Only five years after the first publication on atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI), this technique has evolved rapidly as a very useful complement to established ionization techniques for liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). This is reflected in a rapidly increasing number of publications in this field. On the one hand, thorough studies into the photoionization mechanism have provided deep insights into the roles and influences of the solvent, the dopant and other additives. On the other hand, a large number of new and attractive applications have recently been introduced. New instrumental developments have resulted in combined APPI/ESI (PAESI) and APPI/APCI sources and a microfabricated APPI source. In this review, the most important developments within the field are summarized, focusing in particular on the applications of the technique.

Combining electrochemical conversion, liquid chromatography and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (EC/LC/ESI-MS) on-line allows the rapid identification of possible oxidation products of clozapine (CLZ) in the absence and in the presence of glutathione. CLZ is, depending on the applied potential, oxidized to various products in an electrochemical flow-through cell using a porous glassy carbon working electrode. Several hydroxylated and demethylated species are detected on-line using LC/MS. While hydroxy-CLZ is most abundant at a potential of 400 mV, demethylation occurs more readily at higher potentials (at around 700 mV versus Pd/H(2) reference). In the presence of glutathione (GSH), various isomeric glutathione adducts and respective products of further oxidation can be identified. The thioadducts are characterized by tandem MS. Mono-GSH and bis-GSH derivatives can be seen in the chromatograms. The results correlate well with the cyclic voltammetric profile of CLZ. The data are relevant from a pharmacological point of view, since similar metabolites (phases I and II) have been reported in the literature. The EC/LC/MS and EC/MS methods should be valuable tools that can be used to anticipate and understand the metabolization patterns of molecules of pharmacological interest and to point out reactive intermediates.

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On-line electrochemistry/liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (EC/LC/MS) was employed to mimic the oxidative metabolism of the fungicide boscalid. High-resolution mass spectrometry and MS/MS experiments were used to identify its electrochemical oxidation products. Furthermore, the introduction of a second electrochemical cell with reductive conditions provided important additional information on the oxidation products. With this equipment, hydroxylation, dehydrogenation, formation of a covalent ammonia adduct, and dimerization were detected after initial one-electron oxidation of boscalid to a radical cation. On-line reaction with glutathione yielded different isomeric covalent glutathione adducts. The results of the electrochemical oxidation are in good accordance with previously reported in vivo experiments, showing that EC/LC/MS is a useful tool for studying biotransformation reactions of various groups of xenobiotics. (J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2009, 20, 138 -145)

The oxidation of several phenothiazine drugs (phenothiazine, promethazine hydrochloride, promazine hydrochloride, trimeprazine hydrochloride and ethopropazine hydrochloride) has been carried out in aqueous acidic media by electrochemical, chemical and enzymatic methods. The chemical oxidation was performed in acetic acid with hydrogen peroxide or in formate buffers using persulfate. The enzymatic oxidation was performed in acetate or ammonium formate buffer by the enzyme horseradish peroxidase in the presence of H 2 O 2 . Molecules with, in the lateral chain, two carbon atoms (2C) separating the ring nitrogen and the terminal nitrogen, showed two parallel oxidation pathways, that is (i) formation of the corresponding sulfoxide and (ii) cleavage of the lateral chain with liberation of phenothiazine (PHZ) oxidized products (PHZ sulfoxide and PHZ quinone imine). Molecules with three carbon atoms (3C) separating the two nitrogens were oxidized to the corresponding sulfoxide. The chemical oxidation of all the studied molecules by hydrogen peroxide resulted in the corresponding sulfoxide with no break of the lateral chain. Oxidation by persulfate yielded, for the 3C derivatives, only the corresponding sulfoxide, but it produced cleavage of the lateral chain for the 2C derivatives. The origin of the distinct oxidation pattern between 2C and 3C molecules might be related to steric effects due to the lateral chain. The data are of interest in drug metabolism studies, especially for the early search. In the case of 2C phenothiazines, the results predict the possibility of an in vivo cleavage of the lateral chain with liberation of phenothiazine oxidized products which are known to produce several adverse side effects.