Determination of catecholamines in urine (and plasma) by liquid chromatography after on-line sample pretreatment on small alumina or dihydroxyborylsilica columns

Simultaneous measurement of urinary metanephrines and catecholamines by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometric detection

BACKGROUND

The measurement of catecholamines and metanephrines in urine is an important diagnostic test in biochemical screening for phaeochromocytoma. Tandem mass spectrometry (MSMS) has the potential to be used in a profiling method for simultaneous assay of these analytes.

METHODS

Optimal conditions were established for the MSMS detection of catecholamines (noradrenalin, adrenalin and dopamine) and metanephrines (normetanephrine and metanephrine), including commercially available isotopically labelled compounds for use as internal standards. Chromatographic separation of all five polar biogenic amines was achieved under solvent conditions that were compatible with MSMS and multiple reaction monitoring. Several types of solid-phase extraction cartridge were used to investigate clean-up conditions for urine, and acid-hydrolysates of urine, prior to LC-MSMS.

RESULTS

Total catecholamines and metanephrines from acid-hydrolysed urines, or free catecholamines and free metanephrines from native urines, were complexed with diphenyl-boronate and recovered in high yield from polymer cartridges after elution with formic acid. Direct injection of eluates into the LC-MSMS system allowed quantitation of catecholamines and metanephrines with a run time of 6 min per sample. Biogenic amine concentrations for patient urines and quality assurance programme samples, and assay imprecision, were similar to values obtained with high-performance liquid chromatography methods, which used electrochemical detection. In normal urines, the ratio of free to total catecholamines was around three-fold higher than the ratio of free to total metanephrines.

CONCLUSION

The assay of urinary catecholamines and metanephrines can be achieved simultaneously using one LC-MSMS method, which is rapid and reduces labour and consumable costs for routine application.

High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis with electrochemical detection of biogenic amines using microbore columns

High-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-ED) is a popular method for measuring biogenic amines, owing to its simplicity, versatility, sensitivity, and specificity. Recent developments in microbore column HPLC-ED have been facilitated by miniaturization of solvent delivery, column packing, sample injection and micro-flow cell construction. The aim of this paper is to present an overview of recent developments in microbore column HPLC-ED, in terms of advantages and limitations. This paper covers the recent advancements and important factors of HPLC-ED analysis of biogenic amines using microbore columns. Particular emphasis is placed on applying this technique to microdialysis, for which great sensitivity is required. Its potential in future biomedical applications is also discussed.

A fully automated HPLC method for the determination of catecholamines in biological samples utilizing ethylenediamine condensation and peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence detection

A fully automated in-line extraction reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method with chemiluminescence detection was developed for the analysis of human and rat plasma catecholamines (CAs), norepinephrine (NE), epinephrine (E) and dopamine (DA). N-Methyldopamine (N-MeDA) was used as an internal standard. The method involves collection of plasma samples, which are first diluted with a sample dilution buffer containing N-MeDA, and in-line extraction of CAs using a carboxylic acid small resin precolumn (SERUMOUT-CEX). This pre-extraction process was coupled with an HPLC system including reversed-phase mode separation on an analytical column (TSK gel ODS-80Ts), fluorogenic derivatization with ethylenediamine (ED) and finally postcolumn peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence reaction detection using bis [4-nitro-2-(3,6,9-trioxadecyloxycarbonyl)phenyl]oxalate (TDPO) and hydrogen peroxide. The optimized mobile phase compositions, flow rates, operation timing for the adsorption and desorption of CAs in the precolumn, the separation in the analytical column and the optimum fluorogenic and chemiluminogenic reaction conditions were investigated. The detection limit for all the CAs was about 1 fmol (signal-to-noise ratio is 2). Excellent linearity of the calibration curves for CAs was observed in the range from 5 to 500 fmol for each CA using the internal standard. The relative standard deviations of the method for determining NE (183 fmol), E (23.6 fmol) and DA (6.1 fmol) in 50 microL of human plasma (n = 3) were 2.8, 2.7 and 3.1%, respectively, for the within-day assay and 5.0, 3.8 and 4.0%, respectively, for the between-day assay. The method was applicable to the determination of CAs in 25-50 microL of human or rat plasma.

Determination of catecholamines in urine and plasma by on-line sample pretreatment using an internal surface boronic acid gel

An automated method of analysis of catecholamines using a new packing material, internal surface boronic acid gel, was developed. The new support is designed with a carboxymethylcellulose-bonded external surface in order to be non-adsorptive to proteins and with a phenylboronic acid-bonded internal surface to retain only catecholamines. This packing support displayed an affinity for basic or neutral catecholic compounds with no protein adsorption and enabled on-line sample pretreatment of catecholamines in urine and deproteinized plasma. The catecholamines were selectively adsorbed on the new material and separated on a reversed-phase or a cation-exchange column. These compounds were then detected electrochemically. The limits of quantitation were 1.5-3.0 ng/ml in urine and 10-15 pg/ml in plasma, at a signal-to-noise ratio of 5.

Determination of catecholamines in urine by liquid chromatography and electrochemical detection after on-line sample purification on immobilized boronic acid

Norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine in urine were measured by an automated liquid chromatographic method. After sample purification on a column containing silica-immobilized boronic acid, which showed great affinity for catecholamines at neutral pH, the catecholamines were eluted by backflushing with an acidic mobile phase and transferred to a cation exchanger for separation. Detection was performed electrochemically and the relative standard deviation was 2% for the analysis of endogenous concentrations in human urine.

Determination of vanilmandelic acid in urine by coupled-column liquid chromatography combining affinity to boronate and separation by anion exchange

An automated liquid chromatographic method for assaying vanilmandelic acid in urine is described. Vanilmandelic acid and potential interfering substances, such as catechol compounds and their metabolites, have been tested for affinity to boronic acid-substituted silica at various pH values. Vanilmandelic acid and the internal standard, isovanilmandelic acid, were bound to the boronate matrix at an acidic pH, whereas for instance catecholamines were unretained and passed through the column. The alpha-hydroxycarboxylic acids were then desorbed by another mobile phase (pH 6.0) and transferred to an anion exchanger for chromatography and electrochemical detection. A relative standard deviation of 2.8% was obtained for the analysis of human urine samples containing 6.6 microM vanilmandelic acid.

Chromatographic methods for the analysis of basic neurotransmitters and their acidic metabolites

Chromatographic techniques for the determination of trace amounts of neurotransmitters were reviewed. The two techniques found to be most useful were GC-MS and the reversed-phase mode of HPLC with an electrochemical or fluorescent detector. For structure determination or unequivocal peak identification, GC-MS is the method of choice. In addition the limits of detection of GC-MS were better than those obtained by HPLC. However for routine analyses, HPLC is now being used in studies of mental illness and other diseases. Good resolution, reproducibility and sensitivity can be obtained without the derivatisation steps required for GC-MS, and catecholamines, serotonin, and their acidic metabolites can be concomitantly determined in one analysis.

Improved measurement of urinary catecholamines by liquid-liquid extraction, derivatization and high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection

We report a sensitive and reliable assay for the determination of the urinary catecholamines norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine, based on selective extraction by a liquid-liquid extraction procedure, followed by selective derivatization with the fluorigenic agent 1,2-diphenylethylenediamine and quantification by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorimetric detection. Comparison with a method using electrochemical detection shows that interference of an unknown compound, most probably N-methylepinephrine, which is an often-overlooked problem with methods using electrochemical detection and results in falsely high epinephrine concentrations, does not occur with the described fluorimetric method.

Fully automated high-performance liquid chromatographic assay for the analysis of free catecholamines in urine

A totally automated and reliable high-performance liquid chromatographic method is described for the routine determination of free catecholamines (norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine) in urine. The catecholamines were isolated from urine samples using small alumina columns. A standard automated method for pH adjustment of urine before the extraction step has been developed. The extraction was performed on an ASPEC (Automatic Sample Preparation with Extraction Columns, Gilson). The eluate was collected in a separate tube and then automatically injected into the chromatographic column. The catecholamines were separated by reversed-phase ion-pair liquid chromatography and quantified by fluorescence detection. No manual intervention was required during the extraction and separation procedure. One sample may be run every 15 min, ca. 96 samples in 24 h. Analytical recoveries for all three catecholamines are 63-87%, and the detection limits are 0.01, 0.01, and 0.03 microM for norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine, respectively, which is highly satisfactory for urine. Day-to-day coefficients of variation were less than 10%.

High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of catecholamines in biological samples by liquid/liquid extraction prepurification

A prepurification procedure for the determination of catecholamines in biological samples was studied to simplify the procedure and increase selectivity and recovery. The procedure is based on liquid/liquid extraction of catecholamine-borate complexes. Under optimal conditions, catecholamines formed complexes with diphenylborate in an alkaline NH4Cl/NH4OH buffer that were extracted with n-heptanol. Catecholamines were reextracted into an HCl-acidified solution, followed by reversed-phase ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatographic separation with fluorometric detection. Application of the method to various samples of rat tissues and human urine showed procedural simplicity, high selectivity, and high recovery (about 90% or more for tissue samples). This method can be used for pharmacological studies on catecholamines.

Catecholamine measurements in urine by high-performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection--comparison with an autoanalyser fluorescence method

In order to validate different methods of measuring urinary catecholamines (norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine) in humans, methods based on separation of catecholamines using reversed-phase or cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection were compared with an autoanalyser-based fluorescence method. Different methods for pre-chromatography sample purification were also studied. For measurements of urinary catecholamines, the reversed-phase-based chromatographic techniques studied were found to give less reliable results than cation-exchange chromatography, even if one of them (Clin Rep Urine Catecholamine Kit) gave almost as precise estimates. The autoanalyser technique yielded good results. It is concluded that cation-exchange chromatography with an appropriate sample work-up procedure (a combination of organic solvent extraction and alumina adsorption) is a reliable and accurate method for analyses of urinary catecholamines.

Automated high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of 5-S-cysteinyl-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine in urine

An automated high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method has been developed for measurement of 5-S-cysteinyl-DOPA in urine (DOPA = 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine). The urinary sample was injected into an HPLC boronate column. With a mobile phase of 0.1 M phosphate buffer containing 0.2 mM disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (Na2EDTA) (pH 6.0) mixed with methanol (9:1), 5-S-cysteinyl-DOPA was adsorbed while most other compounds were washed away. By column switching, the column flow was reversed and 5-S-cysteinyl-DOPA was desorbed by a mobile phase of 0.1 M formic acid and 0.2 mM Na2EDTA at pH 3.0 and chromatographed on a reversed-phase column. The precision, as estimated from repeated analysis of an urinary sample and from duplicate analysis of a number of samples, ranged from 1.4 to 5.2% (coefficient of variation), and the analytical recovery was 93 +/- 4.1%. The method is suitable for use in the clinical laboratory.

Plasma catecholamines: laboratory aspects

In this review the methods used for analysis of plasma catecholamines in clinical chemical laboratories are discussed. The physiology of catecholamines as well as their measuring indications are discussed, together with concise evaluation of the methods most commonly used, namely indirect radioenzymatic assays or direct determinations by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with either electrochemical or fluorometric detection. The main advantage of radioenzymatic assay is its sensitivity and thus the need for only a small sample. Liquid chromatographic methods in general are less tedious, relatively rapid, and cheap, and omit the use of radionuclides. Both of these methods, however, are subject to a number of analytical errors, which can only be avoided by proper development of methods and skilled use of these methods. Little routine work is done using either radioimmunoassay or gas-chromatography.

Simultaneous quantitation of catecholamines and O-methylated metabolites in urine by isocratic ion-pairing high-performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection

A simple high-performance liquid chromatographic procedure was developed for the simultaneous determination of catecholamines and metanephrines in urine. One-step sample preparation was achieved with Bio-Rex 70 ion-exchange resin. The extract was assayed on a C18 reversed-phase column. Dihydroxybenzylamine was used as an internal standard. The eluent was monitored by an electrochemical detector with an oxidation potential of +0.85 V. The use of 1-heptanesulphonic acid in the mobile phase permitted the separation of norepinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine, normetanephrine and metanephrine in a single chromatogram. The corresponding detection limits were 5, 9, 14, 10 and 30 nmol/l, respectively. For the between-day precision, the coefficients of variation at physiological and pathological concentrations were less than 11%. Compounds with similar chemical structures and drugs commonly prescribed for the treatment of hypertension were assayed and found not to cause interferences in the chromatogram. The assay is reliable and is suitable for the analysis of clinical specimens. Reference values were established for normotensive Chinese patients with no neurological or endocrine disorders and also for patients suffering from essential hypertension.

On-line sample processing and analysis of diol compounds in biological fluids

We developed a coupled dual column system with an optional post-column derivatization for on-line sample processing, trace enrichment and analysis of aromatic 1,2-diol and aliphatic cis-diol biomolecules (e.g. catecholamines, ribonucleosides). The fully automated high-performance liquid chromatography analyzer tolerates the direct injection of proteinaceous fluids by use of a unique bonded-phase precolumn material which allows the simultaneous performance of covalent affinity and size-exclusion chromatography.

Catecholamines and their metabolites

The research on biosynthesis, physiology, pharmacology, regulation and degradation of catecholamines has continuously increased for more than 50 years. This is not unexpected because of the fact that catecholamines are involved in so many life processes such as nerve conduction, blood circulation and hormone regulations in health and disease. This demands that methods for their determination should be improved, and in fact during the years a number of analytical methods have been published. About 20 years ago radioenzyme techniques with thin-layer chromatographic (TLC) separation of radiolabelled catecholamine derivatives were developed which greatly contributed to our knowledge of physiological concentrations of catecholamines in biological media, particularly in plasma and brain. Radioimmune methods were successful for analysis of a number of analytes, but for catecholamines radioimmunoassays developed slowly. We believe that the greatest potential for radioimmunochemical methods lies in their ability to localize catecholamines and metabolites at the cellular and subcellular levels. With the advent of gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric (GC-MS) and high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) procedures analysis of catecholamines improved greatly., The equipment for GC-MS is expensive and requires technical skillfulness, but in experienced hands a lot of new biological data have emerged. An outstanding quality with GC-MS is that the method offers the ability to identify unknown compounds and is relatively free from interferences from extraneous compounds. In comparison with GC-MS, HPLC is versatile and has gained a widespread use. Applications for research in the catecholamine field are numerous. In general, the sensitivity and specificity are satisfactory with HPLC, but it should be borne in mind that a number of pitfalls can obscure the results. This involves both sample handling, clean-up and chromatographic procedures. At present, HPLC is the most expanding field in chromatographic determination of catecholamines and their metabolites. This is particularly the case for HPLC with electrochemical detection which has revolutionized our analytical potential in this field. These chromatographic procedures continue to develop. The prerequisites for further improved methods such as capillary zone electrophoresis and combined HPLC-MS are at hand and hopefully will soon come into more general use for analysis of catecholamines in biological samples.