Simultaneous determination of 18 tetrahydrocorticosteroid sulfates in human urine by liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry

Occurrence, distribution, and environmental risk of 61 glucocorticoids in surface water of the Yellow River Delta, China

Glucocorticoids (GCs), as important endocrine disrupting compounds and emerging contaminants, could have irreversible adverse effects on aquatic organisms even at ng/L levels. However, previous studies have only focused on the dissolved concentrations of GCs in the water, and limited data are available for their occurrences in the solid phase. In this study, the occurrence, distribution, and environmental risks of 61 natural and synthetic GCs in surface water of the Yellow River Delta (YRD) were simultaneously analyzed by investigating water, suspended particulate matter (SPM) and sediment samples at 64 sites in six major rivers in the wet season. Overall, 51 GCs were detected in all samples from different matrices, and their concentrations were in the range of not detected (ND)-274 ng/L in water, ND-42 ng/g dry weight (dw) in SPM and ND-9.98 ng/g dw in sediment. Natural GCs were the dominant compounds in all samples, followed by synthetic halogenated esters. High concentrations of GCs were observed in discharge outlet samples from livestock farming, aquaculture and industrial production, and the composition differences of GCs between human/animal sources and industrial sources could be used as indicators to identify pollution sources. Most GCs were distributed in the water phase, while compounds with higher log octanol/water partition coefficients (log Kow) tended to be adsorbed to SPM and sediment. The spatial distribution of GCs was primarily affected by anthropogenic activities and hydrodynamic conditions. Four synthetic compounds (budesonide [BD], fluocinolone acetonide [FOA], fluticasone propionate [FP], and clobetasol propionate [CBSP]) were identified as the main contributors to GC activity with a combined contribution of 57 %-95 %. Risk assessment using the risk quotient revealed that low to moderate risks are posed to aquatic organisms in surface water.

Quantitative Assessment of Dietary (Poly)phenol Intake: A High-Throughput Targeted Metabolomics Method for Blood and Urine Samples

Many studies have associated the consumption of (poly)phenol-rich diets with health benefits. However, accurate high-throughput quantitative methods for estimating exposure covering a broad spectrum of (poly)phenols are lacking. We have developed and validated a high-throughput method for the simultaneous quantification of 119 (poly)phenol metabolites in plasma and urine using ultra high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry, with a very fast sample treatment and a single run time of 16 min. This method is highly sensitive, precise, accurate, and shows good linearity for all compounds (R² > 0.992). This novel method will allow a quantitative assessment of habitual (poly)phenol intake in large epidemiological studies as well as clinical studies investigating the health benefits of dietary (poly)phenols.

The evolution of methods for urinary steroid metabolomics in clinical investigations particularly in childhood

The metabolites of cortisol, and the intermediates in the pathways from cholesterol to cortisol and the adrenal sex steroids can be analysed in a single separation of steroids by gas chromatography (GC) coupled to MS to give a urinary steroid profile (USP). Steroids individually and in profile are now commonly measured in plasma by liquid chromatography (LC) coupled with MS/MS. The steroid conjugates in urine can be determined after hydrolysis and derivative formation and for the first time without hydrolysis using GC-MS, GC-MS/MS and liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The evolution of the technology, practicalities and clinical applications are examined in this review. The patterns and quantities of steroids changes through childhood. Information can be obtained on production rates, from which children with steroid excess and deficiency states can be recognised when presenting with obesity, adrenarche, adrenal suppression, hypertension, adrenal tumours, intersex condition and early puberty, as examples. Genetic defects in steroid production and action can be detected by abnormalities from the GC-MS of steroids in urine. New mechanisms of steroid synthesis and metabolism have been recognised through steroid profiling. GC with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) has been used for the tentative identification of unknown steroids in urine from newborn infants with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Suggestions are made as to areas for future research and for future applications of steroid profiling. As routine hospital laboratories become more familiar with the problems of chromatographic and MS analysis they can consider steroid profiling in their test repertoire although with LC-MS/MS of urinary steroids this is unlikely to become a routine test because of the availability, cost and purity of the internal standards and the complexity of data interpretation. Steroid profiling with quantitative analysis by mass spectrometry (MS) after chromatography now provides the most versatile of tests of adrenal function in childhood.

Development and validation of a high-throughput micro solid-phase extraction method coupled with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry for rapid identification and quantification of phenolic metabolites in human plasma and urine

A rapid and high-throughput micro-solid phase extraction (μ-SPE) method coupled with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC Q-TOF MS) analysis was optimized and validated for the quantification of 67 (poly)phenol metabolites in human plasma and urine using authentic standards. The method was fully validated in terms of specificity, linearity, method detection limit (MDL), method quantification limit (MQL), repeatability, intra- and inter-day precision, accuracy and matrix effects. The method proved to be specific and results showed linearity of responses for all compounds, with MDL ranging between 0.04nM and 86nM in plasma and between 0.01nM and 136nM in urine. MQL ranged between 0.14nM and 286nM in plasma and between 0.03nM and 465nM in urine. Repeatability varied between 1.7 and 9.2% in plasma and between 2.2% and 10.4% in urine. Median precision values of 8.7 and 11.5% (intra-day), and 10.8% and 10.0% (inter-day) were obtained in plasma and urine, respectively. The median recovery was 89% in both biological matrices. Matrix effects were determined and median values of -1.2% and -6.8% in plasma and urine were obtained. After method validation, 49 and 57 compounds, including phase II and gut microbial metabolites, were quantified in plasma and urine, respectively, following cranberry juice consumption. This methodology can be applied to large-scale human dietary intervention trials allowing for high sample throughput.