Quantitation of lysergic acid diethylamide in urine using atmospheric pressure matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization ion trap mass spectrometry

A quantitative method was developed for analysis of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in urine using atmospheric pressure matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization ion trap mass spectrometry (AP MALDI-ITMS). Following solid-phase extraction of LSD from urine samples, extracts were analyzed by AP MALDI-ITMS. The identity of LSD was confirmed by fragmentation of the M + H](+) ion using tandem mass spectrometry. The quantification of LSD was achieved using stable-isotope-labeled LSD (LSD-d(3)) as the internal standard. The M + H](+) ion fragmented to produce a dominant fragment ion, which was used for a selected reaction monitoring (SRM) method for quantitative analysis of LSD. SRM was compared with selected ion monitoring and produced a wider linear range and lower limit of quantification. For SRM analysis of samples of LSD spiked in urine, the calibration curve was linear in the range of 1-100 ng/mL with a coefficient of determination, r(2), of 0.9917. This assay was used to determine LSD in urine samples and the AP MALDI-MS results were comparable to the HPLC/ ESI-MS results.