Mass spectral investigations on trichothecene mycotoxins. III. Synthesis, characterization and applications of pentafluoropropionyl and trifluoroacetyl esters of simple trichothecenes.

The pentafluoropropionyl, (PFP) and trifluoroacetyl (TFA) esters of several naturally occurring and synthetically modified simple trichothecenes were synthesized in nanogram amounts and characterized. Optimum conditions for the gas chromatographic (GC) separation of these derivatives and their analysis by negative ion chemical ionization (NICI) mass spectrometric technique were determined. These perfluoroacyl derivatives under the NICI conditions undergo limited but characteristic fragmentations similar to the fragmentations of heptafluorobutyryl esters of trichothecenes under the same conditions. Characteristic ions for the specific detection and accurate quantification of these PFP and TFA derivatives were chosen. Preliminary results indicated that the PFP derivatives are better suited for the analysis of simple trichothecenes by GC-NICI-MS technique. Ultra trace (0.5-2.0 pg) amounts of these PFP derivatives were detected by the developed procedure.