ASSAY FOR THE (R)-ENANTIOMERS AND (S)-ENANTIOMERS OF SALSOLINOLS IN BIOLOGICAL SAMPLES AND FOODS WITH ION-PAIR HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHY USING BETA-CYCLODEXTRIN AS A CHIRAL MOBILE-PHASE ADDITIVE

A chromatographic procedure was devised for the quantitative determina tion of the enantiomers of salsolinol and N-methylsalsolinol, which ar e biologically important alkaloids. The enantiomers of salsolinol and N-methylsalsolinol were completely separated using beta-cyclodextrin i n a reversed-phase ion-pair system. The HPLC method was sensitive enou gh to detect the isoquinolines at a concentration less than 0.1 pmol p er injection. The presence of (R)- and (S)-salsolinol was confirmed in fermented foods and beverages, white N-methylsalsolinol was not detec ted. On the other hand, the (R)-enantiomers of both salsolinol and N-m ethylsalsolinol were found to predominate in the human brain.