Determination of C-21 ketosteroids in serum using trifluoromethanesulfonic acid catalyzed precolumn dansylation and 1,1'-oxalyldiimidazole postcolumn peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence detection.

A new procedure for the quantitation of C-21 ketosteroids using trifluoromethanesulfonic acid-catalyzed precolumn dansylation and coupled column liquid chromatographic separation, followed by postcolumn 1,1'-oxalyldiimidazole peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence detection is presented. In the simultaneous optimization of chromatographic resolution and chemiluminescence intensity, a coupled column chromatographic system and a stopped-flow system were used. An eluent containing 20 mM phosphate buffer at pH 6.7 accomplished an efficient separation of 3 alpha-hydroxy-5 beta-pregnan-20-one from a mixture containing 10 C-21 ketosteroids. Phosphate buffer also proved to be the most advantageous, among the six buffers tested, for sensitive detection. Experimental design and multivariate data analysis were used to characterize and optimize the postcolumn reaction chemistry in the chromatographic system. A valid full factorial design with excellent predictability showed that the flow rates for both 1,1'-oxalyldiimidazole and hydrogen peroxide were the factors most strongly affecting the sensitivity of the system. The theoretical plate numbers were above 11,000 for all 10 dansylated ketosteroids. The 3 sigma detection limit estimated from 3 alpha-hydroxy-5 beta-pregnan-20-one calibration curve data was 1.6 pmol (n = 4, 125 microL injected) and spiked serum containing 0-74 pmol of this compound showed overall recoveries of 73 +/- 9% (n = 12). Quantitation of 3 alpha-hydroxy-5 beta-pregnan-20-one was finally carried out on 45 serum samples and the results compared to those from a radioimmunoassay (RIA) method. The data acquired with the procedure described in this work compare well with the results from RIA, which confirms the reliability of the new analytical procedure.