A new HPLC-MS/MS method for ultratrace determination of steroid hormones in subminimal amount of biological material
Ecdysteroids represent an interesting group of polyhydroxylated steroids produced by many plants as well as arthropods, where regulate their molting, development and reproduction. Additionally, their anabolic properties have been observed in humans and domestic animals, and their use as dietary supplements has received much attention in athletes, horse racing and livestock nutrition. In our bioanalytical laboratory focused on the research of metabolites including lipids, we have repeatedly encountered difficulties in the ultratrace measurement of ecdysteroids in complex biological samples, especially when only a very small amount of sample is available. Moreover, the metabolism of the major animal ecdysteroids is highly individual in each organism, so the use of pooled and ecdysteroid-free samples for matrix calibrations presents a very challenging problem. On the other hand, current biological research at the molecular level acutely lacks reliable methods for measuring these hormones.
The work of the authors Lucie Marešová, Martin Moos, Stanislav Opekar, Michalina Kazek, Clemens Eichler and Petr Šimek published in the Journal of Lipid Research, entitled A validated HPLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of ecdysteroid hormones in subminimal amounts of biological material, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jlr.2024.100640 , (IF=5.0, AIS=1.697), describes a new original method that overcomes the mentioned difficulties and enables the validated determination of ultra-trace amounts of four major insect ecdysteroids in minimal amounts of biological material, especially in sub-microliter volumes of hemolymph of miniature individuals of important arthropods (Drosophila, bark beetle, mosquito) and also in microliter volumes of mammalian blood. The application potential of the method has been independently verified by BC research teams, in the laboratories of M. Nouzová and M. Jindra, and will enable research of molecular mechanisms in the hormonal development of lower organisms at a new level.
Illustration. Graphical description of the new, published ultra-trace method for determination of ecdysteroids
