An improved method for retrospective quantification of sulfur mustard exposure by detection of its albumin adduct using ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

Anal Bioanal Chem. 2015 Sep;407(23):7037-46. doi: 10.1007/s00216-015-8842-8. Epub 2015 Jul 12.

Abstract

Sulfur mustard (HD) adduct to human serum albumin (ALB) at Cys-34 residue has become an important and long-term retrospective biomarker of HD exposure. Here, a novel, sensitive, and convenient approach for retrospective quantification of HD concentration exposed to plasma was established by detection of the HD-ALB adduct using ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) with a novel non-isotope internal standard (IS). The HD-ALB adduct was isolated from HD-exposed plasma with blue Sepharose. The adduct was digested with proteinase K to form sulfur-hydroxyethylthioethyl ([S-HETE])-Cys-Pro-Phe tripeptide biomarker. The tripeptide adduct could be directly analyzed by UHPLC-MS/MS without an additional solid phase extraction (SPE), which was considered as a critical procedure in previous methods. The easily available 2-chloroethyl ethylsulfide (2-CEES) as HD surrogate was first reported to be used as IS in place of traditional d8-HD for quantification of HD exposure. Furthermore, 2-CEES was also confirmed to be a good IS alternative for quantification of HD exposure by investigation of product ion spectra for their corresponding tripeptide adducts which exhibited identical MS/MS fragmentation behaviors. The method was found to be linear between 1.00 and 250 ng•mL(-1) HD exposure (R(2)>0.9989) with precision of <4.50% relative standard deviation (%RSD), accuracy range between 96.5% and 114%, and a calculated limit of detection (LOD) of 0.532 ng•mL(-1). The lowest reportable limit (LRL) is 1.00 ng•mL(-1), over seven times lower than that of the previous method. The entire method required only 0.1 mL of plasma sample and took under 7 h without special sample preparation equipment. It is proven to be a sensitive, simple, and rugged method, which is easily applied in international laboratories to improve the capabilities for the analysis of biomedical samples related to verification of the Chemical Weapon Convention (CWC).

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biological Assay
  • Blood Chemical Analysis / methods*
  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / methods*
  • Environmental Exposure / analysis*
  • Humans
  • Mustard Gas / analysis*
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Interaction Mapping
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Serum Albumin / analysis*
  • Tandem Mass Spectrometry / methods*

Substances

  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Serum Albumin
  • Mustard Gas