Simultaneous Quantification of Plasma Catecholamines and Metanephrines by LC-MS/MS

The quantification of the low levels of catecholamines and metanephrines in biological fluids is important for clinical screening of pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma and diagnosis of overtraining syndrome in athletes. We introduce a novel, accurate and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for simultaneous quantification of these biogenic amines in human plasma. Simple protein precipitation combined with rapid 2-aminoethyl diphenylborinate-assisted liquid-liquid extraction allow us to quantify catecholamines and metanephrines over broad concentration ranges. ...