Introduction

In recent years, analytical screening methods for simultaneous detection of multivitamins have gained substantial attention to ensure quality and public confidence in dietary supplements. Even so, few analytical methods have been proposed for simultaneous analysis of multivitamin constituents due to the large divergence in chemical characteristics.

Objectives

In the present study, the objective was to develop a simple and rapid direct nano-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS) method for targeted detection of water soluble vitamins, fat soluble vitamins, amino acids, royal jelly, ginkgo biloba, and ginseng in a dietary supplement. The applicability of dilute-and-shoot-based DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS to analyze the same tested compounds and their related metabolites in clinical samples was also examined.

Methods

Intact urine mixed with the ionization solvent was loaded (4-μL aliquot) into a nanospray (NS) capillary of 1-μm tip diameter. The NS capillary was then fitted into an off-line ion source at a distance of 5 mm from MS aperture. The sample was directly injected by applying a voltage of 1.1 kV, producing a numerous of m/z peaks for analysis in mere minutes.

Results

The DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS method successfully identified almost all dietary supplement components, as well as a plethora of component-related metabolites in clinical samples. In addition, a new merit of the proposed method for the detection of index marker and chemical contaminants as well as subspecies identification was investigated for further quality evaluation of the dietary supplement.

Conclusions

The previous findings illustrated that DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS approach can emerge as a powerful, high throughput, and promising analytical tool for screening and accurate detection of various pharmaceuticals and ingredient in dietary supplements as well as biological fluids.

中文翻译：

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基于稀释和喷射的直接纳米电喷雾电离串联质谱法作为膳食补充剂和人尿液中多种维生素的筛选方法

介绍

近年来，同时检测多种维生素的分析筛选方法受到广泛关注，以确保膳食补充剂的质量和公众信心。即便如此，由于化学特性差异较大，很少有分析方法可以同时分析多种维生素成分。

目标

本研究的目的是开发一种简单快速的直接纳米电喷雾电离串联质谱（DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS）方法，用于靶向检测水溶性维生素、脂溶性维生素、氨基酸、膳食补充剂中含有蜂王浆、银杏叶和人参。还检查了基于稀释和射击的 DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS 分析临床样品中相同测试化合物及其相关代谢物的适用性。

方法

将与电离溶剂混合的完整尿液（4μL 等份）装入尖端直径为 1μm 的纳喷雾 (NS) 毛细管中。然后将 NS 毛细管安装到距 MS 孔径 5 mm 的离线离子源中。通过施加 1.1 kV 的电压直接注入样品，在短短几分钟内产生大量用于分析的m/z峰。

结果

DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS 方法成功鉴定了几乎所有膳食补充剂成分，以及临床样本中大量与成分相关的代谢物。此外，还研究了所提出的方法用于检测指标标记和化学污染物以及亚种鉴定的新优点，以进一步评估膳食补充剂的质量。

结论

先前的研究结果表明，DI-nano-ESI-MS/MS 方法可以成为一种强大、高通量且有前途的分析工具，用于筛选和准确检测膳食补充剂以及生物液体中的各种药物和成分。