Standard operation protocol for analysis of lipid hydroperoxides in human serum using a fully automated method based on solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in selected reaction monitoring.

Standard operating procedures (SOPs) are of paramount importance in the analytical field to ensure the reproducibility of the results obtained among laboratories. SOPs gain special interest when the aim is the analysis of potentially unstable compounds. An SOP for analysis of lipid hydroperoxides (HpETEs) is here reported after optimization of the critical steps to be considered in their analysis in human serum from sampling to final analysis. The method is based on automated hyphenation between solid-phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The developed research involves: (i) optimization of the SPE and LC-MS steps with a proper synchronization; (ii) validation of the method-viz. accuracy study (estimated as 86.4% as minimum value), evaluation of sensitivity and precision, which ranged from 2.5 to 7.0 ng/mL (0.25-0.70 ng on column) as quantification limit and precision below 13.2%), and robustness study (reusability of the cartridge for 5 times without affecting the accuracy and precision of the method); (iii) stability study, involving freeze-thaw stability, short-term and long-term stability and stock solution stability tests. The results thus obtained allow minimizing both random and systematic variation of the metabolic profiles of the target compounds by correct application of the established protocol.

High-throughput total cupric ion reducing antioxidant capacity of biological samples determined using flow injection analysis and microplate-based methods.

High-throughput cupric ion reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) methods were developed for assessment of total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in urine and serum, based on reduction of Cu(II)-neocuproine complex to highly colored Cu(I)-neocuproine complex, measured spectrophotometrically at 450 nm. The reaction time was significantly reduced from 30 to 4 min by application of a calibration compound (uric acid) with kinetic behavior similar to that shown by urine samples. The method was implemented in a microformat (96 well plates) and also in an automatic fashion (flow injection analysis, FIA). A determination throughput value of 288 h(-1) (microplate method) or of 15 h(-1) (automatic FIA) was attained. Application of both methods to human serum (SRM 909b, level I) and urines (n = 9) provided TAC values in agreement with those of the end-point batch method.

Determination of the scavenging capacity against reactive nitrogen species by automatic flow injection-based methodologies.

Automatic flow-based systems have been applied to assay scavenging capacity against reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, providing analytical tools which can cope with different types and large number of samples. In the present chapter, a flow injection analysis procedure is described for the assessment of peroxynitrite scavenging. A sequential injection analysis procedure is also described for determining the scavenging capacity against the nitric oxide radical. For both systems, reaction between putative antioxidants and the reactive species of nitrogen takes place inside the flow conduits before addition of luminol and further detection of remaining reactive species by chemiluminescence.

Fully automatic flow method for the determination of scavenging capacity against nitric oxide radicals.

In the present work, a fluorimetric automatic method based on multisyringe flow injection analysis (MSFIA) was developed for in vitro evaluation of scavenging capacity against nitric oxide (NO) using 4,5-diaminofluorescein (DAF-2) as an NO-selective fluorogenic probe. The MSFIA manifold was assembled to perform the in-line generation of NO and the competitive reaction of putative scavenger molecules and DAF-2 with NO at conditions close to those found in vivo regarding temperature (37 degrees C), pH (7.4), and concentration of NO (less than 1 microM). This approach allowed the evaluation of scavenging capacity against NO by endogenous antioxidant molecules, pharmaceutical compounds, and human plasma. IC(50) values were calculated for rutin (1.30 +/- 0.02 microM, positive control), cysteine (321 +/- 8 microM), reduced glutathione (1106 +/- 93 microM), uric acid (134 +/- 12 microM), dipyrone (1.36 +/- 0.06 microM), and captopril (363 +/- 28 microM). A high degree of automation was attained as the successive dilution of antioxidant standard solutions required for IC(50) assessment was performed automatically, in a dilution chamber placed in the flow system. A determination throughput of 16 h(-1) and a good precision were attained (relative standard deviation between 1.6 and 9.0%), fostering the application of the proposed method to routine/screening analysis of scavenging capacity against NO.

Hydrogen peroxide, antioxidant compounds and biological targets: an in vitro approach for determination of scavenging capacity using fluorimetric multisyringe flow injection analysis.

In the present work, an automatic method based on multisyringe flow injection analysis (MSFIA) was developed for determination of scavenging capacity against H(2)O(2) using a non-enzymatic fluorimetric assay for H(2)O(2) detection based on the formation of europium-tetracycline-H(2)O(2) complex. The MSFIA-fluorimetric methodology was developed to perform in-line the scavenging reaction of H(2)O(2) prior to reaction of the remaining H(2)O(2) with the fluorescent probe, using conditions close to those found in vivo regarding pH (6.9), temperature (37 degrees C) and H(2)O(2) concentration (25microM). This approach allowed the evaluation of scavenging capacity against H(2)O(2) in a non-competitive (antioxidant+H(2)O(2)) or a competitive (antioxidant+H(2)O(2)+biological target) scheme. Using the first strategy, IC(50) values determined for the antioxidant compounds glutathione reduced (1191+/-46microM) and pyruvate (446+/-49microM) were lower than those obtained for biological targets such as cysteine (2616+/-182microM), taurine (359+/-38mM) and adenine (2224+/-214microM), indicating that reactivity towards H(2)O(2) was higher for antioxidant compounds than for biological targets. However, when a competitive scheme was applied, the scavenging effectiveness against H(2)O(2) depended on the biological molecule present, showing that antioxidant assessment should also take into consideration the concomitant reactivity of biological molecules or structures that are prone to oxidative damage.

Spectrophotometric FIA methods for determination of hydrogen peroxide: application to evaluation of scavenging capacity.

The determination of hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) and the evaluation of scavenging capacity against this species were performed using five colorimetric reactions, which were adapted to flow injection analysis. The reactions chosen were based on the oxidation of iodide (I(-) method), on the formation of titanium-peroxide complex (TiP method), on the formation of titanium-xylenol orange-peroxide complex (TiXoP method), on the oxidation of 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB method) and on the co-oxidation of phenol-4-sulfonic acid and 4-aminoantipyrine (PSA/4-AAP method). The operational conditions were studied in order to improve the sensitivity of each method. Concerning to the method sensitivity, the ranking order was TMB method>I(-) method>TiXoP method approximately PSA/4-AAP method>TiP method. All methods showed an excellent repeatability (RSD<2%) and, except for I(-) method, relative deviations from the reference method were <1.9%. The FIA manifolds were adapted to perform the determination of scavenging capacity against H(2)O(2) and glutathione (GSH) was applied as model compound. TiP and TiXoP methods were not suitable as no inhibition or an increase of analytical signal was attained. PSA/4-AAP method was chosen for further application to dietary phenolics and pharmaceutical compounds, providing IC(50) values for those compounds that are fast reacting antioxidants.