Determination of salsolinol enantiomers by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with cyclodextrin chiral columns

A gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric method for enantiomeric determinat ion of salsolinol (Sal), a dopaminergic neurotoxin precursor, is described, Sal enantiomers were resolved on a cyclodextrin capillary column after O-t rimethylsilylation with N-methyl-N-trimethylsilyltrifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) . Superior resolution was achieved on P-cyclodextrin columns as compared wi th alpha- or gamma-cyclodextrin columns. A detection limit of 100 pg in sam ple or 2.5 pg on-column for each enantiomer was observed. The method has be en applied to the quantification of Sal enantiomers in food stuff and nerve tissue samples. Both (R)- and (S)-Sal were found at the 30 mu g/g level in dried banana chips, a food rich in Sal. The ratio of (R)- to (S)-Sal was c lose to the unity, i.e. Sal present in this sample was racemic. However, (R )-Sal was the predominant enantiomer in homogenates of the cerebral ganglio n from the sea slug, Aplysia californica. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. Al l rights reserved.