Thin-layer chromatography and mass spectrometry coupled using desorption electrospray ionization

Desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) was demonstrated as a means to couple thin-layer chromatography (TLC) with mass spectrometry. The experimental setup and its optimization are described. Development lanes were scanned by moving the TLC plate under computer control while directing the stationary DESI emitter charged droplet plume at the TLC plate surface. Mass spectral data were recorded in either selected reaction monitoring mode or in full scan ion trap mode using a hybrid triple quadrupole linear ion trap mass spectrometer. Fundamentals and practical applications of the technique were demonstrated in positive ion mode using selected reaction monitoring detection of rhodamine dyes separated on hydrophobic reversed-phase C8 plates and reversed-phase C2 plates, in negative ion full scan mode using a selection of FD&C dyes separated on a wettable reversed-phase C18 plate, and in positive ion full scan mode using a mixture of aspirin, acetaminophen, and caffeine from an over-the-counter pain medication separated on a normal-phase silica gel plate.     

Interfacing capillary-based separations to mass spectrometry using desorption electrospray ionization

The powerful hybrid analysis method of capillary-based separations followed by mass spectrometric analysis gives substantial chemical identity and structural information. It is usually carried out using electrospray ionization. However, the salts and detergents used in the mobile phase for electrokinetic separations suppress ionization efficiencies and contaminate the inlet of the mass spectrometer. This report describes a new method that uses desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) to overcome these limitations. Effluent from capillary columns is deposited on a rotating Teflon disk that is covered with paper. As the surface rotates, the temporal separation of the eluting analytes (i.e., the electropherogram) is spatially encoded on the surface. Then, using DESI, surface-deposited analytes are preferentially ionized, reducing the effects of ion suppression and inlet contamination on signal. With the use of this novel approach, two capillary-based separations were performed: a mixture of the rhodamine dyes at milligram/milliliter levels in a 10 mM sodium borate solution was separated by capillary electrophoresis, and a mixture of three cardiac drugs at milligram/milliliter levels in a 12.5 mM sodium borate and 12.5 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate solution was separated by micellar electrokinetic chromatography. In both experiments, the negative effects of detergents and salts on the MS analyses were minimized.     

Chemical characterization of crude petroleum using nanospray desorption electrospray ionization coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry

Nanospray desorption electrospray ionization (nano-DESI) combined with high-resolution mass spectrometry was used for the first time for the analysis of the polar constituents of liquid petroleum crude oil samples. The analysis was performed in both positive and negative ionization modes using three solvents, one of which (acetonitrile/toluene mixture) is commonly used in petroleomics studies while two other polar solvents (acetonitrile/water and methanol/water mixtures) are generally not compatible with petroleum characterization using mass spectrometry. The results demonstrate that nano-DESI analysis efficiently ionizes petroleum constituents soluble in a particular solvent. When acetonitrile/toluene is used as a solvent, nano-DESI generates electrospray-like spectra. In contrast, strikingly different spectra were obtained using acetonitrile/water and methanol/water. Comparison with the literature data indicates that these solvents selectively extract water-soluble constituents of the crude oil. Water-soluble compounds are predominantly observed as sodium adducts in nano-DESI spectra indicating that addition of sodium to the solvent may be a viable approach for efficient ionization of water-soluble crude oil constituents. Nano-DESI enables rapid screening of different classes of compounds in crude oil samples based on their solubility in solvents that are rarely used for petroleum characterization providing better coverage of the crude oil composition as compared to electrospray ionization (ESI). It also enables rapid characterization of water-soluble components of petroleum samples that is difficult to perform using traditional approaches.     

Automated sampling and imaging of analytes separated on thin-layer chromatography plates using desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Modest modifications to the atmospheric sampling capillary of a commercial electrospray mass spectrometer and upgrades to an in-house-developed surface positioning control software package (HandsFree TLC/MS) were used to enable the automated sampling and imaging of analytes on and within large area surface substrates using desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. Sampling and imaging of rhodamine dyes separated on TLC plates were used to illustrate some of the practical applications of this system. Examples are shown for user-defined spot sampling from separated bands on a TLC plate (one or multiple spots), scanning of a complete development lane (one or multiple lanes), or imaging of analyte bands in a development lane (i.e., multiple lane scans with close spacing). The post data acquisition processing and data display aspects of the software system are also discussed.     

Development of submillisecond time-resolved mass spectrometry using desorption electrospray ionization

Reaction kinetics studied by mass spectrometry (MS) has previously been limited to millisecond time resolution. This paper presents the development of a submillisecond time-resolved mass spectrometric method for fast reaction kinetic study, based on the capability of desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) for direct and fast ionization of a high-speed liquid jet stream. The principle underlying this methodology is that two reactant solutions undergo rapid mixing to produce a free liquid jet which is ionized by DESI at different positions corresponding to different reaction times. Due to the high velocity of the liquid jet, high time resolution can be achieved. In this study, the fast reduction reaction of 2, 6-dichlorophenolindophenol (DCIP) and L-ascorbic acid (L-AA) was chosen as an example to demonstrate this concept, and the reaction rate constant was successfully measured with an unprecedented time resolution of 300 μs. The good agreement of the measured value of (116 ± 3) s(-1) with that measured by the stopped-flow optical method (105 ± 2) s(-1) validates the feasibility of such a DESI-MS approach. Unlike classical spectroscopic techniques that require either chromophoric substrates or labeling, MS is a general detector with high chemical specificity. Therefore, this time-resolved DESI-MS method should find wide applications in fast (bio)chemical reaction investigations.     

Quantitative thin-layer chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis of caffeine using a surface sampling probe electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry system

Quantitative determination of caffeine on reversed-phase C8 thin-layer chromatography plates using a surface sampling electrospray ionization system with tandem mass spectrometry detection is reported. The thin-layer chromatography/electrospray tandem mass spectrometry method employed a deuterium-labeled caffeine internal standard and selected reaction monitoring detection. Up to nine parallel caffeine bands on a single plate were sampled in a single surface scanning experiment requiring 35 min at a surface scan rate of 44 mum/s. A reversed-phase HPLC/UV caffeine assay was developed in parallel to assess the mass spectrometry method performance. Limits of detection for the HPLC/UV and thin-layer chromatography/electrospray tandem mass spectrometry methods determined from the calibration curve statistics were 0.20 ng injected (0.50 muL) and 1.0 ng spotted on the plate, respectively. Spike recoveries with standards and real samples ranged between 97 and 106% for both methods. The caffeine content of three diet soft drinks (Diet Coke, Diet Cherry Coke, Diet Pepsi) and three diet sport drinks (Diet Turbo Tea, Speed Stack Grape, Speed Stack Fruit Punch) was measured. The HPLC/UV and mass spectrometry determinations were in general agreement, and these values were consistent with the quoted values for two of the three diet colas. In the case of Diet Cherry Coke and the diet sports drinks, the determined caffeine amounts using both methods were consistently higher (by approximately 8% or more) than the literature values.     

Thin-layer chromatography and electrospray mass spectrometry coupled using a surface sampling probe

A combined surface sampling probe/electrospray emitter was used for the direct readout of thin-layer chromatography plates by electrospray mass spectrometry. The technique was demonstrated with reversed-phase C18 plates using a three-dye mixture composed of methylene blue, crystal violet, and rhodamine 6G for positive ion mode detection and a separate dye mixture containing fluorescein, naphthol blue black, and fast green FCF for negative ion mode detection. Acquisition of mass spectra of components of individual bands on the plate was shown by manual stepping to and sampling from specific locations within the bands. Computer-controlled scanning of development lanes on the plate was illustrated by using multiple ion monitoring in both positive and negative ion modes. Commercial TLC plates were used and no post-separation processing other than drying of the plates was required prior to mass spectrometric analysis. Readout resolution, the limits of scan speed, detection levels, TLC phase, and eluting solvents were investigated and discussed.     

Quantifying ligand binding to large protein complexes using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

An electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) method for quantifying protein-ligand complexes that cannot be directly detected by ESI-MS is described. The proxy protein ESI-MS method combines direct ESI-MS binding measurements with competitive protein-ligand binding. To implement the method, a proxy protein (P(proxy)), which interacts specifically with the ligand of interest with known affinity and can be detected directly by ESI-MS, is used to quantitatively monitor the extent of ligand binding to the protein of interest. A mathematical framework for establishing the association constant (K(a)) for protein-ligand binding by the proxy protein ESI-MS method, implemented with a P(proxy) containing a single ligand binding site, is given. A modified form of the proxy protein ESI-MS method, which accounts for real-time changes in ligand concentration, is also described. The reliability of these methods is demonstrated for the interactions between the 180 kDa wildtype homotrimeric tailspike protein of the bacteriophage P22 and its endorhamnosidase point mutant (D392N) with its ligands comprising two and three O-antigen repeats from Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium: octasaccharide ([α-Gal-(1→2)-[α-Abe-(1→3)]-α-Man-(1→4)-α-Rha](2)) and dodecasaccharide ([α-Gal-(1→2)-[α-Abe-(1→3)]-α-Man-(1→4)-α-Rha](3)). A 27 kDa single chain antibody, which binds to both ligands, served as P(proxy). The results of binding measurements performed at 10 and 25 °C are in excellent agreement with K(a) values measured previously using a fluorescence quenching assay.     

Sheathless capillary electrophoresis/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry using a pulled bare fused-silica capillary as the electrospray emitter

It has always been assumed that electrical contact at the capillary outlet is a necessary requirement when coupling capillary electrophoresis (CE) with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). In this study, we used a pulled bare-capillary tip as the ESI emitter, but neither was it coated with any electrically conductive materials nor was a high external voltage applied on its outlet. In this paper, we demonstrate that this straightforward approach may be used to generate multiply charged ions of proteins and peptides through electrospray ionization. Our results indicate that peptides and proteins, including bradykinin, cytochrome c, myoglobin, and tryptic digest products that elute from a pulled bare-capillary tip can be detected directly by ESI-MS using the tapered bare-capillary interface. Thus, we have demonstrated that CE and ESI-MS may be combined successfully without the need to modify the outlet of the capillary tip with an electrically contacting material.     

Quantitative analysis with desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry using electrospray deposition

Desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry (DIOS-MS) is demonstrated as a quantitative analytical tool when coupled to electrospray deposition (ESD). In this study, we illustrate the utility of DIOS-MS in the quantitative analysis of a peptide and two amino acids with deuterated and structural analogues used as internal standards. An important feature of this approach is the incorporation of ESD to improve sample homogeneity across the porous silicon surface. ESD allowed for a marked improvement in quantitative analysis due to its applicability to LC-DIOS, and because of the absence of matrix, sample can be deposited at very low flow rates (150 nL/min). Experiments comparing the traditional dried droplet and ESD methods show that ESD samples exhibit significantly improved quantitation and much higher sample-to-sample reproducibility.     

Secondary electrospray ionization ion mobility spectrometry/mass spectrometry of illicit drugs

A secondary electrospray ionization (SESI) method was developed as a nonradioactive ionization source for ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). This SESI method relied on the gas-phase interaction between charged particles created by electrospray ionization (ESI) and neutral gaseous sample molecules. Mass spectrometry (MS) was used as the detection method after ion mobility separation for ion identification. Preliminary investigations focussed on understanding the ionization process of SESI. The performance of ESI-IMS and SESI-IMS for illicit drug detection was evaluated by determining the analytical figures of merit. In general, SESI had a higher ionization efficiency for small volatile molecules compared with the electrospray method. The potential of developing a universal interface for both GC- and LC-MS with an addition stage of mobility separation was demonstrated.     

Pressurized electrochromatography coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for analysis of peptides and proteins

Pressurized capillary electrochromatography (pCEC) was coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) using a coaxial sheath liquid interface. It was used for separation and analysis of peptides and proteins. The effects of organic modifier and applied voltage on separation were investigated, and the effects of pH value of the mobile phase and the concentration of the electrolyte on ESI-MS signal were investigated. The resolution and detection sensitivity with different separation methods (pCEC, capillary high-performance liquid chromatography) coupled on-line with mass spectrometry were compared for the separation of a peptide mixture. To evaluate the feasibility and reliability of the experimental setup of the system, tryptic digests of cytochrome c and modified protein as real samples were analyzed by using pCEC-ESI-MS.     

Study of the ribonuclease-S-protein-peptide complex using a radical probe and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

The interaction between ribonuclease (RNase) S-protein and S-peptide is examined by studying their limited oxidation within the RNase-S complex and free forms using radicals. The limited oxidation of the RNase-S complex and each component is effected through their reaction with a high flux of oxygen-based radicals generated by an electrical discharge within an electrospray ion source. Their exposure to radicals occurs on short millisecond time scales and has been consistently found not to cause any measurable structural damage or conformational change to proteins in a number of published reports. Consistent with these studies, S-peptide is preferentially protected from reactions with radicals under conditions in which it is bound to S-protein. Conversely, a region of S-protein comprising residues 96-100 constitutes the S-peptide binding domain based on its diminished reactivity with radicals within the RNase-S complex over the free S-protein. The results, for the first time, demonstrate the use of radicals generated by an electrical discharge to study protein complexes.     

Study of electrochemical reactions using nanospray desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

The combination of electrochemistry (EC) and mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful analytical tool for studying mechanisms of redox reactions, identification of products and intermediates, and online derivatization/recognition of analytes. This work reports a new coupling interface for EC/MS by employing nanospray desorption electrospray ionization, a recently developed ambient ionization method. We demonstrate online coupling of nanospray desorption electrospray ionization MS with a traditional electrochemical flow cell, in which the electrolyzed solution emanating from the cell is ionized by nanospray desorption electrospray ionization for MS analysis. Furthermore, we show first coupling of nanospray desorption electrospray ionization MS with an interdigitated array (IDA) electrode enabling chemical analysis of electrolyzed samples directly from electrode surfaces. Because of its inherent sensitivity, nanospray desorption electrospray ionization enables chemical analysis of small volumes and concentrations of sample solution. Specifically, good-quality signal of dopamine and its oxidized form, dopamine o-quinone, was obtained using 10 μL of 1 μM solution of dopamine on the IDA. Oxidation of dopamine, reduction of benzodiazepines, and electrochemical derivatization of thiol groups were used to demonstrate the performance of the technique. Our results show the potential of nanospray desorption electrospray ionization as a novel interface for electrochemical mass spectrometry research.     

High-mass accuracy of product ions produced by SORI-CID using a dual electrospray ionization source coupled with FTICR mass spectrometry

High-mass accuracy is demonstrated using internal calibration for product ions produced by sustained off-resonance irradiation collision-induced dissociation (SORI-CID) of a 15-mer oligonucleotide, 5'-(CTG)5-3'. Internal calibration for this tandem MS experiment was accomplished using a dual electrospray ionization (ESI) source coupled with Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FTICR-MS) utilizing hexapole accumulation and gated trapping. The pulse sequence entails injection, trapping, and gas-phase isolation of the precursor ion of interest followed by the SORI-CID of this ion and, subsequently, injection and trapping of the internal mass calibrant (i.e., poly(ethylene glycol) with a 1000 Da average mass). The product ions and the poly(ethylene glycol) ions are then simultaneously excited by a broadband frequency chirp excitation waveform and detected. This technique corrects for space-charge effects on the measurement of an ion's cyclotron frequency experienced when externally calibrated data are used. While external calibration for FTICR-MS can result in mass errors of greater than 100 ppm, this internal standardization method demonstrated significantly more consistent accurate mass measurements with average mass errors ranging from -1.2 to -3.2 ppm for the 15-mer oligonucleotide used in this study. This method requires limited modifications to ESI-FTICR mass spectrometers and is applicable for both positive and negative modes of ionization as well as other sample types (e.g., pharmaceuticals, proteins, etc.).     

A method to assess genomic DNA methylation using high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Eukaryotic DNA is methylated at some cytosine residues, and this epigenetic feature performs critical functions. We developed a method for quantitative determination of 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine in human DNA using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS). The DNA was enzymatically hydrolyzed by sequential digestion with three enzymes. DNA hydrolyzates were subsequently separated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography in isocratic mode. The four major DNA bases and 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine were resolved and eluted in 13 min. Identification of 2'-deoxycytidine and 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine was obtained by combined diode array UV spectra analysis and mass spectra of chromatographic peaks. The isotopomers [15N3]-2'-deoxycytidine and (methyl-d3,ring-6-d1)-5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine were used as internal standards. Ions of m/z 126 and 130 were used to detect 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine and its isotopomer, and ions of m/z 112 and 115 were used to detect 2'-deoxycytidine and its stable isotopomer, respectively. The DNA methylation status was calculated on the basis of the amount of 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine per microgram of DNA with percent relative standard deviations (%RSD) for a method precision of 7.1 (within-day) and 5.7 (day-to-day). This method also allows the measurement of 5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine expressed as a percentage of total deoxycytidine residues in genomic DNA with %RSD for method precision of 1.9 (within-day) and 1.7 (day-to-day). This LC/MS method for quantitative determination of genomic DNA methylation status is rapid, sensitive, selective, and precise.     

Simple coupling of gas chromatography to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A simple method for direct coupling of gas chromatography (GC) with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI/MS) has been developed. The outlet of the GC capillary column was placed between the ESI needle and the atmospheric pressure ionization (API) source of a mass spectrometer. The ionization occurs via dissolution of neutral compounds into the charged ESI droplet followed by ion evaporation or via a gas-phase proton transfer reaction between a protonated solvent molecule and an analyte. The mass spectra of organic volatile compounds showed abundant protonated molecules with little fragmentation, being very similar to those produced by normal liquid ESI. The quantitative performance of the system was evaluated by determining the limit of detection (LOD), linearity ( r (2)), and repeatability (RSD). The GC-ESI/MS method was shown to be stable, providing high sensitivity and good quantitative performance.     

Analysis of nucleic acids by capillary ion-pair reversed-phase HPLC coupled to negative-ion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography was successfully coupled to negative-ion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry by using 60 × 0.20 mm i.d. capillary columns packed with 2.3-μm micropellicular, octadecylated poly(styrene/divinylbenzene) particles as stationary phase and gradients of acetonitrile in 50 mM aqueous triethylammonium bicarbonate as mobile phase. Systematic variation of the eluent composition, such as concentration of ion-pair reagent, anion in the ion-pair reagent, solution pH, and acetonitrile concentration led to the conclusion that most parameters have opposite effects on chromatographic and mass spectrometric performances. The use of acetonitrile as sheath liquid enabled the rapid and highly efficient separation and detection of phosphorylated and nonphosphorylated oligonucleotides ranging in size from 8 to 40 nucleotides. High-quality full-scan mass spectra showing little cation adduction were acquired from which the molecular masses of the separated oligonucleotides were calculated with an accuracy of 0.011%. With calibration curves being linear over at least 2 orders of magnitude, the lower limits of detection for a oligodeoxythymidine 16-mer were 104 fmol with full scan and 710 amol with selected-ion-monitoring data acquisition. The potential of ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry was demonstrated for mixed-sequence oligomers by the characterization of a reaction mixture from solid-phase synthesis of a 40-mer oligonucleotide.     

Automated in-tube solid-phase microextraction coupled with liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for the determination of beta-blockers and metabolites in urine and serum samples.

The technique of automated in-tube solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS) was evaluated for the determination of beta-blockers in urine and serum samples. In-tube SPME is an extraction technique for organic compounds in aqueous samples, in which analytes are extracted from the sample directly into an open tubular capillary by repeated draw/eject cycles of sample solution. LC/MS analyses of beta-blockers were initially performed by liquid injection onto a LC column. Nine beta-blockers tested in this study gave very simple ESI mass spectra, and strong signals corresponding to [M + H]+ were observed for all beta-blockers. The beta-blockers were separated with a Hypersil BDS C18 column using acetonitrile/methanol/water/acetic acid (15:15:70:1) as a mobile phase. To optimize the extraction of beta-blockers, several in-tube SPME parameters were examined. The optimum extraction conditions were 15 draw/eject cycles of 30 microL of sample in 100 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.5) at a flow rate of 100 microL/min using an Omegawax 250 capillary (Supelco, Bellefonte, PA). The beta-blockers extracted by the capillary were easily desorbed by mobile-phase flow, and carryover of beta-blockers was not observed. Using in-tube SPME/LC/ESI-MS with selected ion monitoring, the calibration curves of beta-blockers were linear in the range from 2 to 100 ng/mL with correlation coefficients above 0.9982 (n = 18) and detection limits (S/N = 3) of 0.1-1.2 ng/mL. This method was successfully applied to the analysis of biological samples without interference peaks. The recoveries of beta-blockers spiked into human urine and serum samples were above 84 and 71%, respectively. A serum sample from a patient administrated propranolol was analyzed using this method and both propranolol and its metabolites were detected.     

Separation of cisplatin and its hydrolysis products using electrospray ionization high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry coupled with ion trap mass spectrometry

Cisplatin and its mono- and dihydrated complexes have been separated using a high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) analyzer interfaced with electrospray ionization (ESI) and ion trap mass spectrometry (ITMS). The addition of helium to the nitrogen curtain/carrier gas in the FAIMS device improved both the sensitivity and selectivity of the electrospray analysis. Introduction of a three-component mixture as curtain/carrier gas, nitrogen, helium, and carbon dioxide, resulted in further improvements to sensitivity. Compared with conventional ESI-MS, the background chemical noise in the ESI-FAIMS-ITMS spectrum was dramatically reduced, resulting in over 30-fold improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio for cisplatin. Analytical results were linear over the concentration range 10-200 ng/mL for intact cisplatin with a corresponding detection limit determined of 0.7 ng/mL with no derivatization or chromatographic separation prior to analysis.