Review of the methods used in the determination of phytoestrogens

Using calibration approaches to compensate for remaining matrix effects in quantitative liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization multistage mass spectrometric analysis of phytoestrogens in aqueous environmental samples

Signal suppression is a common problem in quantitative liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization multistage mass spectrometric (LC/ESI-MS(n)) analysis in environment samples, especially in highly loaded wastewater samples with highly complex matrix. Optimization of sample preparation and improvement of chromatographic separation are prerequisite to improve reproducibility and selectivity. Matrix components are reduced if not eliminated by optimization of sample preparation steps. However, extensive sample preparation may be time-consuming and risk the significant loss of some trace analytes. The best way to further compensate matrix effects is the use of an internal standard for each analyte. However, in a multi-component analysis, finding appropriate internal standards for every analyte is often difficult. In this present study, a more practical alternative option was sought. Matrix effects were assessed using the post-extraction addition method. By comparison of three different calibration approaches, it was found that matrix-matched calibration combined with one internal standard provides a satisfactory method for compensating for any residual matrix effects on all the analytes. Validating experiments on different sewage treatment plant (STP) influent samples analyzing for a range of phytoestrogens showed that this calibration method provided satisfactory results with concentration ratio 96.1-105.7% compared to those by standard addition.

A fragmentation study of isoflavones in negative electrospray ionization by MSn ion trap mass spectrometry and triple quadrupole mass spectrometry

This study has elucidated the fragmentation pathway for deprotonated isoflavones in electrospray ionization using MS(n) ion trap mass spectrometry and triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. Genistein-d(4) and daidzein-d(3) were used as references for the clarification of fragment structures. To confirm the relationship between precursor and product ions, some fragments were traced from MS(2) to MS(5). The previous literature for the structurally related flavones and flavanones located the loss of ketene (C(2)H(2)O) to ring C, whereas the present fragmentation study for isoflavones has shown that the loss of ketene occurs at ring A. In the further fragmentation of the [M-H-CH(3)](-*) radical anion of methoxylated isoflavones, loss of a hydrogen atom was commonly found. [M-H-CH(3)-CO-B-ring](-) is a characteristic fragment ion of glycitein and can be used to differentiate glycitein from its isomers. Neutral losses of CO and CO(2) were prominent in the fragmentation of deprotonated anions in ion trap mass spectrometry, whereas recyclization cleavage accounted for a very small proportion. In comparison with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry, ion trap MS(n) mass spectrometry has the advantage of better elucidation of the relationship between precursor and product ions.

Method development and validation for isoflavones in soy germ pharmaceutical capsules using micellar electrokinetic chromatography

The separation of six soy isoflavones (Glycitein, Daidzein, Genistein, Daidzin, Glycitin and Genistin) was approached by a 3(2) factorial design studying MEKC electrolyte components at the following levels: methanol (MeOH; 0-10%) and sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS; 20-70 mmol L(-1)); sodium tetraborate buffer (STB) concentration was kept constant at 10 mmol L(-1). Nine experiments were performed and the apparent mobility of each isoflavone was computed as a function of the electrolyte composition. A novel response function (RF) was formulated based on the production of the mobility differences, mobility of the first and last eluting peaks and the electrolyte conductance. The inspection of the response surface indicated an optimum electrolyte composition as 10 mmol L(-1) STB (pH 9.3) containing 40 mmol L(-1) SDS and 1% MeOH promoting baseline separation of all isoflavones in less than 7.5 min. The proposed method was applied to the determination of total isoflavones in soy germ capsules from four different pharmaceutical laboratories. A 2h extraction procedure with 80% (v/v) MeOH under vortexing at room temperature was employed. Peak assignment of unknown isoflavones in certain samples was assisted by hydrolysis procedures, migration behavior and UV spectra comparison. Three malonyl isoflavone derivatives were tentatively assigned. A few figures of merit for the proposed method include: repeatability (n=6) better than 0.30% CV (migration time) and 1.7% CV (peak area); intermediate precision (n=18) better than 6.2% CV (concentration); recoveries at two concentration levels, 20 and 50 microg mL(-1), varied from 99.1 to 103.6%. Furthermore, the proposed method exhibited linearity in the concentration range of 1.6-50 microg mL(-1) (r(2)>0.9999) with LOQ varying from 0.67 to 1.2 microg mL(-1). The capsules purity varied from 93.3 to 97.6%.

Electrochemical profiles of Herba Saussureae Involucratae by capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection

A high-performance capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection method has been developed for the determination of the pharmacologically active ingredients, acacetin, rutin, umbelliferone, kaempferol, apigenin, luteolin and quercetin, in Herba Saussureae Involucratae. Under optimum conditions, the seven analytes could be completely separated within 19 min in a 75 cm length capillary at a separation voltage of 16 kV in a 50 mM borax running buffer (pH 9.2). A 300 microm diameter carbon disk electrode, positioned opposite the outlet of the capillary in a wall-jet configuration at a potential of +950 mV (vs a saturated calomel electrode) was used as the working electrode. A good linear relationship was established between peak current and concentration of the analytes over two orders of magnitude with detection limits (signal-to-noise ratio = 3) ranging from 1.2 x 10(-7) to 4.1 x 10(-8) g/mL for all analytes. The proposed method has been successfully applied to the analyses of bio-active components of Herba Saussureae Involucratae samples after a relatively simple extraction procedure. The assay results show that the resultant electrochemical profiles are indicative of the content diversity of each electrochemically active ingredient in the various samples, and may also offer some evidence for phytotaxonomy.

Analytical separation and detection methods for flavonoids

Flavonoids receive considerable attention in the literature, specifically because of their biological and physiological importance. This review focuses on separation and detection methods for flavonoids and their application to plants, food, drinks and biological fluids. The topics that will be discussed are sample treatment, column liquid chromatography (LC), but also methods such as gas chromatography (GC), capillary electrophoresis (CE) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC), various detection methods and structural characterization. Because of the increasing interest in structure elucidation of flavonoids, special attention will be devoted to the use of tandem-mass spectrometric (MS/MS) techniques for the characterization of several important sub-classes, and to the potential of combined diode-array UV (DAD UV), tandem-MS and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) detection for unambiguous identification. Emphasis will be on recent developments and trends.

Age decreased steady-state concentrations of genistein in plasma, liver, and skeletal muscle in Sprague-Dawley rats

Soy isoflavones are associated with low incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and hormone-dependent cancers, but no solid information is available on the relative deposition of isoflavones in the body as a function of age. One-year-old (adult) male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed control diet or one of three high-genistein isoflavone (HGI) diets at a dose of 62, 154, or 308 genistein mg/kg (ppm) diet for 5 weeks; 2-year-old (old) were fed a dose of 154 or 308 ppm. Steady-state genistein concentrations in plasma, liver, and gastrocnemius muscle of the adult rats after 12 h fast revealed a linear dose-dependent manner (P < or = 0.0001). However, there was no such relationship in the old rats. Nevertheless, old rats fed the 308 ppm genistein diet had significantly lower steady-state genistein concentrations in plasma and liver than the adult rats did (P < or = 0.05); but similar genistein concentration in muscle. The results of this study indicate that steady-state genistein concentrations in tissues of adult rats after 12 h fast exhibited a dose-dependent fashion and were diminished in specific tissues by age.

Applications of LC-MS in the study of the uptake, distribution, metabolism and excretion of bioactive polyphenols from dietary supplements

Specific and quantitative analyses of the bioactive components and their metabolites in body fluids are essential to assess the interaction between groups of compounds in dietary supplements and preparations of psychoactives. Reverse-phase LC separations combined with tandem mass spectrometry provide the necessary specificity and sensitivity. In this paper, applications of these methods are described for the analysis of isoflavones, salvinorin A, synephrine isomers and their metabolites in serum, urine and aqueous humor.

Amplified fragment length polymorphism and metabolomic profiles of hairy roots of Psoralea corylifolia L

A reproducible protocol for establishment of hairy root cultures of Psoralea corylifolia L. was developed using Agrobacterium rhizogenes strain ATCC 15834. The hairy root clones exhibited typical sigmoid growth curves. Genomic and metabolomic profiles of hairy root clones along with that of untransformed control were analysed. Hairy root clones, Ps I and Ps II, showed significant differences in their amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) profiles as compared to that of control, besides exhibiting Ri T-DNA-specific bands. These results amply indicate the stable integration of Ri T-DNA into the genomes of these clones. Further, the variations observed between clones in the AFLP profiles suggest the variable lengths and independent nature of Ri T-DNA integrations into their genomes. An isoflavonoid, formononetin, and its glycoside were present only in the hairy root clones while they were absent in the untransformed control. Variations observed in the metabolite profiles of these clones may be attributed to the random T-DNA integrations and associated changes caused by them in the recipient genomes. GC/MS analyses revealed the production of three and six clone-specific compounds in Ps I and Ps II, respectively, suggesting that the clones are dissimilar in their secondary metabolism. HPLC/UV-MS analyses disclosed substantial increases in the total isoflavonoids produced in Ps I (184%) and Ps II (94%) compared to untransformed control.

Simultaneous determination of phytoestrogens in different medicinal parts of Sophora japonica L. by capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection

A high-performance capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection (CE-ED) method has been developed for the determination of phytoestrogens from the pericarps and seeds of Sophora japonica L. in this work. Genistin, genistein, rutin, kaempferol and quercetin are important bioactive constituents in these plants. The effects of several factors such as the acidity and concentration of running buffer, the separation voltage, the applied potential and the injection time on the CE-ED procedure were investigated. Under the optimum conditions, the five analytes could be well separated within 18 min in a 75 cm length capillary (i.d. 25 microm) at the separation voltage of 16 kV in a 50 mmol L(-1) borax running buffer (pH 9.0). A 300 microm diameter carbon disk electrode was used as the working electrode positioned carefully opposite the outlet of the capillary in a wall-jet configuration at the potential of +950 mV (vs SCE). Detection limits (S/N = 3) ranged from 1.1 x 10(-7) to 2.8 x 10(-7) g mL(-1) for all fi ve analytes. This method was successfully used to analyse dried Flos sophorae immaturus, pericarps and seeds of dried Fructus sophorae after a relatively simple extraction procedure, and the assay results were satisfactory.

Metabolism of phytoestrogen conjugates

Phytoestrogens are plant-derived compounds with physiologic estrogenic effects. They are present in the plant as glycosidic conjugates, some of which contain further chemical modifications (acetate, malonate, and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutarate esters and 2,3-dihydroxysuccinate ether). In the gastrointestinal tract, the conjugates undergo hydrolysis catalyzed by enzymes in the intestinal wall and by gut bacteria. On entering the systemic circulation, the phytoestrogens may undergo extensive metabolism to other compounds through reactions involving demethylation, methylation, hydroxylation, chlorination, iodination, and nitration. In addition, all these compounds can undergo conjugation to form beta-glucuronides and sulfate esters. This chapter describes the methods of analysis of all these compounds, the sources of or methods to manufacture suitable standards, and the procedures for examining the enzymes that catalyze these reactions.

Mass spectrometric methods for the determination of flavonoids in biological samples

There is an ever-increasing interest in the biological effects of the bioflavonoids, members of the large group of plant polyphenols. Because of the aromatic character of these compounds, they have been analyzed by several chromatographic methods. In the case of high-performance liquid chromatography, they are readily detected by their ultraviolet absorbance or electrochemical properties. More evidence that the bioflavonoids undergo extensive metabolism during uptake from the gut and distribution around the body and in specific tissues is accumulating. In addition, free radical products at sites of inflammatory processes react with bioflavonoids and their metabolites, generating important new compounds of as yet unknown properties. For these reasons, careful examination of the chemical nature of bioflavonoids and their products in biological systems is absolutely required. Combination of mass spectrometry with the various chromatographic methods has proved to be highly successful in this regard. This review of the literature on the bioflavonoids is focused on the methods that are currently available for their qualitative and quantitative analysis by mass spectrometry and covers the period 2001-2003. Emphasis is placed on the description and value of existing methods, followed by an examination of emerging technologies.

Phytoestrogens

Collectively, plants contain several different families of natural products among which are compounds with weak estrogenic or antiestrogenic activity toward mammals. These compounds, termed phytoestrogens, include certain isoflavonoids, flavonoids, stilbenes, and lignans. The best-studied dietary phytoestrogens are the soy isoflavones and the flaxseed lignans. Their perceived health beneficial properties extend beyond hormone-dependent breast and prostate cancers and osteoporosis to include cognitive function, cardiovascular disease, immunity and inflammation, and reproduction and fertility. In the future, metabolic engineering of plants could generate novel and exquisitely controlled dietary sources with which to better assess the potential health beneficial effects of phytoestrogens.

Determination of new derivatives of genistein in culture media by liquid chromatography

Methods for determination of genistein and its four new analogues in culture media have been developed to support studies on their potential anticancer activities. The investigated compounds were extracted from the media using liquid-liquid extraction with appropriate solvent. After evaporation of organic solvents each of the dry extracts was reconstituted in appropriate mobile phase. Reversed-phase HPLC was applied to quantitative determining of tested compounds. The methods are specific, sensitive and technically simple. They were used to evaluate concentration level of investigated compounds in experiments with human promyelocytic leukemia cells (HL-60 cell line).

Phytoestrogens: a review of the present state of research

Phytoestrogens are a diverse group of plant-derived compounds that structurally or functionally mimic mammalian estrogens and show potential benefits for human health. The number of articles published on phytoestrogens has risen dramatically in the past couple decades. Further research continues to demonstrate the biological complexity of phytoestrogens, which belong to several different chemical classes and act through diverse mechanisms. This paper discusses the classification of phytoestrogens, methods of identification, their proposed mechanisms of action and botanical sources for phytoestrogens. The effects of phytoestrogens on breast and prostate cancers, cardiovascular disease, menopausal symptoms and osteoporosis will also be examined including research on benefits and risks.

Measurement of endogenous estrogens: analytical challenges and recent advances

Recent developments in the analysis of endogenous estrogens (including both free and conjugated estrogens) are reviewed. Largely due to urging by some cancer researchers, new demands are now being placed on such measurements in terms of sensitivity, throughput, multi-analyte detection and accuracy. Especially high sensitivity is required for detecting estrogens in serum from postmenopausal women, children and men, where concentrations at the low pg/ml level are encountered, and one would prefer to test much less than 1 ml of serum. Aside from throughput, meeting all of these demands may be beyond the reach of immunoassay, the method that has created and continues to dominate this field. Both HPLC and GC versions of mass spectrometry are emerging that have some potential to improve the testing of physiological samples for endogenous estrogens. The following topics are covered in this review: related analyses (e.g. detection of estrogens in environmental samples such as water, where 1-1 samples can be collected to provide ng amounts of estrogens); structure and metabolism of estrogens; biological actions (with an emphasis on their role in cancer); immunoassays; HPLC with electrochemical detection; GC-ECD; and various forms of mass spectrometry.