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An LC-MS/MS-SRM Method for Simultaneous Quantification of Four Representative Organosulfur Compounds in Garlic Products

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Abstract

The quantitative analysis of organosulfur compounds is important for the quality control of various garlic products along with studying their molecular functionality and nutraceutical properties. In this study, a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-selected reaction monitoring (LC-MS/MS-SRM) method with electrospray ionization detection was developed and validated for the rapid, simultaneous quantification of four representative organosulfur compounds in garlic: alliin, S-allyl-L-cysteine, γ-glutamyl-S-allyl-L-cysteine, and allicin. Stable SRM transitions were achieved for these compounds under optimized conditions, and the linear range extended from 1 to 2000 ng/mL. The limits of detection and quantification ranged from 0.003 to 0.058 ng/mL and from 0.01 to 0.19 ng/mL, respectively. Excellent recovery and reproducibility at different spiking levels were achieved. The method was successfully applied to the simultaneous quantification of organosulfur compounds in fresh garlic samples. This highly selective and sensitive LC-MS/MS-SRM method is expected to be a useful tool for studying molecular functionality and the quality control of garlic products.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Temahimado Co., Ltd. (Kagoshima, Japan) for providing the standard compounds. We thank the Center for Advanced Instrumental and Educational Supports (Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University) for providing the LCMS-IT-TOF instrument for exploring the ionization conditions in the initial stage of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Agro-environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, 6-10-1 Hakozaki, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8581, Japan

    Qinchang Zhu & Kuniyoshi Shimizu

  2. Evaluation Center of Health and Nutrition Inc, Fukuoka, 816-0874, Japan

    Kenichi Kakino

  3. Agilent Technologies Japan, Ltd, Tokyo, 192-8510, Japan

    Chika Nogami

  4. Department of Biological and Environmental Chemistry, Kinki University, Kayanomori 11-6, Iizuka, Fukuoka, 820-8555, Japan

    Koichiro Ohnuki

Authors
  1. Qinchang Zhu
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  2. Kenichi Kakino
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  3. Chika Nogami
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  4. Koichiro Ohnuki
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  5. Kuniyoshi Shimizu
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Correspondence to Kuniyoshi Shimizu.

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Qinchang Zhu declares that he has no conflict of interest. Kenichi Kakino declares that he has no conflict of interest. Chika Nogami declares that he has no conflict of interest. Koichiro Ohnuki declares that he has no conflict of interest. Kuniyoshi Shimizu declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

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Zhu, Q., Kakino, K., Nogami, C. et al. An LC-MS/MS-SRM Method for Simultaneous Quantification of Four Representative Organosulfur Compounds in Garlic Products. Food Anal. Methods 9, 3378–3384 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12161-016-0535-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12161-016-0535-1

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