New Techniques Paper Spray of Pharmaceuticals

References H. Wang, J. Liu, R. G. Cooks, and Z. Ouyang, Paper spray for direct analysis of complex mixtures using mass spectrometry, Angew. Chem. (Int. 

) 49 877-880, (2010). N. E. Manicke, P. Abu-Rabie, N. Spooner, Z. Ouyang, and R. G. Cooks, Quantitative analysis of therapeutic drugs in dried blood spot samples by paper spray mass spectrometry An avenue to therapeutic drug monitoring, J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom. 22 1501-1507, (2011). 

Results and discussion The technique was evaluated for a number of drugs, and experiments were conducted to determine the limits of detection, reproducibility. 

In another application, paper used to wipe a surface contaminated with heroin and cocaine was cut to provide the necessary emission point both drugs were detected. Paper spray was also shown to ionize various other compounds effectively, including methyl violet (a dye), phosphatidylcholine (a lipid), angiotensin (a peptide), and the protein cytochrome C. 

Paper spray methodology requires no modification of the mass spectrometer. The technique is carried out most effectively on MS/MS instruments (a triple quadrupole was used in these papers) as MS spectra tend to include many miscellaneous co-extracted compounds. CID with detection of the product ion spectra or operation in SRM mode enables both identification and quantification of the analytes. Paper spray is most effective in positive ion mode, although it is possible to use negative mode if the ESI voltage and solvent composition are altered to prevent a discharge. 

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