Highly sensitive chiral analysis in capillary electrophoresis with large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow pump

On-line sample preconcentration by LVSEP-FASI with simple voltage control on Y-channel chips

To eliminate complicated voltage controls for highly sensitive microchip electrophoresis (MCE) analyses on the basis of combining two online sample preconcentration techniques, large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow (EOF) pump (LVSEP) and field-amplified sample injection (FASI), cross-channel microchips and a multichannel high-voltage power supply were replaced to Y-channel chips and a conventional power supply designed for capillary electrophoresis, respectively. By simple switching of the electric circuit after the LVSEP-FASI sample enrichments, the focused analytes could be separated during anodic migration in a separation channel. In the LVSEP-FASI analysis of fluorescein using the Y-channel microchip, the maximum sensitivity enhancement factor (SEF) of 7400 was achieved, resulting in a 30-fold detectability increase compared to the conventional LVSEP. The developed method was applied to the oligosaccharide analysis in MCE. As a result, the SEF for maltotriose was improved from 450 to 2300 and the baseline separation of the oligosaccharides was achieved without any complicated voltage control in LVSEP-FASI on the Y-channel chips.

Development of transient trapping micellar electrokinetic chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry for steroids analysis

An on-line sample preconcentration technique based on transient trapping (tr-trapping) in micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) was applied for steroid detection with UV (tr-trapping-UV) and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry detection (tr-trapping-ESI-MS). ESI-MS was used to improve the sensitivity in MEKC. The MEKC separation was carried out using volatile ammonium formate as a background solution to facilitate the coupling with ESI-MS. The partial introduction of a sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micellar solution before the introduction of a sample solution to the capillary provided the effective preconcentration of analytes. At the same time, the SDS micelle would not enter the ESI-MS system, so its interference in ESI-MS detection was suppressed under the optimal condition, then five steroids can be separated by the developed method. In tr-trapping-ESI-MS, an acidic condition of pH 3.5 was employed to suppress the electroosmotic flow, which can avoid micellar solution migrating to the MS instrument. The developed method showed that the micellar solution requires a twofold slower time than the sample to migrate along the column, which can prohibit the cause of the problem with the MS instrument and interference signal of SDS in the steroid's detection. The tr-trapping-ESI-MS protocol showed up to 540-fold enhancements of the peak intensity and 50-fold improvement of the limit of detection compared with capillary zone electrophoresis using androsterone as a model sample.

Large volume sample stacking of antiepileptic drugs in counter current electrophoresis performed in PAMAPTAC coated capillary

Electrophoretic stacking is developed for sensitive determination of three zwitterionic antiepileptics, namely vigabatrin, pregabalin and gabapentin, in human serum. CE separation is performed in a 25 μm fused silica capillary covalently coated with the copolymer of acrylamide with 5% content of permanently charged 3-acrylamidopropyl trimethylammonium chloride (PAMAPTAC). In background electrolyte of 500 mM acetic acid, the 5% PAMAPTAC generates an anodic electro-osmotic flow with a magnitude of (-18.6 ± 0.5) · 10^-9 m²V^-1s^-1, which acts against the direction of the electrophoretic migration of the analytes. A sample of the antiepileptic prepared in a 25% v/v infusion solution and 75% v/v acetonitrile is injected into the capillary in a large volume attaining a zone length of up to 270 mm. After turning on the separation voltage, the antiepileptics are isotachophoretically focussed behind the zone of Na⁺ ions with a sensitivity enhancement factor of 78. For the clinical determination of antiepileptics, the human serum is diluted with acetonitrile in a ratio of 1:3 v/v and a zone with a length of 90 mm is injected into the capillary. The method is linear in the 0.025-2.5 μg/mL concentration range; the attained limit of quantification is in the range 18.3-22.8 nmol/L; the within-day precision for the migration time is 0.8-1.2% and for the peak area 1.5-2.4%.

Chiral Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography

The potential of Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography to achieve enantiomeric separations is reviewed in this article. The separation principles and the most frequently employed separation strategies to achieve chiral separations by Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography are described. The use of chiral micellar systems alone or combined with other micellar systems or chiral selectors, as well as of mixtures of achiral micellar systems with chiral selectors is discussed together with the effect of different additives present in the separation medium. Indirect methods based on the derivatization of analytes with chiral derivatizing reagents and the use of achiral micelles are also considered. Preconcentration techniques employed to improve sensitivity and the main approaches developed to facilitate the coupling with Mass Spectrometry are included. The most recent and relevant methodologies developed by chiral Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography and their applications in different fields are presented.

Advancement of electroosmotic pump in microflow analysis: A review

This review (with 152 references) covers the progress made in the development and application of electroosmotic pumps in a period from 2009 through 2018 in microflow analysis. Following a short introduction, the review first categorizes various electroosmotic pumps into five subclasses based on the materials used for pumping: i) open channel EOP, 2) packed-column EOP, iii) porous monolith EOP, iv) porous membrane EOP, and v) other types of EOP. Pumps in each subclass are discussed. A next section covers EOP applications, primarily the applications of EOPs in micro flow analysis and micro/nano liquid chromatography. Other scattered applications are also examined. Perspectives, trends and challenges are discussed in the final section.

Research Article. The Influence of Some Parameters on Chiral Separation of Ibuprofen by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography and Capillary Electrophoresis

Objective: The aim of the study was to compare the influence of mobile phase composition and temperature on chiral separation of racemic ibuprofen by capillary electrophoresis and high performance liquid chromatography with UV detection. Materials and methods: Racemic ibuprofen was analysed on a chiral OVM column with an HPLC system 1100 Agilent Technologies, under isocratic elution, by using potassium dihydrogen phosphate 20 mM and ethanol in mobile phase. The flow rate was set at 1 mL/min, UV detector at 220 nm and different column temperatures were tested. For electrophoresis separation an Agilent CE G1600AX Capillary Electrophoresis System system, with UV detection, was used. The electrophoresis analysis was performed at different pH values and temperatures, with phosphate buffer 25 mM and methyl-β-cyclodextrin as chiral selector. Results: The chromatograhic analysis reveals a high influence of mobile phase pH on ibuprofen enantiomers separation. An elution with a mixture of potassium dihydrogen phosphate 20 mM pH=3 and ethanol, at 25°C, allowed enantiomers separation with good resolution in less than 8 min. Conclusions: The proposed HPLC method proved suitable for the separation of ibuprofen enantiomers with a good resolution, but the capillary electrophoresis tested parameters did not allow chiral discrimination.

A dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction and chiral separation of carvedilol in human plasma using capillary electrophoresis

BACKGROUND

Development of simple, rapid and precise analysis of chiral drugs in biological samples is an important issue. Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction in combination with CE using field amplified sample injection has been of interest because of its capability to analyze trace amount of drugs.

METHODS

Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction-CE-field amplified sample injection was employed for chiral separation of carvedilol in human plasma using UV-DAD detector and the developed method has been validated according to US FDA method validation guideline for bioanalysis.

RESULTS

The method was linear over a concentration range of 12.5-100 ng/ml for each carvedilol enantiomer (R(2) = 0.998) and the mean recoveries ranged from 91 to 107%.

CONCLUSION

The method was adapted for sensitive, selective and rapid determination of carvedilol enantiomers in human plasma samples.

Detection of biogenic amines in C57BL/6 mice brain by capillary electrophoresis electrokinetic supercharging

A facile, sensitive EKS/MEKD-PDAD method was developed for the detection of neurotransmitters in C57BL/6 mice brain.

Hydrophilic interaction electrokinetic chromatography using bio-based nanofillers

Hydrophilic interaction (HI)-based separation like HILIC is effective for analyzing hydrophilic biological samples such as carbohydrates, peptides, and metabolites. To overcome the drawbacks of conventional HILIC such as large consumption of organic solvents and easy deterioration of the separation column, we developed HI electrokinetic chromatography (EKC) by employing bio-based nanomaterials as the hydrophilic pseudostationary phase. By mechanical/chemical treatments, cellulose, chitin, and chitosan were processed to 10-nm wide nanofibers/nanowhiskers (NFs/NWs), which are longer/shorter than 1000/200 nm, respectively. In HI-EKC of oligosaccharides using 0.001% uncharged cellulose NFs, strong interaction was observed for the large-size oligosaccharides with the retention factors (k) of up to 1.56, indicating a HILIC-mode interaction. In HI-EKC with 0.1% positively charged chitosan NFs, benzenedisulfonic acid, benzenesulfonic acid (BS), and p-hydroxy BS (HBS) had k values of 0.036, 0.018, and 0.018, respectively, suggesting that the ion-exchange interaction mainly occurred via sulfonate groups. Finally, HI-EKC was demonstrated using 0.05% chitin or chitosan NWs. In both cases using chitin and chitosan NWs, HBS showed much stronger interaction with k > 0.192 compared with BS with k < 0.070. It indicated structural difference between NFs and NWs affected the HI behavior in terms of both the ion-exchange and HILIC modes.

Salt-assisted LLE combined with field-amplified sample stacking in CE for improved determination of beta blocker drugs in human urine

Background: A simple and sensitive CE method was developed and validated for the analysis of some beta blockers in human urine. Methods: In this study, salting-out assisted LLE combined with field-amplified sample stacking method was employed for biological sample clean-up and sensitivity enhancement in CE. Results: Under the optimal conditions good linearity (r2 ≥0.998) was obtained, within 0.025–1 µg/ml for propranolol and metoprolol, and within 0.05–1 µg/ml for carvedilol in urine samples. LODs and LLOQs ranged from 0.005 to 0.015 µg/ml, and from 0.025 to 0.05 µg/ml, respectively. The RSDs of intra- and inter-day analysis of examined compounds were less than 4.0%. The recoveries were in the range of 98–119%. Conclusion: The validated method is successfully applied to determine propranolol, metoprolol and carvedilol in human urine samples obtained from the patients who received these drugs.

Large-volume sample stacking with polarity switching for monitoring of nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase 1 (NPP1) reactions by capillary electrophoresis

Nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase 1 (NPP1) is a membrane glycoprotein involved in the hydrolysis of extracellular nucleotides. Its main substrate is ATP yielding AMP and pyrophosphate. NPP1 has been proposed as a novel drug target, for diabetes type 2 and the treatment of calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate deposition disease leading to inflammatory arthritis. The monitoring of NPP1 reactions is difficult because its velocity is very slow requiring highly sensitive analytical procedures. In this study, a method of large-volume sample stacking with polarity switching was developed, and separations were optimized. Large sample volumes were loaded by hydrodynamic injection (5 psi, 13 s) followed by removal of a large plug of sample matrix from the capillary using polarity switching (-10 kV). The stacked analytes were subsequently separated in phosphate buffer (100 mM, pH 9.2) at 20 kV. The validated method was found to be linear (R(2) = 0.9927) in the concentration range of 0.05-50 μM of AMP, with high accuracy and precision. The determined LOD and LOQ of AMP were 18 nM and 60 nM, respectively. Compared to a previously reported CE procedure using sweeping technique, a fivefold improvement of sensitivity was achieved. Moreover, the new technique was faster, and reproducibility of migration times was improved (RSD value = 1.2%). Importantly, adenine nucleotide analogs and derivatives tested as NPP1 inhibitors could be completely separated from the substrate ATP and the enzymatic product AMP. The method was applied to NPP1 inhibition assays investigating nucleotide-derived inhibitors in the presence of ATP.

Toward 10,000-fold sensitivity improvement of oligosaccharides in capillary electrophoresis using large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow pump combined with field-amplified sample injection

A combination of two online sample concentration techniques, large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow pump (LVSEP) and field-amplified sample injection (FASI), was investigated in CE to achieve highly sensitive oligosaccharide analysis. In CE with LVSEP-FASI, analytes injected throughout the capillary were concentrated on the basis of LVSEP, followed by an electrokinetic introduction of concentrated analytes from the inlet vial by the FASI mechanism. After switching the inlet vial solution from the sample to running buffer, the concentrated analytes were then separated by CZE. In the present LVSEP-FASI-CZE, pressure was applied to the capillary inlet until the inlet vial solution was exchanged. The applied pressure generated a counterflow against the EOF. It kept the stacked sample zone within the capillary, minimizing loss of concentrated analytes. Fluorescein was first analyzed by LVSEP-FASI-CZE to optimize preconcentration condition. Up to 110 000-fold sensitivity increase was obtained with 200 μL of sample, compared to normal CZE with sample injection of 0.3 psi for 3 s (ca. 1.7 nL). From the results, the pressure application improved the efficiency of the FASI-mode concentration significantly at total concentration time longer than 10 min. In the analysis of maltoheptaose, a 10 000-fold sensitivity increase was achieved, which is the highest concentration efficiency ever reported in CE of oligosaccharides. The relative standard deviations of the detection time and peak height were 2.4 and 11%, respectively. In the analysis of glucose oligomer, up to 8600-fold sensitivity increases were achieved without reducing the separation performance of conventional CZE.

Recent advances in enhancing the sensitivity of electrophoresis and electrochromatography in capillaries and microchips (2010-2012)

CE has been alive for over two decades now, yet its sensitivity is still regarded as being inferior to that of more traditional methods of separation such as HPLC. As such, it is unsurprising that overcoming this issue still generates much scientific interest. This review continues to update this series of reviews, first published in Electrophoresis in 2007, with updates published in 2009 and 2011 and covers material published through to June 2012. It includes developments in the field of stacking, covering all methods from field amplified sample stacking and large volume sample stacking, through to isotachophoresis, dynamic pH junction and sweeping. Attention is also given to online or inline extraction methods that have been used for electrophoresis.

On-line sample preconcentration by sweeping and poly(ethylene oxide)-mediated stacking for simultaneous analysis of nine pairs of amino acid enantiomers in capillary electrophoresis

This study proposes a sensitive method for the simultaneous separation and concentration of 9 pairs of amino acid enantiomers by combining poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)-based stacking, β-cyclodextrin (β-CD)-mediated micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC), and 9-fluoroenylmethyl chloroformate (FMOC) derivatization. The 9 pairs of FMOC-derivatized amino acid enantiomers were baseline separated using a discontinuous system, and the buffer vials contained a solution of 150 mM Tris-borate (TB), 12.5% (v/v) isopropanol (IPA), 0.5% (w/v) PEO, 35 mM sodium taurodeoxycholate (STDC), and 35 mM β-CD, and the capillary was filled with a solution of 1.5 M TB, 12.5% (v/v) IPA, 35 mM STDC, and 35 mM β-CD. Based on the difference in viscosity between the sample zone and PEO solution and because of the STDC sweeping, the discontinuous system effectively stacked 670 nL of the 9 pairs of FMOC-derivatized amino acid enantiomers without losing chiral resolution. Consequently, the limits of detection for the 9 pairs of FMOC-derivatized amino acid enantiomers were reduced to 40-60 nM. This method was successfully used to determine d-Tryptophan (Trp), l-Trp, d-Phenylalanine (Phe), l-Phe, d-Glutamic acid (Glu), and l-Glu in various types of beers.

Electrophoretic analysis of cations using large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow pump using capillaries coated with neutral and cationic polymers

To realize the high-performance and simple-operation analysis of cationic compounds in capillary electrophoresis, we investigated large-volume sample stacking with an electroosmotic flow pump (LVSEP) using capillaries with hydrophilic and weakly cationic inner surface. Three capillary modification methods were employed: thermally passivated physical coating with polymer mixture of poly(vinyl alcohol) and poly(allylamine); covalent modification with random copolymer of acryl amide and 3-(methacryloylamino)propyltrimethylammonium chloride; easily preparable physical coating with dimethyldioctadecylammonium bromide and polyoxyethylene stearate. In these capillaries, the electroosmotic flow (EOF) was well suppressed in the high ionic strength (I) electrolyte under the acidic and basic pH, whereas the EOF was enhanced in the low I electrolyte, indicating a suitable EOF property for the rapid LVSEP and following separation. In the LVSEP-capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) analyses of benzylamine and 1-naphthylethylamine, up to 550-fold sensitivity increases were successfully obtained in the three capillaries without significantly reducing the repeatability and resolution. LVSEP-cyclodextrin-modified CZE of chlorpheniramine and brompheniramine was also carried out, resulting in up to 380-fold sensitivity enhancement with keeping the baseline separation for the enantiomers. Finally, we performed the LVSEP-CZE analysis of basic proteins, where up to 100-fold sensitivity increases were achieved, but a peak broadening was observed due to the sample adsorption in the low I sample matrix.