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Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Thompson, JW; Zhang, H; Smith, P; Hillman, S; Moseley, MA; Millington, DS
Published in: Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom
November 15, 2012

RATIONALE: Acylcarnitines are routinely analyzed by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) both in clinical diagnostic and public health newborn screening laboratories from plasma and dried whole blood spots (DBS) on filter paper. The use of DBS as a convenient method of collecting and storing samples for subsequent analysis of various biomolecules is increasing, thus prompting the development of new devices to recover and quantify such analytes in an automated manner. METHODS: Acylcarnitines were extracted directly from DBS using a novel autosampler that sequentially loads DBS cards into a pneumatic clamp and then pumps a fixed volume of solvent containing appropriate internal standards through a section of the DBS card directly into a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer via ESI. Plasma was first spiked with internal standard then spotted onto filter paper for analysis. RESULTS: Acylcarnitines were analyzed in DBS, and both free and total carnitine were assayed in dried plasma spots (DPS). Results using the new autosampling technique were of equal quality to those obtained by punching a 3-mm diameter disk from a DBS or DPS, then extracting and analyzing the target analytes from conventional 96-well microtiter plates, with far reduced time per sample. Recovery for most analytes was >60% and reproducibility was generally within 20% (CV). CONCLUSIONS: The simplicity and robustness of the DBS autosampler make it an attractive alternative to conventional methods of analyzing DBS specimens, thus saving time and labor costs, especially in high-throughput applications. Although the method as described is for direct infusion analysis, the autosampler is easily coupled to column hardware for applications requiring liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS).

Duke Scholars

Published In

Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom

DOI

EISSN

1097-0231

Publication Date

November 15, 2012

Volume

26

Issue

21

Start / End Page

2548 / 2554

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Tandem Mass Spectrometry
  • Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
  • Humans
  • Dried Blood Spot Testing
  • Carnitine
  • Automation
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • 37 Earth sciences
  • 34 Chemical sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences
 

Citation

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Thompson, J. W., Zhang, H., Smith, P., Hillman, S., Moseley, M. A., & Millington, D. S. (2012). Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler. Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom, 26(21), 2548–2554. https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.6370
Thompson, J Will, Haoyue Zhang, Peter Smith, Steven Hillman, M Arthur Moseley, and David S. Millington. “Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler.Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom 26, no. 21 (November 15, 2012): 2548–54. https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.6370.
Thompson JW, Zhang H, Smith P, Hillman S, Moseley MA, Millington DS. Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler. Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom. 2012 Nov 15;26(21):2548–54.
Thompson, J. Will, et al. “Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler.Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom, vol. 26, no. 21, Nov. 2012, pp. 2548–54. Pubmed, doi:10.1002/rcm.6370.
Thompson JW, Zhang H, Smith P, Hillman S, Moseley MA, Millington DS. Extraction and analysis of carnitine and acylcarnitines by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry directly from dried blood and plasma spots using a novel autosampler. Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom. 2012 Nov 15;26(21):2548–2554.
Journal cover image

Published In

Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom

DOI

EISSN

1097-0231

Publication Date

November 15, 2012

Volume

26

Issue

21

Start / End Page

2548 / 2554

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Tandem Mass Spectrometry
  • Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
  • Humans
  • Dried Blood Spot Testing
  • Carnitine
  • Automation
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • 37 Earth sciences
  • 34 Chemical sciences
  • 31 Biological sciences