Optimum conditions for the separation of nucleobases and nucleosides on unmodified silica by HPLC

HPLC separation of some purine and pyrimidine derivatives on Chromolith Performance Si monolithic column

The chromatographic behavior of some purines and pyrimidines on a monolithic Chromolith Performance Si column under normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography mode has been studied. Column pressure, column efficiency and selectivity of Chromolith Performance Si column were compared to those of conventional spherical 5 microm silica packed columns Econosphere Silica and Zorbax Rx-SIL. The investigation has shown that application of Chromolith Performance Si column for analysis of polar solutes can reduce the separation time without sacrificing column efficiency and selectivity. Improvement of the monolithic silica column efficiency for polar solutes is observed when ternary mobile phases (mixtures of hexane-isopropanol with ethylene glycol, water or acetonitrile) are applied.

Bioanalytical liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry methods on underivatized silica columns with aqueous/organic mobile phases

This review article summarizes the recent progress on bioanalytical LC-MS/MS methods using underivatized silica columns and aqueous/organic mobile phases. Various types of polar analytes were extracted by using protein precipitation (PP), liquid/liquid extraction (LLE) or solid-phase extraction (SPE) and were then analyzed using LC-MS/MS on the silica columns. Use of silica columns and aqueous/organic mobile phases could significantly enhance LC-MS/MS method sensitivity, due to the high organic content in the mobile phase. Thanks to the very low backpressure generated from the silica column with low aqueous/high organic mobile phases, LC-MS/MS methods at high flow rates are feasible, resulting in significant timesaving. Because organic solvents have weaker eluting strength than water, direct injection of the organic solvent extracts from the reversed-phase solid-phase extraction onto the silica column was possible. Gradient elution on the silica columns using aqueous/organic mobile phases was also demonstrated. Contrary to what is commonly perceived, the silica column demonstrated superior column stability. This technology can be a valuable supplement to the reversed-phase LC-MS/MS.

Determination of uracil in 5-fluorouracil substance by high-performance liquid chromatography

Separation of 5-fluorouracil and uracil in chromatographic systems consisting of a silica column as a stationary phase and ethyl acetate or ethyl acetate partially saturated with water as a mobile phase has been studied. The results indicated that when saturation of ethyl acetate with water was chosen to reach more than 60%, such mobile phases [e.g., 2.4% (v/v) water in ethyl acetate] are useful in determining uracil in 5-fluorouracil substances.

Analysis of purines and pyrimidines by mixed partition-adsorption normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

This paper summarizes the results in the development of mixed partition-adsorption (MPA) normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography published in the last 10 years. The MPA normal-phase systems are an alternative approach not only to the adsorption normal-phase mode but also to the most widely used reversed-phase mode in the separation area of purine and pyrimidine derivatives. It is shown that the MPA systems are applicable in analytical practice.

Application of mixed partition-adsorption systems in high-performance liquid chromatography of purines and pyrimidines

Separation of the test mixtures of some purine and pyrimidine derivatives on silicas (types A and B) in adsorption normal-phase (A-NP) and mixed partition-adsorption normal-phase (MPA-NP) mode has been studied. When the A-NP mode is used the peak shapes are unsatisfactory (especially on type A silica). At the same time MPA-NP systems show a good peak symmetry on all silica types. The findings have demonstrated that the MPA-NP mode offers a specific selectivity. This allows MPA-NP systems to supersede reversed-phase systems in some application areas.

Separation of purines and pyrimidines by normal-phase high-performance liquid chromatography using dimethyl sulfoxide in binary and ternary eluents

Chromatographic systems with a silica sorbent and mobile phases containing dimethyl sulfoxide have been studied. It has been established that the substitution of isopropanol by dimethyl sulfoxide in binary eluents results in a specific selectivity of the chromatographic system and shows an improvement of the peak shape for the solutes under study. When mobile phases consisting of hexane, isopropanol and dimethyl sulfoxide (solvents with a limited mutual solubility) are used, changes in retention characteristics and peak symmetry are caused by a transition from adsorption to partition sorption mechanism. The stationary liquid phase is generated dynamically in the pores of silica, even in the mobile phases not saturated with a polar component. If the phase ratio of the column reaches 0.1, partition dominates over adsorption and such mixed partition-adsorption (MPA) systems show very good peak symmetry for the solutes under study. The investigation has shown that dimethyl sulfoxide-containing MPA systems are applicable in analytical practice.

Separation characteristics of alkylated guanines in high-performance liquid chromatography

The retention behavior of thirteen alkylated guanines on normal-phase silica gel and amino columns and on reversed-phase ODS and phenyl columns was studied. The larger the alkyl substituent at the same position of guanine the weaker was the retention in the normal-phase chromatographic system and the greater the retention during reversed-phase chromatography. O6-Derivatives possess the lowest polarity in each set of isomers. An amino column was found to be of highest efficiency in terms of separation of the set of ethylguanine isomers and of benzylguanines studied. A phenyl column provided the best resolution of methylated guanines.

Optimization of a high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the determination of nucleosides and their catabolites. Application to cat and rabbit heart perfusates

A high-performance liquid chromatographic method is described for the separation of nucleosides and related compounds in a single isocratic run. The separation of a standard mixture of at least thirteen compounds is achieved within 15 min on a new type of reversed-phase column 25 cm long, filled with 5-micron particles of Select B. Pre-treatment of the silica particles before silanization has given this type of reversed-phase material unique characteristics for basic and acidic compounds. Chromatograms are shown to compare the effectiveness of the Select B column for the separation of nucleosides with that of other C18 and C8 phases. The separation is achieved with 0.3 M ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (pH 4.00) and a mixture of methanol, acetonitrile and tetrahydrofuran. Detection is carried out with a variable-wavelength UV detector at 254 nm. Sample preparation and the influence of the organic solvents, pH and buffer concentration are described. To illustrate the applicability of the method, representative chromatograms are shown of perfusates of Langendorff preparations and the working hearts of cats and rabbits. Remarkable differences were obtained before and after ischaemia and before and after treatment with a nucleoside transport inhibitor. Baseline separation of cytosine, orotic acid, cytidine, uracil, uric acid, hypoxanthine, xanthine, inosine, guanosine, xanthosine, allopurinol, thymine and adenosine was achieved. The detection limit for these compounds was less than 1 ng per injection.

Preparative and analytical high-performance liquid chromatographic methods in the synthesis and analysis of decomposition of nitrosourea nucleosides

Details are given for reversed-phase, adsorption, and aqueous ammonia-modified adsorption high-performance liquid chromatographic systems developed to separate 3'-chloroethylnitrosourea analogues of thymidine, 2'-deoxyuridine, and 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine from their decomposition products and synthetic precursors. The effect of varying the substituent at the 3'- and 5-position on relative retention in each system is discussed. These systems are used to purify intermediates in the synthesis of these potent antineoplastic agents, and for the simultaneous analysis of the nitrosourea nucleosides and their breakdown products in kinetic studies of their decomposition. Application of these methods to the analysis of the kinetics of the breakdown of these compounds is demonstrated, with detection limits (signal-to-noise ratio = 2) in the 1-2 ng range.