Premium
Characterization of Mercapturic Acids by Three Different Mass Spectrometric Methods
Author(s) -
Eškinja Mirela,
Zöllner Peter,
Linnemayr Katharina,
Mâk Marianna,
Schmid Erich R.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
rapid communications in mass spectrometry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.528
H-Index - 136
eISSN - 1097-0231
pISSN - 0951-4198
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0231(199705)11:8<931::aid-rcm938>3.0.co;2-l
Subject(s) - chemistry , mass spectrometry , chromatography , derivatization , mercapturic acid , mass spectrum , fast atom bombardment , adduct , organic chemistry , cysteine , enzyme
The determination of mercapturic acids, as metabolic end‐products of an important pathway in the biotransformation of xenobiotics, in human urine is becoming a standard tool for the biomonitoring of populations exposed to potential mutagens and carcinogens. Mass spectrometric methods permit the direct identification and characterization of these substances without a previous derivatization step. In this work, N ‐acetylcysteine conjugates of synthetic origin were characterized by three different mass spectrometric methods: matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry, positive and negative californium‐252 plasma desorption mass spectrometry (PD‐MS) and fast‐atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry. For PD‐MS, samples were prepared by the spin deposition technique on plain aluminium targets. α‐Cyano‐4‐hydroxycinnamic acid and 2,5‐dihydroxybenzoic acid were used as MALDI matrices and glycerol as a matrix for FAB. Complementary structural information on the N ‐acetylcysteine moiety and the xenobiotic moiety was obtained through PD‐MS and FAB spectra. All three techniques could be used for relative molecular mass determination. The spectra exhibited protonated molecules [M + H] + or [M + Na] + ions with high abundance. MALDI was the most sensitive among the three tested methods. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.