ABSTRACT
Objective To establish a method for the quantitative determination of serotonin and dopamine in the nervous sys-tem of Biomphalaria glabrata by using ultra high performance liquid chromatography-tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry (UPLC MS/MS). Methods The B.glabrata nervous system was broken in the pure methanol solution after obtaining it by dis-secting with microscope.Then,the supernatant containing the target substance after twice high speed centrifugation was got.The extraction was separated on an ACQUITY UPLC BEH Amide column with Waters TQ-XS series mass spectrometry detector, with ESI source and positive electrospray ionization mode when the machine testing. Results The detection limit of serotonin was 0.03 ng/ml and the limit of quantification was 0.1 ng/ml.The detection limit of dopamine was 0.05 ng/ml and the limit of quantification was 0.15 ng/ml.The recoveries of serotonin ranged from 90.68% to 94.72% over the range of 1 to 40 ng/ml.The re-coveries of dopamine ranged from 91.68% to 96.12% over the range of 1.0 ng/ml to 40 ng/ml. Conclusion The established UPLC MS/MS method is simple,stable and reproducible.It can be used for the quantitative analysis of serotonin and dopamine in the nervous system of B.glabrata snails.