Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography of tenuazonic acid and related tetramic acids

A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic system for the determination of the fungal toxin, tenuazonic acid, (5S,8S)-3-acetyl-5-sec.-butyltetramic acid, is described. The system utilizes a column packed with deactivated end-capped C18 silica with a high carbon load to overcome the problem of poor chromatographic performance of this beta-diketone on reversed-phase liquid chromatography which previously necessitated the use of anion-exchange, ligand-exchange or ion-pairing methods. The reversed-phase system allows the separation of tenuazonic acid from its (5R,8S)-diastereomer, allo-tenuazonic acid and was applied to the detection of tenuazonic acid in cultures of Alternaria alternata and Phoma sorghina. By means of diode-array ultraviolet detection, (5S)-3-acetyl-5-isopropyltetramic acid was observed in extracts of culture material. This metabolite was purified using the analytical reversed-phase system and was identified by 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.