CHARGE-REMOTE FRAGMENTATION OF SULFATED AND GLUCURONIDATED BILE-ACIDSAND THEIR 2-AMINOETHANESULPHONIC ACID-DERIVATIVES

Negative-ion fast-atom bombardment mass spectra of bile acids show pro minent [M-H]- pseudomolecular ions, and few fragment ions. Collision-i nduced dissociation of such pseudomolecular ions gives charge-remote f ragmentations which are useful in structural identifications. It has b een shown that bile acids conjugated with taurine (2-aminoethanesulpho nic acid) give more intense and informative collision-induced dissocia tion spectra than unconjugated bile acids. In this laboratory, a proce dure for the aminosulphation of biological samples, for analysis by ta ndem mass spectrometry, has been developed. In the present study, a co mparison has been made between the collision-induced dissociation spec tra of a series of sulphated and glucuronidated bile acids and their 2 -aminoethanesulphonic acid derivatives.