IDENTIFICATION OF NONPROTEIN AMINO-ACIDS FROM CYCAD SEEDS AS N-ETHOXYCARBONYL ETHYL-ESTER DERIVATIVES BY POSITIVE CHEMICAL-IONIZATION GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY MASS-SPECTROMETRY
M. Pan et al., IDENTIFICATION OF NONPROTEIN AMINO-ACIDS FROM CYCAD SEEDS AS N-ETHOXYCARBONYL ETHYL-ESTER DERIVATIVES BY POSITIVE CHEMICAL-IONIZATION GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY MASS-SPECTROMETRY, Journal of chromatography, 787(1-2), 1997, pp. 288-294
Nonprotein amino acids from nine species of cycad seeds were analyzed
as N-ethoxycarbonyl ethyl ester (ECEE) derivatives by positive chemica
l-ionization gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Based on the retent
ion times and mass spectrometry analyses, 12 nonprotein amino acids we
re identified in these seeds. In addition to the excitatory and putati
ve neurotoxin beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA), the known neurotoxi
n beta-N-oxalylamino-L-alanine (BOAA) was detected from the seeds of M
acrozamia moorei and M. communis, and delta-N-oxalyl-ornithine was obt
ained from the Cycas revoluta seeds. A novel nonprotein amino acid nam
ed cycasindene, previously reported from C. revoluta, was also found i
n the seeds of members of the C. angulata and C. rumphii complex, Eigh
t additional known nonprotein amino acids were also identified. This i
s the first report of the neurotoxin BOAA from cycad seeds. (C) 1997 E
lsevier Science B.V.