded nucleosil column. Comparison of the retention times of the components with those of actinomycin D, C complex X0 beta, and V suggests that they are different actinomycins. FAB mass spectra of the components also shows different molecular ions from those of standards and other reported actinomycins. The present work was has demonstrated that actinomycin components can be separated by a CN-bonded HPLC column, and that comparison of their HPLC chromatograms with authentic samples and information on their molecular ions can be successfully employed for identification of actinomycins.     

Structural characterization of glycopeptide antibiotics related to vancomycin by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

A series of glycopeptide antibiotics related to the vancomycin-ristocetin family have been successfully analyzed by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FABMS). The FAB mass spectra of glycopeptides weighing up to 2,100 daltons exhibit intense molecular ions and fragment ions from which information concerning carbohydrate composition and sequence are readily obtained. Careful adjustment of the FABMS experimental conditions has enabled the accurate masses of the glycopeptides to be determined by high resolution FABMS with an accuracy of better than six ppm. Comparison of the observed molecular ion cluster pattern with calculated isotope distributions reveals the precise number of chlorine atoms in these molecules, which, together with the accurate mass data, can be used to restrict the number of possible elemental compositions to a meaningfully small value. These techniques have been used to characterize several glycopeptides of known structure including ristocetin, actinoidin, avoparcin, vancomycin and A35512B, as well as aridicins A, B and C which are three new, novel members of the vancomycin class.     

Separation and identification of microcystins in cyanobacteria by frit-fast atom bombardment liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry.

In order to separate and identify microcystins, a new analytical method was developed using a frit probe as an interface for fast atom bombardment mass spectral analysis of high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) effluents. Two types of HPLC conditions were designed for separation of standard microcystins RR, YR and LR. The HPLC conditions, for example, methanol:0.01% trifluoroacetic acid = 61:39 (containing 0.8% glycerol) as a mobile phase and 0.5 ml/min as a flow rate, provided a base line separation of standard microcystins RR, YR and LR. The HPLC conditions were also effective for separation of the non-toxic geometrical isomers of microcystins RR and LR. The total ion chromatogram of a mixture of standard microcystins showed excellent correlation with the HPLC separation using a u.v. detector. The method was subsequently applied to analysis of microcystins contained in both a culture strain and a field sample, and the procedure from toxin extraction to identification of microcystins was performed within 1 day. The mass chromatogram monitored at m/z 135 that is always observed with abundance in the FAB mass spectra of the purified microcystins, differentiated between microcystins and other types of compounds. This technique allowed the rapid identification of unknown microcystins without standard samples. Additionally, compounds other than microcystins were also found, which would not be seen by u.v. detection at 238 nm.     

Quantitative analysis of pharmacokinetic study samples by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

The basis of all pharmacokinetic evaluations are powerful assays to quantify drugs and/or metabolites in biological matrices using modern sensitive instrumental analytical techniques, such as capillary gas chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Being both specific and universal, mass spectrometry (MS) is an ideal chromatographic detector. Due to recent exciting achievements in the interfacing of liquid chromatography (LC) and MS, LC-MS, like the successfully preceding hyphenated technique gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), has now become a valuable technique in the analyst's toolbox. The key features of LC-MS are explained and four examples demonstrating its potential for highly specific and sensitive routine drug assays with the option of high sample throughput in pharmacokinetic investigations are presented.     

Mass spectrometry of beta-lactam antibiotics with special reference to ionization by fast atom bombardment (FAB)

The mass spectral characteristics of the majority of penicillin and cephalosporin beta-lactam antibiotics in world-wide clinical use are presented and reviewed. Special attention is given to the spectra recorded under fast atom bombardment (FAB) conditions and novel data on many penicillins and cephalosporins are included. Mass spectrometry features of common degradation products of benzylpenicillin and of some synthetic intermediates are also presented. The data illustrate the value of FAB mass spectrometry in identifying members of this closely related group of antibiotics without need for derivatization.     

Development and validation of a liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method for the determination of ribavirin in human plasma and serum

A liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method was developed for the analysis of antiviral agent ribavirin in human plasma and serum. The samples (0.1 ml) were extracted from the matrix using a simple protein precipitation procedure. The supernatants were evaporated to dryness, reconstituted and injected onto the LC/MS/MS system. The chromatography separation was achieved on a silica column operated with an aqueous-organic mobile phase. The use of a silica column not only provided adequate retention for the extremely polar compound of ribavirin, but also enhanced electrospray ionization sensitivity with the use of high percentage organic solvent in the mobile phase. The method has been validated over the concentration range of 10-10000 ng/ml ribavirin in human plasma and serum. Bamethan was used as the internal standard. The protein precipitation extraction has been automated based on 96-well format with the use of robotic liquid handlers to improve the overall throughput of the analysis.     

Metabolism of prazosin in rat and characterization of metabolites in plasma,urine, faeces,brain and bile using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS)

1.?Prazosin, 2-[4-(2-furanoyl)-piperazin-1-yl]-4-amino-6,7-dimethoxyquinazoline, is an antihypertensive agent that has been used safely since 1976 and is currently being investigated for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. The in vivo metabolism of prazosin in rat was first reported in 1977, although at the time analytical techniques were not as sophisticated, nor were the mass spectrometers as sensitive, as today. Recently, the in vitro metabolism of prazosin in rat liver microsomes and cryopreserved hepatocytes was investigated using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS), which revealed new metabolic pathways.

2.?In the present work, rat in vivo metabolism was reinvestigated using a quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer coupled with ultra-performance liquid chromatography, or chip-based nanoflow electrospray ionization, with the aim of identifying metabolites revealed by the in vitro studies and any new metabolites.

3.?It is reported that prazosin was metabolized in rats to produce the metabolites observed in vitro. In addition, new phase I metabolites, M18, M20 and M21, were formed and conjugation with glucose or taurine formed the new phase II metabolites, M16 and M19, respectively.

4.?Evidence for bioactivation of prazosin included detection of ring-opened metabolites (M4 and M7) and a cysteinyl–glycine conjugate (M17). Further support to the structure of the ring-opened metabolite M7 was obtained by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments on M7 isolated from urine.     

Metabolism of prazosin in rat and characterization of metabolites in plasma, urine, faeces, brain and bile using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS)

1. Prazosin, 2-[4-(2-furanoyl)-piperazin-1-yl]-4-amino-6,7-dimethoxyquinazoline, is an antihypertensive agent that has been used safely since 1976 and is currently being investigated for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. The in vivo metabolism of prazosin in rat was first reported in 1977, although at the time analytical techniques were not as sophisticated, nor were the mass spectrometers as sensitive, as today. Recently, the in vitro metabolism of prazosin in rat liver microsomes and cryopreserved hepatocytes was investigated using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS), which revealed new metabolic pathways. 2. In the present work, rat in vivo metabolism was reinvestigated using a quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer coupled with ultra-performance liquid chromatography, or chip-based nanoflow electrospray ionization, with the aim of identifying metabolites revealed by the in vitro studies and any new metabolites. 3. It is reported that prazosin was metabolized in rats to produce the metabolites observed in vitro. In addition, new phase I metabolites, M18, M20 and M21, were formed and conjugation with glucose or taurine formed the new phase II metabolites, M16 and M19, respectively. 4. Evidence for bioactivation of prazosin included detection of ring-opened metabolites (M4 and M7) and a cysteinyl-glycine conjugate (M17). Further support to the structure of the ring-opened metabolite M7 was obtained by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments on M7 isolated from urine.     

Glutathione conjugates. Immobilized enzyme synthesis and characterization by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

Glutathione transferase activity was shown to be present in an immobilized preparation of microsomal protein. Chlorodinitrobenzene, ethacrynic acid, captopril, styrene oxide, and iminocyclophosphamide were found to be substrates, each providing a different kind of electrophilic functional group for conjugation. The glutathione conjugates were characterized by thin layer chromatography (visualized by reaction with ninhydrin) and by high pressure liquid chromatography. A variety of conditions was evaluated for analysis of these glutathiones by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry.     

Structural characterization of microcystins by LC/MS/MS under ion trap conditions

LC/MS/MS under ion trap conditions was used to analyze microcystins produced by cyanobacteria. Tandem mass spectrometry using MS2 was quite effective since ions arising from cleavage at a peptide bond provide useful sequence information. The fragmentation was confirmed by a shifting technique using structurally-related microcystins and the resulting fragmentation pattern was different from those determined by triple stage MS/MS and four sector MS/MS. Analysis of a mixture of microcystins in a bloom sample was successfully performed and two new microcystins were identified by LC/MS/MS under ion trap conditions. Thus, LC/MS/MS under ion trap conditions is effective for the structural characterization of microcystins.     

Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) identification of photooxidative degradates of crystalline and amorphous MK-912.

How and why the chemical stability of amorphous solid is different from crystalline solid is an important problem. In this study, this problem is addressed by evaluation of the photodegradation of both crystalline and amorphous MK-912 (an alpha-2 adrenoceptor antagonist) according to the photostability tests of the ICH (International Conference on Harmonization) guidelines. Under the ICH conditions, the photodegradation rate of the amorphous MK-912 was approximately 40 times faster than that of the crystalline MK-912. The photodegradation yielded isomeric, oxidative degradates. Three keto-degradates (molecular weight of 14 Da over MK-912) were observed for both forms. But, whereas five alcohol and one N-oxide degradates (molecular weight of 16 Da over MK-912) were observed for the amorphous form, only one alcohol degradate was observed for the crystalline form. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and LC/MS/MS were applied to identify these low-level photodegradates. A thorough analysis of the MS/MS data of protonated MK-912 was the key to the identification, and the special MS/MS features of the degradates due to the structural modifications from degradations were also important. Following this strategy, the structures of all the photodegradates were proposed. The structural identification of the photodegradates of MK-912 shed light on the different photostabilities between the crystalline and amorphous MK-912.     

Application of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method to the pharmacokinetics of ON01910 in brain tumor-bearing mice

ON01910 is a small molecular weight benzyl styryl sulfone currently under investigation as a novel anticancer agent. The purpose of the investigation was to develop a sensitive and reproducible liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method to quantitate levels of ON01910 in small amounts of five biological matrices; mouse plasma, feces, urine, normal brain and brain tumor. For all matrices, protein precipitation sample preparation was used that led to linear calibration curves with coefficients of determination greater than 0.99. The lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) for all matrices was 5 ng/ml except that for mouse urine which was 10 ng/ml. The calibration standard curves were reproducible for all matrices with inter- and intra-day variability in precision and accuracy being less than 15% at all quality control concentrations except for the LLOQ in mouse plasma for which the accuracy was within 17%. The assay was successfully applied to characterize the systemic pharmacokinetics of ON01910 as well as its disposition in brain and brain tumor in mice. ON01910 exhibited a clearance of 3.61 ± 0.85 l/h/kg and a half life of 8.66 ± 3.30 h at 50 mg/kg dose given I.V.     

Simultaneous quantification of atomoxetine as well as its primary oxidative and O-glucuronide metabolites in human plasma and urine using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS)

A sensitive and selective liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method for the determination of atomoxetine and its metabolites (4-hydroxyatomoxetine, N-des-methylatomoxetine, and 4-hydroxyatomoxetine-O-glucuronide) has been developed for human plasma and urine. Using stable-labeled internal standards, the method proved to be accurate and precise for the analytes in all species, resulting in inter-batch accuracy (percent relative error, %RE) within 100+/-13% and inter-batch precision (relative standard deviation, %RSD) within 11%. Stability was demonstrated for the analytes in neat solutions and the reconstitution solvent, as well as plasma and urine (with or without the deconjugation reagent). The method was simple, robust (utilized for the analysis of several hundred clinical study samples), and amenable to high sample throughput.     

Liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry（LC/ESI-MS/MS） method for quantitative estimation of moxifloxacin in human plasma

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry（LC-MS/MS） method has been developed and validated for the determination of moxifloxacin（MOXI） in human plasma. After a simple protein precipitation using acetonitrile, the post treatment samples were analysed on a C18 column interfaced with a Triple Quadropole Tandem Mass Spectrometer. Positive electrospray ionization was employed as the ionization source. The mobile phase consisted of 0.1% formic acid–acetonitrile（60：40, v/v）. Ciprofloxacin（CIPRO） was used as an internal standard. The analyte and internal standard（CIPRO） were monitored in the multiple reaction monitoring mode（MRM）. The mass transition ion-pair has been followed as m/z 402→358.2 for MOXI and 332→288.1 for CIPRO. The method was linear in the concentration range of 25–5000 ng/mL. The lower limit of quantification was 25 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precision（relative standard deviation） and accuracy（relative error） values were within 12.4%. Each plasma sample was analyzed within 3 min.     

High performance liquid chromatography/atmospheric pressure ionization/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/API/MS/MS) in drug metabolism and toxicology

Studies of the metabolic fate of drugs and other xenobiotics in living systems may be divided into three broad areas: (1) elucidation of biotransformation pathways through identification of circulatory and excretory metabolites (qualitative studies); (2) determination of pharmacokinetics of the parent drug and/or its primary metabolites (quantitative studies); and (3) identification of chemically-reactive metabolites, which play a key role as mediators of drug-induced toxicities (mechanistic studies). Mass spectrometry has been regarded as one of the most important analytical tools in studies of drug metabolism, pharmacokinetics and biochemical toxicology. With the commercial introduction of new ionization methods such as those based on atmospheric pressure ionization (API) techniques and the combination of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), it has now become a truly indispensable technique in pharmaceutical research. Triple stage quadrupole and ion trap mass spectrometers are presently used for this purpose, because of their sensitivity and selectivity. API-TOF mass spectrometry has also been very attractive due to its enhanced full-scan sensitivity, scan speed, improved resolution and ability to measure the accurate masses for protonated molecules and fragment ions. This review aims to survey the utility of mass spectrometry in drug metabolism and toxicology and to highlight novel applications and future trends in this field.     

Simultaneous quantification of cryptotanshinone and its active metabolite tanshinone IIA in plasma by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)

A rapid and sensitive method for the simultaneous determination of cryptotanshinone and its active metabolite tanshinone IIA in rat plasma was developed and well validated, using high-performance liquid chromatographic separation with tandem mass spectrometric detection. This method entailed a single step of liquid-liquid extraction with ethyl acetate from a small volume of plasmas. The analytes and internal standard diazepam were baseline separated on a Shim-pack VP-ODS analytical column. Detection was performed on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer equipped with electrospray ionization source operated under selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The method was linear in the concentration range of 1-100 ng/ml for both tanshinone IIA and cryptotanshinone. The intra- and inter-day precisions (R.S.D.%) were within 10.2% for both analytes. Deviation of the assay accuracies was within +/-12.0% for both analytes. Both analytes were proved to be stable during all sample storing, preparation and analytic procedures. The method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study after an oral administration of cryptotanshinone to rats with a dose of 20 mg/kg. With the lower limits of quantification at 1.0 ng/ml for tanshinone IIA and 0.2 ng/ml for cryptotanshinone, this method was proved to be sensitive enough and reproducible for the pharmacokinetics study of both tanshinones.