Retinoids biological samples

Owing to the light and air sensitivity of the carotenoids and retinoids, sample handling is a critical issue. It is recommended to conduct extraction of these materials with peroxide-free solvents, to store biological samples at —70° C under argon and in the dark, to perform the analysis under yellow light, and to use reference compounds of high purity (57). 

Gundersen, T.E. Blomhoff, R. Qualitative and Quantitative Liquid Chromatographic Determination of Natural Retinoids in Biological Samples, J. Chromatogr. A 935, 13—43 (2001). 

Past studies on the mass spectra of retinoids have dealt mainly with mechanisms of fragmentation. The procedure is now used for the analysis of retinoids in biological samples. Because of its exquisite sensitivity and because of rapid... 

Regardless of the method chosen for the recovery of retinoids from biological samples, it is extremely important to remember that retinoids vary widely both in their solubility properties and in their stability. For these reasons, when an extraction method is being considered for the isolation of a given retinoid and/or its metabolites, two important points must be taken into account (1) whether the method chosen will result in a complete extraction of the retinoid of interest, and (2) whether it will contribute to the production of artifacts, either through hydrolysis of esters, isomerization, or production of nonphysiological compounds that may be mistaken for metabolites. 

AB Roberts, MD Nichols, CA Frohk, DL Newton, MB Spom. Assay of retinoids in biological samples by reverse-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography. Cancer Res 38 3327-3332, 1978. 

Ruhl, R. Schweigert, F.J. Automated solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatographic method for retinoid determination in biological samples, J.Chromatogr.B, 2003, 798, 309-316. 

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