Estimation of the amount of ß2-glycoprotein I adsorbed at the inner surface of fused silica capillaries after acidic, neutral and alkaline pretreatment.

Sample adsorption to the inner surface of fused silica capillaries is a common problem in CE when analyzing macromolecules and is harmful to the analysis. We previously utilized the pH hysteresis effect of fused silica to facilitate electrophoresis of the strongly adsorbing protein ß(2) gpI in plain-fused silica capillaries at neutral pH. In the present paper, the effect of different pretreatments of the capillary on the adsorption of the ß(2) -glycoprotein I has been investigated using electroosmosis markers, SDS mobilization, and imaging based on indirect immunofluorescence microscopy for direct visualization. The amount of ß(2) gpI adsorbed on the surface was probed using all these independent techniques after electrophoresis at neutral pH on capillaries pretreated with HCl, background electrolyte (BGE), and NaOH. BGE pretreatment was included as a positive control. We found that 80% or more of the starting material was adsorbed to the inner surface of the silica capillaries during electrophoresis after pretreatment with only BGE or with NaOH, but after acidic pretreatment the loss was consistently less than 20%. NaOH most efficiently removes adsorbed protein between runs. A theoretical calculation of the pH change of the BGE showed that electrolysis affects the pH more than the deprotonation of silanols during electrophoresis. We conclude that acidic pretreatment of fused silica capillaries diminishes adsorption of ß(2) gpI by decreasing charge-dependent wall adsorption.

Effects of ionic strength, temperature and conformation on affinity interactions of ß2-glycoprotein I monitored by capillary electrophoresis.

We have used CE to evaluate the interaction between ß2-glycoprotein I (ß2gpI) and heparin. ß2gpI is a human plasma protein involved in the blood coagulation cascade. It is of interest to functionally characterize the interactions of ß2gpI because the exact function is not entirely known and because circulating autoantibodies against ß2gpI are associated with an increased risk of thrombotic events. The effect of the ionic strength, temperature, and conformation of the protein on the interaction between ß2gpI and heparin has been studied. The CE procedure for this study is simple, fast, and automatic. ß2gpI and heparin were allowed to interact during electrophoresis at different ionic strength buffers and at different capillary temperatures. To mimic perturbation of the conformation of ß2gpI, different denaturing agents (SDS, ACN, and urea) were added to the BGE. While simple 1:1 binding isotherms were obtained at 22 °C, the data strongly suggest that at physiological temperature the binding stoichiometry is not 1:1 and/or that cooperative interactions begin to play a role. We found that (i) the K(D)-values differed by a factor of 60 at the ionic strengths studied (ii) ß2gpI was resistant to denaturation with SDS and ACN, but was partially denatured by urea, and (iii) the K(D) for the ß2gpI-heparin interaction in the presence of urea was ten times higher than the K(D) determined at the same conditions without urea added. Therefore, we conclude that the interaction between ß2gpI and heparin is dependent on electrostatic interactions and on the conformation of ß2gpI.

Two new techniques for sample preparation in bioanalysis: microextraction in packed sorbent (MEPS) and use of a bonded monolith as sorbent for sample preparation in polypropylene tips for 96-well plates.

Analytical methods providing high throughput are required for the ever increasing number of samples in bioanalysis. Currently, the method of choice in bioanalysis is LC-MS-MS. This method is quite rapid and thereby the focus has been directed to sample preparation as being a bottleneck in total analysis systems. It has become necessary to develop sample preparation techniques to a new improved level. This development has been based on a systematic and scientific approach. The key factors in this development have been miniaturization, integration, and automation of the techniques. This review provides a short overview of recent developments. Special emphasis is on two techniques: microextraction in packed syringe (MEPS) and use of a monolithic acrylamide plug as sorbent in polypropylene tips primarily intended for use with 96-well plate systems.

In-line application of electric field in capillary separation systems: Joule heating, pH and conductivity.

This study concerns the technique electric field-assisted capillary liquid chromatography. In this technique, an electric field is applied over the separation capillary in order to provide an additional selectivity. In this technique, the electric field is applied in-line in the separation capillary and here the electric current is the factor limiting the magnitude of applied electric field. The influence of Joule heating and other factors on the current in such systems has been investigated. The temperature in the capillary was first measured within a standard CE set-up, as function of effect per unit of length. Then the same cooling system was applied to an in-line set-up, to replicate the conditions between the two systems, and thus the temperature. Thus Joule heating effects could then be calculated within the in-line system. It was found that for systems applying an electric field in line, the direct influence from Joule heating was only relatively small. The pH in the capillary was measured in the in-line set-up using cresol red/TRIS solutions as pH probe. Significant changes in pH were observed and the results suggested that electrolysis of water is the dominant electrode reaction in the in-line system. In summary, the observed conductivity change in in-line systems was found to be mainly due to the pH change by hydrolysis of water, but primarily not due the temperature change in the capillary column.

Surface modified polypropylene pipette tips packed with a monolithic plug of adsorbent for high-throughput sample preparation.

UV-initiated poly(butyl methacrylate-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) porous polymer monoliths were prepared in situ in polypropylene-based pipette tips for high-throughput sample preparation. Prior to the in situ polymerization, the surface of the PP tips was modified. In this work, two different surface modification approaches were tested for this purpose. First the photoinitiator benzophenone was used to generate radicals at the surface of PP by hydrogen abstraction. In the second modification approach, a thin layer of a polymer was directly grafted to the surface. The effect of surface modification was measured by contact angle measurements of a drop of water at the surface. As a result of the surface modification, scan electron microscopy images indicate a covalent attachment of the monolith to the wall of the pipette tip. Pipette tips modified with 5% BP in methanol and packed with a plug of monolith were further evaluated for high-throughput sample preparation. Using a liquid handling system, the extraction performance of packed pipette tips was tested for the analysis of ropivacaine in plasma samples. The recovery and reproducibility results were in accordance with internationally accepted criteria for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the test substance, ropivacaine.

Enantiomeric separation of omeprazole and its metabolite 5-hydroxyomeprazole using non-aqueous capillary electrophoresis.

This study demonstrates the development and validation of a non-aqueous capillary electrophoresis (NACE) method for enantiomeric determination of omeprazole and its metabolite 5-hydroxyomeprazole. Heptakis-(2,3-di-O-methyl-6-O-sulfo)-beta-cyclodextrin (HDMS-beta-CD) was chosen as the chiral selector in an ammonium acetate buffer acidified with formic acid in methanol. Parameters such as CD concentration, concentration of buffer electrolyte, voltage and temperature were studied in order to optimize both the enantioresolution and migration times. An experimental design was utilized for method optimization, using software Modde 5.0. Validation of the developed method showed good linearity, which was tested over a concentration range of 2.5-500 microM. The regression coefficients for S-omeprazole, S-5-hydroxyomeprazole, R-omeprazole and R-5-hydroxyomeprazole were between 0.996 and 0.997. The limits of detection for the four enantiomers were in the range from 45 to 51microM and the limits of quantification were between 149 and 170 microM with UV detection at 301nm. Using a reduced temperature of 16 degrees C gave improved resolution values, reproducibility and also decreased the occurrence of current loss within the capillary. RSD values for peak migration time were calculated to be between 0.41 and 1.48% using an inter-day study.

Binding of Ca2+, Mg2+, and heparin by human serum amyloid P component in affinity capillary electrophoresis.

Human serum amyloid P component (SAP) is a glycoprotein circulating in the blood and found in association with all types of amyloid (malfolded potein aggregates) examined so far. Despite uncertainties regarding the precise function of SAP in vivo, the lectin-like properties of this Ca(2+)-activated protein with affinity for anionic saccharides and malfolded proteins are well known. The propensity to form homomeric penta- or decamers in solution and the selfaggregation in the presence of Ca(2+) as well as the tendency of SAP to attach to uncoated fused silica have precluded the analysis of SAP by microelectrophoretic methods. We now work out conditions to characterize the binding of Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) and the binding of heparin to SAP in the presence of divalent metal ions by ACE. The results show a strong binding of heparin (sub-muM apparent dissociation constants) even in the abscence of Ca(2+) at low ionic strength, pH 8.2. Also, a selective interaction with Ca(2+) compared with Mg(2+) is demonstrated. The approach will further the use of microelectrophoretic methods to examine the interactions of SAP with ligands of putative pathophysiological relevance such as lipopolysaccharides and misfolded proteins.

Flow splitting at the inlet electrode as a method for decreasing the electric current in electric field assisted liquid chromatography.

The combination of pressurized flow and electric field offers, with the use of capillary columns, several options for retention control. However, it has been shown that the utility of this technique is strongly limited by the high electric current that is generated at the high electric field strengths that are needed. We have earlier shown that the high current is a result of locally increased mobile phase ion concentration in the electric field, particularly around the inlet electrode. In this paper, we report that by splitting the mobile phase flow around the inlet electrode a relatively constant ion concentration around the electrode can be obtained and the high currents are there by reduced.

Utilizing the pH hysteresis effect for versatile and simple electrophoretic analysis of proteins in bare fused-silica capillaries.

The analysis of peptides and proteins by CE is often desirable due to low sample consumption and possibilities for nondenaturing yet highly effective separations. However, adsorption to the inner surfaces of fused-silica capillaries often is detrimental to such analyses. This phenomenon is especially pronounced in the analysis of basic proteins and proteins containing exposed positively charged patches. To avoid wall interactions numerous buffer additives and static and dynamic wall coating principles have been devised. We previously showed (J. Chromatogr. A 2004, 1059, 215-222) that CE of the basic protein beta2-glycoprotein was rendered possible by an acidic pretreatment step, and we attributed this observation to the so-called pH hysteresis effect that influences the time for pH equilibration of the capillary wall and thus the effective wall charge and the electroosmotic mobility. We here investigate the effects of different pretreatment techniques on EOF values and on the rate of the deprotonation of silanol groups when performing the electrophoresis at neutral pH. We show the utility of this simple approach for the CE analysis of a number of basic proteins in plain silica capillaries at physiological pH.

New trends in sample preparation: on-line microextraction in packed syringe (MEPS) for LC and GC applications Part III: Determination and validation of local anaesthetics in human plasma samples using a cation-exchange sorbent, and MEPS-LC-MS-MS.

The need for on-line sample preparation for high-throughput applications in bioanalysis has increased during the past decade. In this paper a robust and on-line sample preparation technique, micro extraction in packed syringe (MEPS) has been developed and validated. The method is a miniaturized, fully automated, solid-phase extraction (SPE) technique that can be connected on-line to GC or LC without any modification of the chromatographs. The performance of MEPS as sample preparation method is illustrated by the determination of local anaesthetics in human plasma samples on-line with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and tandem mass spectrometry. The sampling sorbent was 1mg silica based benzenesulphonic acid cation exchanger that was inserted in a 250 microl syringe. Ropicavine and two of its metabolites (PPX and 3-OH-ropivacine), lidocaine and bupivacine were used as model substances. The accuracy values of quality control samples (QC) were between 95% and 109%, and precision (relative standard deviation, R.S.D.) had a maximum deviation of 9% for the analytes.

Utility of nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis for the determination of lidocaine and its metabolites in human plasma: a comparison of ultraviolet and mass spectrometric detection.

A nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis/electrospray mass spectrometry method for the separation of lidocaine (LID) and two of its metabolites, monoethylglycinexylidide (MEGX) and glycinexylidide (GX), has been developed. The separation medium was: 70 mM ammonium formate and 2.0 M formic acid in acetonitrile/methanol (60:40 v/v). With a sheath liquid of methanol/water (80:20 v/v) containing 2% formic acid and positive ion detection, reproducible determinations (8-11% relative standard deviation (RSD)) of lidocaine and its metabolites were performed in spiked human plasma. The limits of detection (LODs) were between 69.1 and 337 nM. The influences of sheath liquid composition, nebulizing gas pressure and drying gas temperature on the separation were examined.

Changes in mobile phase ion distribution when combining pressurized flow and electric field.

The distribution of ions in a capillary with both pressurized flow and an electric field has been studied. We have earlier reported that the overall concentration of ions increase in a capillary with high electric field and a pressurized flow. Now we describe how the ions are distributed in the capillary both along the capillary length and in the radial direction as a result of the parabolic flow profile. We have combined current measurements with finite element techniques in order to get better understanding of the system. We have found that the concentration of the ions that because of the electric mobility moves towards the flow primarily increases at the beginning of the electric field and close to the capillary wall. In view of the results we have proposed an alterative explanation of earlier published results concerning voltage-induced variation in capacity factors.

Controlling the retention in capillary LC with solvents, temperature, and electric fields.

Once a suitable stationary phase and column dimensions have been selected, the retention in liquid chromatography (LC) is traditionally adjusted by controlling the mobile phase composition. Solvent gradients enable achievement of good separation selectivity while decreasing the separation time as compared to isocratic elution. Capillary columns allow use of other programming parameters, i.e. temperature and applied electric fields, in addition to solvent gradient elution. This paper presents a review of programmed separation techniques in miniaturized LC, including retention modeling and method transfer from the conventional to micro- and capillary scales. The impact of miniaturized instrumentation on retention and the limitations of capillary LC are discussed. Special attention is focused on the gradient dwell volume effects, which are more important in micro-LC techniques than in conventional analytical LC and may cause significant increase in the time of analysis, unless special instrumentation and (or) pre-column flow-splitting is used. The influence of temperature upon retention is also discussed, and applications where the temperature has been actively used for retention control in capillary LC are included together with the instrumentation utilized. Finally the possibilities of additional selectivity control by applying an electric field over a packed capillary LC column are discussed.

Capillary electrophoresis-based analysis of phospholipid and glycosaminoglycan binding by human beta2-glycoprotein I.

Human beta2-glycoprotein I (beta2gpI) is a phospholipid and heparin binding plasma glycoprotein involved in autoimmune diseases characterized by blood clotting disturbances (thrombosis) together with the occurrence of autoantibodies against beta2gpI. With the final goal of assessing autoantibody influence on binding interactions of beta2gpI we have studied the development of capillary electrophoresis (CE)-based assays for interactions of negatively charged ligands with beta2gpI. In the development of suitable conditions for analysis at neutral pH of this basic protein (pI about 8) we found the pH hysteresis behavior of fused silica surfaces useful since the protonated surface after an acid pre-wash counteracted protein adsorption efficiently in contrast to more laborious procedures including acrylamide/dimethylacrylamide coatings that did not permit analysis of this particular protein. This simple approach made estimates of heparin-beta2gpI interactions possible and the principle was shown also to work for detection of betagpI binding to anionic phospholipids. Utilizing the pH hysteresis effect may be a simple solution to the adsorption problems often encountered in analyses of proteins by CE.

Deviation from Ohm's law in electric field assisted capillary liquid chromatography.

Earlier studies of electric field assisted LC (EF-LC) have shown that the effect on charged analytes of the application of an electric field over a capillary LC column is relatively small. Charged analytes can only be affected by the electric field while present in the mobile phase, which makes the effective time for influence of the electric field t(0) independent of retention time. Because the charged analytes only can be affected for a short time the electric field strength ought to be high in order to increase the impact of the electric field on the separation. We have, however, found that only a relatively low electric field strength can be used in EF-LC when pressure is used as main driving force. The useful field strength was limited by a dramatic increase in the current. This increase in current was found to origin from an increased concentration of buffer ions that have an electrophoretic mobility towards the pumped flow.

Separation of conjugated trienoic fatty acid isomers by capillary electrophoresis.

A method for direct resolution of conjugated trienoic fatty acid isomers by capillary electrophoresis has been developed. To obtain complete separation a dual cyclodextrin system was used. This contained heptakis-(6-sulfo)-beta-cyclodextrin (charged). Beta-cyclodextrin (uncharged) and sodium dodecylsulfate. Under optimized conditions, all seven isomers were well separated. On average, separation efficiency was 2.9 x 10(5) plates/m.

Illustration of a simple and versatile scheme for reversing enantiomeric elution order and facilitating enantiomeric impurity determination in capillary electrophoresis.

Determination of enantiomeric purity is most often done under overload conditions, which leads to deformed peaks. In general, the best resolutions are obtained when the small peak appears before the large peak in the electropherogram. To be able to determine the R(+)-impurity in the S(-)-form as well as the S(-)-impurity in the R(+)-form the elution orders have to be reversed. The present paper describes reversal of enantiomeric elution order for the basic analyte propranolol and the acidic analyte ibuprofen. For propranolol, a charged heptakis-(6-sulfo)-beta-cyclodextrin (CD) is used in the background electrolyte. For ibuprofen, a mix of the charged heptakis-(6-sulfo)-beta-CD and the uncharged heptakis-(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-beta-CD is used in the background electrolyte. The use of a coated capillary and reversal of the polarity shift the elution order, buffer composition is unchanged in both cases. The enantiomers of propranolol and ibuprofen are well separated on both the coated and uncoated capillaries. Detection limits of enantiomer impurities are investigated using spiked samples of both propranolol and ibuprofen.