Development of an electrospray ionization mass spectrometric method for the quantification of theophylline in horse serum

Doping detection in animals: A review of analytical methodologies published from 1990 to 2019

Despite the impressive innate physical abilities of horses, camels, greyhounds, or pigeons, doping agents might be administered to these animals to improve their performance. To control these illegal practices, anti-doping analytical methodologies have been developed. This review compiles the analytical methods that have been published for the detection of prohibited substances administered to animals involved in sports over 30 years. Relevant papers meeting the search criteria that discussed analytical methods aiming to detect and/or quantify doping substances in animal biological matrices published from 1990 to 2019 were considered. A total of 317 studies were included, of which 298 were related to horses, demonstrating significant advances toward the development of doping detection methods for equine sports. However, analytical methods for the detection of doping agents in sports involving other species are lacking. Due to enhanced accuracy and specificity, chromatographic analysis coupled to mass spectrometry detection is preferred over immunoassays. Regarding biological matrices, blood and urine remain the first choice, although alternative biological matrices, such as hair and feces, have been considered. With the increasing number and type of drugs used as doping agents, the analytes addressed in the published papers are diverse. It is very important to continue to detect and quantify these drugs, recognizing those that are most frequently used, in order to punish the abusers, protect animals' health, and ensure a healthier and genuine competition.

Utility of noninvasive biomatrices in pharmacokinetic studies

Blood and plasma are the biomatrices traditionally used for drug monitoring and their pharmacokinetic profiling. Blood is the circulating fluid in contact with all organs and tissues of body and thus is the most representative fluid for measuring systemic drug levels. However, venipuncture suffers from the caveat of being an invasive technique which often makes people reluctant to participate in clinical studies. Thus, there is a need for noninvasive bio-fluids that are ethically appropriate, cost-efficient and toxicologically relevant. These alternate bio-fluids may prove clinically useful as alternatives to plasma/serum in therapeutic drug monitoring, pharmacokinetic and toxicokinetic studies, doping control in sports medicine and to monitor local adverse effects. These may be of particular interest in the case of special population groups such as neonates, children, the elderly, terminally ill patients and pregnant or lactating women, and offer the advantage of circumvention of the demand for specialized personnel for sample collection. This review describes such noninvasive bio-fluids (saliva, sweat, tears and milk) that have been considered for pharmacokinetic drug analysis, emphasizing their sample preparation, its associated difficulties and their correlation with plasma.

Collision-induced dissociation studies of caffeine in positive electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry using six deuterated isotopomers and one N1-ethylated homologue

RATIONALE

In order to deepen the understanding of electrospray ionisation collision-induced dissociation (ESI-CID) fragmentation reactions of xanthine derivatives for the identification of metabolites using low-resolution liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) analysis, basic experiments using caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) as model compound have been performed.

METHODS

Six deuterium isotopomers and one N1-ethylated homologue of caffeine have been synthesized and their ESI fragmentation spectra have been obtained by using LC/MS in combination with either standard or perdeuterated eluent mixtures.

RESULTS

One result of these studies is the finding that the positive charges of the ESI-CID caffeine fragments are caused by the addition of protons. Furthermore, the performed experiments allow the determination of all molecular formulae of each ESI-CID caffeine fragment.

CONCLUSIONS

As basic CID reactions of caffeine have been elucidated in this work, the developed fragmentation scheme may serve as a valuable tool for the interpretation of ESI-CID fragmentation spectra of more complex xanthine derivatives and their respective metabolites.

Competitive assay for theophylline based on an abasic site-containing DNA duplex aptamer and a fluorescent ligand

A fluorescence assay for theophylline, one of the common drugs for acute and chronic asthmatic conditions, has been developed based on an abasic site-containing DNA duplex aptamer (AP aptamer) in combination with an abasic site-binding fluorescent ligand, riboflavin. The assay is based on the competitive binding of theophylline and riboflavin at the abasic (AP) site of the AP aptamer. In the absence of theophylline, riboflavin binds to the receptor nucleotide opposite the AP site, which leads to fluorescence quenching of the riboflavin. Upon addition of theophylline, competitive binding occurs between theophylline and riboflavin, which results in an effective fluorescence restoration due to release of riboflavin from the AP site. From an examination of the optimization of the AP aptamers, the complex of riboflavin with a 23-mer AP aptamer (5'-TCT GCG TCC AGX GCA ACG CAC AC-3'/5'-GTG TGC GTT GCC CTG GAC GCA GA-3'; X: the AP site (Spacer C3, a propylene residue)) possessing cytosine as a receptor nucleotide was found to show a selective and effective fluorescence response to theophylline; the limit of detection for theophylline was 1.1 μM. Furthermore, fluorescence detection of theophylline was successfully demonstrated with high selectivity in serum samples by using the optimized AP aptamer and riboflavin.

Theophylline does not potentiate the effects of a low dose of dexamethasone in horses with recurrent airway obstruction

REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY

Theophylline has been shown to have corticosteroid-sparing effects for the treatment of human asthma. A similar effect, if present in horses, would allow diminishing the dose of corticosteroids administered to equine patients with inflammatory airway diseases.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate whether theophylline potentiates the effects of a low dose of dexamethasone when treating horses with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO).

HYPOTHESIS

Theophylline has steroid-sparing effects in horses with RAO.

METHODS

Ten mature mixed breed horses in clinical exacerbation of RAO were studied. Using an incomplete crossover design and 3 experimental periods of 7 days duration, horses were distributed randomly in 5 treatment groups; and administered dexamethasone s.i.d., at either 0.05 mg/kg bwt i.v. or per os, or 0.02 mg/kg bwt alone or combined with theophylline at 5 mg/kg bwt per os b.i.d. A fifth group was treated with theophylline alone at the above dosage. Lung function was evaluated prior to drug administration and then 3 and 7 days later.

RESULTS

Oral administration of dexamethasone alone or combined with theophylline failed to improve lung function significantly in RAO affected horses. Theophylline alone also failed to improve lung function in all treated horses. Conversely, dexamethasone administration at 0.05 mg/kg bwt i.v. resulted in a significant improvement in lung function starting on Day 3.

CONCLUSIONS AND POTENTIAL RELEVANCE

Oral theophylline for 7 days did not improve the effects of a low dose of dexamethasone for the treatment of horses with RAO.

METABOLISM OF THE A1 ADENOSINE RECEPTOR POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY LIGAND [18F]8-CYCLOPENTYL-3-(3-FLUOROPROPYL)-1-PROPYLXANTHINE ([18F]CPFPX) IN RODENTS AND HUMANS

Studies of plasma from mice, rats, and human volunteers evaluated methods for the extraction and quantification of the positron emission tomography ligand [(18)F]8-cyclopentyl-3-(3-fluoropropyl)-1-propylxanthine ([(18)F]CPFPX) and identification of its metabolites in plasma by thin-layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Analysis of human, mouse, and rat plasma extracts by HPLC identified four identical radioactive metabolites in each species. The low mass of radioligand administered to humans (0.5 - 5 nmol) prevented direct identification of metabolites. However, incubating liver microsomes with CPFPX and analysis by means of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) identified seven compounds, four having the same retention times as the metabolites in human plasma. Analysis of microsomal metabolites by LC-MS identified five [M + H](+) ions of m/z equivalent to hydroxy derivatives, 339, one of m/z equivalent to an oxo derivative, m/z 337, and one of m/z equivalent to a difunctionalized oxo-desaturation species, m/z 335, which is prominent in rat and mouse plasma and is the main metabolite in human plasma. An [M + H](+) ion corresponding to a N-dealkylated derivative was not detected. Thus, like the natural methylxanthines, CPFPX seems to undergo oxidation by liver microsomes but, unlike those methylxanthines, dealkylation did not occur. LC-MS experiments with "in source" fragmentation identified the cyclopentyl moiety to be the most functionalized part of the molecule by liver microsomes and in vivo oxidations. Except for two metabolites, hydroxylated at the N1 propyl chain, all oxidative modifications found took place at the cyclopentyl ring.