LC/MS/MS analysis of the endogenous dimethyltryptamine hallucinogens, their precursors, and major metabolites in rat pineal gland microdialysate.
Biomedical chromatography : BMC – December 01, 2013
Source: PubMed
Summary
A fascinating finding reveals N,N-dimethyltryptamine, an endogenous hallucinogen, within rat pineal gland microdialysate. Researchers developed a precise LC/MS/MS method to simultaneously analyze N,N-dimethyltryptamines and related compounds directly from the rat brain. This sensitive microdialysis approach successfully confirmed the presence of these substances, establishing a valuable tool for understanding their pathways in the central nervous system.
Abstract
We report a qualitative liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) method for the simultaneous analysis of the three known N,N-dimethyltryptamine endogenous hallucinogens, their precursors and metabolites, as well as melatonin and its metabolic precursors. The method was characterized using artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) as the matrix and was subsequently applied to the analysis of rat brain pineal gland-aCSF microdialysate. The method describes the simultaneous analysis of 23 chemically diverse compounds plus a deuterated internal standard by direct injection, requiring no dilution or extraction of the samples. The results demonstrate that this is a simple, sensitive, specific and direct approach to the qualitative analysis of these compounds in this matrix. The protocol also employs stringent MS confirmatory criteria for the detection and confirmation of the compounds examined, including exact mass measurements. The excellent limits of detection and broad scope make it a valuable research tool for examining the endogenous hallucinogen pathways in the central nervous system. We report here, for the first time, the presence of N,N-dimethyltryptamine in pineal gland microdialysate obtained from the rat.