Abstract
Direct infusion electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry in the negative ion mode with single reaction monitoring is show to allow high selectivity and sensitivity in the quantification of taurine in energetic drinks. The method is also simple and rapid (less than 2 min run time), with high recovery and repeatability. Commercially available energetic drinks were found to contain taurine in concentrations quite different (lower or higher) from the declared amounts.
Highlights
Taurine (2-aminoethane sulfonic acid, Figure 1), is a major free b-amino acid in humans
The accuracy of the method was evaluated through recovery tests by adding taurine standard to the energetic drinks using two different concentration levels: 8.5 mg/100 mL and 85.0 mg/100 mL for 100 mL of sample
The repeatability was evaluated by five determinations, in triplicate, using two concentration levels of taurine in standard solutions and in energetic drinks
Summary
Taurine (2-aminoethane sulfonic acid, Figure 1), is a major free b-amino acid in humans. 200 mg per day, even in individuals eating a high meat diet.[15] There has been concern about the effects and amount of taurine intakes mainly from “energetic” drinks.[17,18] Positive effects of taurine-containing drinks such as on hormonal responses which led to a higher athletic performance have been reported.[19] High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) preceded by extraction procedures has been the main approach applied to quantify taurine.[20,21] Altogether, these steps are time-consuming and not so easy to automate. With the main objective to simplify and minimize the time of analysis, whereas keeping a satisfactory level of selectivity and sensitivity, we tested a direct infusion electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry approach to determine taurine in energetic drinks. The major conditions were as follows: scan range, m/z 50-200; heater temperature, 100 oC; flow of the nitrogen carrier gas, 20 L min-1; sheath gas, 0.0 L min-1; curtain gas, 20 L min-1; nebulizer potential, -3500 V; declustering potential, -46 V; and entrance potential, -7 V
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