A Method for Methylmercury and Inorganic Mercury in Biological Samples Using High Performance Liquid Chromatography- Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

A new determination method was developed for the measurement of methylmercury (Me-Hg) and inorganic mercury (i-Hg) in biological samples using high-performance liquid chromatography -inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICP-MS) following alkaline extraction. Mercury species in biological samples were extracted with 10 %(w/w) tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) solution at 80 °C for 2 h. Methylmercury was completely separated from i-Hg by adamantyl type and octadecylsilyl type columns within 6 and 4 min using isocratic elution, respectively. The detection limits (3σ) of an adamantyl type and an octadecylsilyl columns using the proposed system were 0.08 ng g -1 and 0.13 ng g -1 (as Hg), respectively. Inorganic Hg completely separates from Me-Hg without tailing. The proposed determination methods were applied to several biological certified reference materials (CRMs).The measurement results of Me-Hg obtained by the present method were in good agreement within the expanded uncertainties (k=2) with the certified values. The analytical precision (n=3)of Me-Hg was less than 2 %, and the recoveries of Me-Hg and i-Hg were 101±1 % and 103± 3 %, respectively. In addition, this method enables the determination of Me-Hg and i-Hg for 20 samples in one hour.

Analysis of the Mercury Distribution in Blood as a Potential Tool for Exposure Assessment — Results from Two Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Areas in Zimbabwe

“…In general, biomonitoring studies focus on the analysis of total Hg in whole blood or urine. However, this does not allow the exact determination of the source of exposure, which may require Hg speciation, e.g., by GC-CVAFS [7] or LC-ICP-MS [8]. Due to its strong affinity to sulfhydryl groups in proteins, Hg species can also be analyzed by proteomics [9][10][11].…”

Applications of Mass Spectrometry in Dentistry

“…In the gas chromatographic technique followed by MS (GC-MS) the mobile phase, as the name indicates, is a gas and usually volatile or lipoid substances [3]. In liquid chromatography followed by MS, respectively LC-MS, the mobile phase is liquid and proteinaceous; this technique can separate organic substances [4]. The CE-MS moniker is used for the case of a capillary electrophoresis liquid separation system [5].…”

On-Site Determination of Methylmercury by Coupling Solid-Phase Extraction and Voltammetry

“…All these techniques involve long sample pretreatment methods, high management costs and specialized personnel. Gas chromatography (GC) with various detectors, relying on mass spectroscopy (MS) [ 14 ], electron capture detection [ 15 ], atomic fluorescence spectrometry [ 16 ] and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), coupled with atomic emission detection [ 17 ] or coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography [ 18 ], have been used to determine CH 3 Hg. For example, isotope dilution-GC/ICP-MS [ 19 ] and purge-and-trap GC-MS [ 20 ] have also been reported as analytical tools.…”