LC-MS/MS Analysis of Lycorine and Galantamine in Human Serum Using Pentafluorophenyl Column

Abstract

Lycorine and galantamine are natural alkaloids found in Amaryllidaceae plants, such as narcissus. Narcissus leaves and roots are sometimes accidentally ingested because they resemble vegetables. Lycorine and galantamine are toxic and cause such effects as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, when accidentally ingested. In a case of narcissus poisoning, the detection of lycorine and galantamine in biological samples is vital to determine whether they have been ingested. This study establishes a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method to measure the lycorine and galantamine content of human serum, which can be used for mild to fatal poisoning cases. A serum pretreatment procedure was performed using acetonitrile and QuEChERS AOAC powder. The separation of the compounds was conducted using a pentafluorophenyl column, CAPCELL CORE PFP (2.1 mm I.D. × 100 mm, 2.7 μm). Lycorine, galantamine, and galantamine-d 6 (internal standard) were identified by the transitions of m/z 288 → 147, m/z 288 → 213, and m/z 294 → 216, respectively. The calibration curves were linear in the ranges of 0.