• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.729-734
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• 2005

A sensitive and selective method for quantitation of sofalcone and its active metabolite in human plasma has been established using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI/MS/MS). Plasma samples were transferred into 96-well plate using an automated sample handling system and spiked with 10 $\mu$L of 2 $\mu$g/mL $d_3$-sofalcone and $d_3$-sofalcone metabolite solutions (internal standard), respectively. After adding 0.5 mL of acetonitrile to the 96-well plate, the plasma samples were then vortexed for 30 sec. After centrifugation, the supernatant was transferred into another 96-well plate and completely evaporated at 40 ${^{\circ}C}$ under a stream of nitrogen. Dry residues were reconstituted with mobile phase and were injected into a $C_{18}$ reversed-phase column. The limit of quantitation of sofalcone and its metabolite was 2 ng/mL, using a sample volume of 0.2 mL for analysis. The reproducibility of the method was evaluated by analyzing 10 replicates over the concentration range of 2 ng/mL to 1000 ng/mL. The validation experiments of the method have shown that the assay has good precision and accuracy. Sofalcone and its metabolite produced a protonated precursor ion ([M+H]$^+$) of m/z 451 and 453, and a corresponding product ion of m/z 315 and 317, respectively. Internal standard ($d_3$-sofalcone and $d_3$-sofalcone metabolite) produced a protonated precursor ion ([M+H]$^+$) of m/z 454 and 456 and a corresponding product ion of m/z 315 and 317, respectively. The method has been successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of sofalcone and its active metabolite in human plasma.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.63-72
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• 2017

Objective: Hyperstimulation methods are broadly used for in vitro fertilization (IVF) in patients with infertility; however, the side effects associated with these therapies, such as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), have not been well studied. N-glycoproteomes are subproteomes used for the remote sensing of ovarian stimulation in follicular growth. Glycoproteomic variation in human follicular fluid (hFF) has not been evaluated. In this study, we aimed to identify and quantify the glycoproteomes and N-glycoproteins (N-GPs) in natural and stimulated hFF using label-free nano-liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-quad time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Methods: For profiling of the total proteome and glycoproteome, pooled protein samples from natural and stimulated hFF samples were selectively isolated using hydrazide chemistry to obtain the total proteomes and glycoproteomes. N-GPs were validated by the consensus sequence N-X-S/T (92.2% specificity for the N-glycomotif at p<0.05). All data were compared between natural versus hyperstimulated hFF samples. Results: We detected 41 and 44 N-GPs in the natural and stimulated hFF samples, respectively. Importantly, we identified 11 N-GPs with greater than two-fold upregulation in stimulated hFF samples compared to natural hFF samples. We also validated the novel N-GPs thyroxine-binding globulin, vitamin D-binding protein, and complement proteins C3 and C9. Conclusion: We identified and classified N-GPs in hFF to improve our understanding of follicular physiology in patients requiring assisted reproduction. Our results provided important insights into the prevention of hyperstimulation side effects, such as OHSS.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.166-174
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• 2016

BACKGROUND: The current study developed a monitoring method of 6 veterinary antibiotics (amoxicillin, ampicillin, enrofloxacin, tetracycline, chlortetracycline, oxytetracycline) in agricultural soils using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in positive electrospray ionization mode.METHODS AND RESULTS: Sample preparation was carried out using acidic acetonitrile and citrate salts followed by purification with dispersive solid phase extraction (d-SPE). Separation on Eclipse Plus C₁₈ column was conducted in gradient of the mobile phase, 0.1% formic acid and 5 mM ammonium formate in methanol (A) and 0.1% formic acid and 5 mM ammonium formate in distilled water (B). The linearity of the matrix-matched calibrations expressed as the coefficient of determination was good with R²≥0.9900. The limit of quantifications (LOQs) ranged from 0.5 to 10 μg/kg for all analytes. Analysis of 51 agricultural soil samples taken in the Republic of Korea revealed concentrations less than 1.9 μg/kg for enrofloxacin, 75.5 μg/kg for chlortetracycline.CONCLUSION: The method was successfully applied to monitor 6 veterinary antibiotics from 51 field incurred agricultural soil samples in 17 provincial areas throughout the Republic of Korea. The developed method was simple, easy, and versatile and can be used for monitoring various veterinary antibiotics in soil.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.252-261
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• 2019

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are a group of secondary metabolites that are produced by plants all over the world as a defense mechanism against herbivores. To date, over 660 PAs have been identified from more than 6,000 plant species that have been reported to be widely present in plants belonging to Asteraceae, Boraginaceae, and Fabaceae. This study describes an analytical method based on UPLC-MS/MS for the quantitation of 7 pyrrolizidine alkaloids (Lycopsamine, Echimidine, Retrorsine, Retrorsine N-oxide, Senecionine, Heliotrine, and Trichodesmine) in honey, and was applied to 84 honey samples for validation. Quantitation was performed based on a matrix-matched calibration to compensate for the matrix effect on the electrospray ionization. Good linear calibrations were obtained for all 7 PAs in the spiked honey samples (2.575-202.14 ㎍/kg; R² ≥ 0.998). The extraction recoveries for most of the PAs in the honey samples were in the range of 81 %-108 %. The analysis showed that 6 of the 84 honey samples were contaminated by the PAs with the mean total sum of PAs being 47.19 ㎍/kg, and the concentrations of the PAs were observed to be in the range of 1.76-202.1 ㎍/kg. The retronecine type compounds (Echimidine, Lycopsamine) were the most frequently found PAs in honey. These data provide useful information for the assessment of human risk posed by the consumption of honey contaminated PAs.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.608-613
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• 2016

Recently, it has been reported that some preservatives used in cosmetics lead to skin problems. Among the many cosmetic ingredients, 1, 2-hexanediol (HD) is used as both a preservative and humectant. In order to develop safer ingredients, we studied the synthesis of 1, 2-hexanediol galactoside (HD-G) by a transgalactosylation reaction using β-galactosidase (β-gal)-containing recombinant Escherichia coli cells. The transgalactosylation reaction was carried out under high-lactose conditions for 24 hr. After 12 hr had elapsed, a new spot was identified by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) analysis, and we presumptively designated this new spot as HD-G. Then, we carried out the purification of the presumptive HD-G spot from the reaction mixture by using silica gel chromatography, and its mass was measured by electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry. The purified new spot on the chromatograph was identified a sodium adduct ion ([M+Na]⁺, m/z = 303.1423) of HD-G. In addition, when purified HD-G was hydrolyzed using commercially available E. coli β-gal, it was observed that a galactose molecule was released from HD-G. That is, it was demonstrated that HD-G is a galactoside derivative of HD. Finally, we confirmed that HD-G was enzymatically synthesized by E. coli β -gal as a new molecular entity. In the future, we plan to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations of HD-G against different bacterial species. The cytotoxicity of HD-G against human skin cells will also be examined. It is expected hopefully that the galactosylation of HD would improve the functionality of HD-G.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.195-201
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• 2003

An easily available, simultaneous identification/determination procedure for sildenafil, homosildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil in adulterated health related foods was established by using a combination of three different analytical methods; thin layer chromatography(TLC), liquied chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and high-performance liquied chromatography (HPLC)/photo-diode-array detector. The sample solution for TLC was applied to silica gel 60 $F_{254}$ plates with ethylacetate/acetonitrile/25%ammonia (90:10:5) as a developing solvent. Spots were located under UV radiation at 254 nm and dragendolfs reagent. Mass spectra of the compounds by LC/MS were investigated with electrospray ionization (ESI) interface, under positive ion mode. The HPLC analysis was performed on a column of capcell pack $C_{18}$ (UG120, 4.6${\times}$250mm I.D. 5 ${\mu}$m)with 0.1% sodium 1-hexansulfonate (in 0.1% phosphoric acid)/acetnitrile (73:27) as a mobile phase, and effluent was minitored with a photo-diode-applied to commercial foods, Sildenafil content was inthe range of 0.4mg/g~360.9 mg/g from 7 out of 35 samples. Homosildenafil content was in the range of 2.2 mg/g~336.0 mg/g from 7 out of 35 samples. Tadalafil content was 429.3 mg/g, 9.6 mg/500 mg from 2 out of 35 samples. The procedure described here is available for the screening of sildenafil, homosildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.558-563
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• 2011

In the course of our investigation for chemical constituents in the ethyl acetate layer of Korean black raspberry wine, five compounds were isolated and purified by silica gel column chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography. The isolated compounds were identified as ethyl succinate (1), vanillic acid (2), ethyl 3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (3), furan-2-ol (4), and 4-(4-hydroxyphenyl)butan-2(S)-ol (5) based on the spectroscopic data of electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. The presence of 2 in Korean black raspberry has previously reported. However, 1 and 3-5 in Korean black raspberry and its wine were isolated for the first time.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1944-1953
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• 2015

A novel alkaline protease from Streptomyces sp. M30, SapHM, was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, hydrophobic interaction chromatography, and DEAE-Sepharose chromatography, with a yield of 15.5% and a specific activity of 29,070 U/mg. Tryptic fragments of the purified SapHM were obtained by electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Nucleotide sequence analysis revealed that the gene sapHM contained 1,179 bp, corresponding to 392 amino acids with conserved Asp156, His187, and Ser339 residues of alkaline protease. The first 24 amino acid residues were predicted to be a signal peptide, and the molecular mass of the mature peptide was 37.1 kDa based on amino acid sequences and mass spectrometry. Pure SapHM was optimally active at 80℃ in 50 mM glycine-NaOH buffer (pH 9.0), and was broadly stable at 0-50℃ and pH 4.0-9.0. The protease relative activity was increased in the presence of Ni²⁺, Mn²⁺, and Cu²⁺ to 112%, 113%, and 147% of control, respectively. Pure SapHM was also activated by dimethylformamide, dimethyl sulfoxide, Tween 80, and urea. The activity of the purified enzyme was completely inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, indicating that it is a serine-type protease. The K_m and V_max values were estimated to be 35.7 mg/ml, and 5 × 10⁴ U/mg for casein. Substrate specificity analysis showed that SapH was active on casein, bovine serum albumin, and bovine serum fibrin.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.154-163
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• 2013

The maximum residue limits of pyrimisulfan is set as 0.05 mg/kg in rice in 2011, so very reliable and sensitive analytical method for pyrimisulfan residues is required for ensuring the food safety of pyrimisulfan residues in agricultural products. In this study, a rapid and sensitive analytical method was developed and validated using liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the determination of herbicide pyrimisulfan residues in agricultural products. Average recoveries of pyrimisulfan ranged from 88.7 to 99.3% at the spiked level of 0.005 mg/kg and from 90.1 to 94.2% at the spiked level of 0.05 mg/kg, while the relative standard deviation was less than 10%. Linear range of pyrimisulfan was between 0.01~1.0 ${\mu}g/mL$ with the correlation coefficient ($r^2$) 0.999 and limit of quantification was 0.005 mg/kg. The results of method validation were satisfied Codex guideline. The results revealed that the developed and validated analytical method is possible for pyrimisulfan determination in agricultural product samples and will be used as an official analytical method.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.135-141
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• 2013

A rapid, sensitive and selective analytical method was developed and validated for the determination of compound K, a major intestinal bacterial metabolite of ginsenosides in human plasma. Liquid-liquid extraction was used for sample preparation and analysis, followed by liquid chromatography tandem spectrometric analysis and an electrospray-ionization interface. Compound K was analyzed on a Phenomenex Luna C18 column ($100{\times}2.00$ mm, 3 ${\mu}m$) with the mobile phase run isocratically with 10 mM ammonium acetate-methanol-acetonitrile (5:47.5:47.5, v/v/v) at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. The method was validated for accuracy (relative error <12.63%), precision (coefficient of variation <9.14%), linearity, and recovery. The assay was linear over the entire range of calibration standards i.e., a concentration range of 1 ng/mL to 1,000 ng/mL ($r^2$ >0.9968). The recoveries of compound K after liquid-liquid extraction at 1, 2, 400, and 800 ng/mL were $106.00{\pm}0.08%$, $103.50{\pm}0.19%$, $111.45{\pm}5.21%$, and $89.62{\pm}34.46%$ for intra-day and $85.40{\pm}0.08%$, $94.50{\pm}0.09%$, $112.50{\pm}5.21%$, and $95.87{\pm}34.46%$ for inter-day, respectively. The lower limit of quantification of the analytical method of compound K was 1 ng/mL in human plasma. The developed method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of compound K after oral administration in ten of healthy human subjects.