Steroid detection and identification remain key issues in toxicology, drug testing, medical diagnostics, food safety control, and doping control. In this study, we evaluate the capabilities and usefulness of analyzing non‐hydrolyzed sulfated steroids with gas chromatography−mass spectrometry (GC–MS) instead of the conventionally applied liquid chromatography−mass spectrometry (LC–MS) approach. Sulfates of 31 steroids were synthesized and their MS and chromatographic behavior studied by chemical ionization−GC−triple quadrupole MS (CI−GC‐TQMS) and low energy−electron ionization−GC−quadrupole time‐of‐flight−MS (LE−EI−GC−QTOF−MS). The collected data shows that the sulfate group is cleaved off in the injection port of the GC–MS, forming two isomers. In CI, the dominant species (ie, [MH – H2SO4]+ or [MH – H4S2O8]+ for bis‐sulfates) is very abundant due to the limited amount of fragmentation, making it an ideal precursor ion for MS/MS. In LE−EI, [M – H2SO4].+ and/or [M – H2SO4 – CH3].+ are the dominant species in most cases. Based on the common GC–MS behavior of non‐hydrolyzed sulfated steroids, two applications were evaluated and compared with the conventionally applied LC–MS approach; (a) discovery of (new) sulfated steroid metabolites of mesterolone and (b) expanding anabolic androgenic steroid abuse detection windows. GC–MS and LC–MS analysis of non‐hydrolyzed sulfated steroids offered comparable sensitivities, superseding these of GC–MS after hydrolysis. For non‐hydrolyzed sulfated steroids, GC–MS offers a higher structural elucidating power and a more straightforward inclusion in screening methods than LC–MS.

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Sulfated metabolites have been shown to have potential as long‐term markers of anabolic–androgenic steroid (AAS) abuse. In 2019, the compatibility of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) with non‐hydrolysed sulfated steroids was demonstrated, and this approach allowed the incorporation of these compounds in a broad GC–MS initial testing procedure at a later stage. However, research is needed to identify which are beneficial. In this study, a search for new long‐term metabolites of two popular AAS, metenolone and drostanolone, was undertaken through two excretion studies each. The excretion samples were analysed using GC–chemical ionization–triple quadrupole MS (GC–CI–MS/MS) after the application of three separate sample preparation methodologies (i.e. hydrolysis with Escherichia coli–derived β‐glucuronidase, Helix pomatia–derived β‐glucuronidase/arylsulfatase and non‐hydrolysed sulfated steroids). For metenolone, a non‐hydrolysed sulfated metabolite, 1β‐methyl‐5α‐androstan‐17‐one‐3ζ‐sulfate, was documented for the first time to provide the longest detection time of up to 17 days. This metabolite increased the detection time by nearly a factor of 2 in comparison with the currently monitored markers for metenolone in a routine doping control initial testing procedure. In the second excretion study, it prolonged the detection window by 25%. In the case of drostanolone, the non‐hydrolysed sulfated metabolite with the longest detection time was the sulfated analogue of the main drostanolone metabolite (3α‐hydroxy‐2α‐methyl‐5α‐androstan‐17‐one) with a detection time of up to 24 days. However, the currently monitored main drostanolone metabolite in routine doping control, after hydrolysis of the glucuronide with E.coli, remained superior in detection time (i.e. up to 29 days).

Sulfated metabolites have shown to have potential as long‐term markers (LTMs) of anabolic–androgenic steroid (AAS) abuse. The compatibility of gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) with trimethylsilyl (TMS)‐derivatives of non‐hydrolysed sulfated steroids has been demonstrated, where, after derivatisation, generally, two closely eluting isomers are formed that both have the same molecular ion [M‐H2SO4]•+. Sulfated reference standards are in limited commercial availability, and therefore, the current knowledge of the GC–MS behaviour of these compounds is mainly based on sulfating and analysing the available standard reference material. This procedure can unfortunately not cover all of the current known LTMs as these are often not available as pure substance. Therefore, in theory, some metabolites could be missed as they exhibit alternative behaviour. To investigate the matter, in‐house sulfated reference materials that bear resemblance to known sulfated LTMs were analysed on GC–MS in their TMS‐derivatised non‐hydrolysed state. The (alternative) gas chromatographic and mass spectrometric behaviour was mapped, evaluated and linked to the corresponding steroid structures. Afterwards, using fraction collection, known sulfated LTMs were isolated from excretion urine to confirm the observed findings. The categories that were selected were mono‐hydroxy‐diones, 17‐methyl‐3,17‐diols and 17‐keto‐3,16‐diols as these are commonly encountered AAS conformations. The ability to predict the GC–MS behaviour of non‐hydrolysed sulfated AAS metabolites is the corner stone of finding new metabolites. This knowledge is also essential, for example, for understanding AAS detection analyses, for the mass spectrometric characterization of metabolites of new designer steroids or when one needs to characterize an unknown steroid structure.

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The frequent detection of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) indicates their popularity among rule-breaking athletes. The so called long-term metabolites play a crucial role in their detection, and non-hydrolysed sulphated metabolites have gained renewed interest, as research has demonstrated their extended detection time compared to the more conventional markers (e.g., for metenolone and mesterolone).