ABSTRACT
A high efficiency chromatographic separation on a porous graphitic carbon stationary phase was developed for a large-scale separation of selenium metabolites in Se-rich yeast prior to their identification by electrospray hybrid quadrupole trap/Orbitrap mass spectrometry (Orbitrap MS(n)). The reversed-phase (RP) separation mode offered distinctly higher separation efficiency than the hydrophilic ion interaction (HILIC) mode. The latter was nevertheless complementary and useful to validate the detection of several compounds. The method allowed the detection of 64 metabolites including 30 SeSe or SeS conjugates (3 triple S/Se/S ones) and 14 selenoethers. 21 previously unreported metabolites were detected on the basis of the selenium isotopic pattern usually matched with the sub-ppm mass accuracy. 9 of these metabolites were subsequently identified using the multi-stage high mass accuracy (<5ppm) mass spectrometry. The identified metabolites (and their groups) were quantified on-line by ICP-MS fitted with a frequency-matching generator allowing a quasi-uniform response over the large (20-90%) acetonitrile mobile phase concentration range. The morphology of HPLC-ICP-MS chromatograms was remarkably similar to that of HPLC multi-ion extracted ESI-MS chromatograms. The detection limits obtained by ICP MS and ESI MS were 1 and 2ppb, respectively.
