Preparation and structural elucidation of the picolinyl ester of aldosterone for liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

Treatment of aldosterone with 35% HCl in EtOH or in MeOH followed by the picolinyl derivatization gave the picolinyl derivative of aldosterone-ethyl ether, 8, or methyl ether, 9, as a single and well-shaped liquid chromatographic peak. Picolinyl derivatization of aldosterone produced 21-picolinyl derivative of 18,20-anhydro-hemiacetal derivatives, 6, with poor chromatographic peak with wide half-width. Further conversion of 6 to 8 required long reaction time (>4 h). Structure of each picolinyl or alkyl ether-picolinyl derivative, was carefully elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, electron ionization mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). Enhancement of sensitivity (approximately 10-fold) in positive-LC-ESI-MS/MS of aldosterone was confirmed by the use of the alkyl ether-picolinyl derivatization when compared to the underivatized molecule.