Quantitation of 1,N6-ethenoadenine in rat urine by immunoaffinity extraction combined with liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A fast, highly specific analytical method was developed to quantify 1,N6-ethenoadenine (epsilonA) in urine of rats. epsilonA is a highly mutagenic DNA adduct generated by vinyl chloride (VC) exposures as well as endogenously from lipid peroxidation. epsilonA was concentrated through extraction from rat urine by immunoaffinity chromatography and quantitated by liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS). The average epsilonA recovery by immunoaffinity extraction was 66%. The LC/ESI-MS selected-ion monitoring (SIM) of the response ratio of epsilonA to its isotopically labeled internal standard [15N5]epsilonA was linear (r2 = 0.999) and reproducible from 0.15 to 30 pmol/injection. The detection limit obtained in the routine analysis of urine of unexposed rats was 270 fmol/sample with a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) 3:1. The concentration of endogenous epsilonA was determined to be 21.6 +/- 14.8 pmol/mL (3 rats). Following portal injection of chloroethylene oxide (CEO; the putative active metabolite of VC), the rate of epsilonA excretion in urine was greatest from 0 to 24 h, with approximately 90% of the CEO-induced epsilonA excreted. By 132 h, the excretion of epsilonA was similar to pretreatment amounts. The accuracy of the quantitation was 107 +/- 6% (n = 4), established by analyzing urine of an unexposed rat spiked with authentic epsilonA. These data indicate that the LC/ESI-MS with immunoaffinity extraction method is precise and accurate for epsilonA quantification. The measurement of epsilonA in urine provides a potential biomarker for exposure to chemicals and processes that form this adduct.