Simultaneous determination of amino acids in discrete brain areas in Suncus murinus by high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection

An improved and simple reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography method with electrochemical detection for the simultaneous determination of amino acids in brain tissue of Suncus murinus was developed. Homogenates from 5 different brain areas were derivatized with o-phthalaldehyde in the presence of sodium sulphite. Subsequent separation was achieved using linear gradient elution over 30 min. The derivatives were stable for up to 20 h at 4 °C. The method was accurate, reproducible, and showed good linearity. The recoveries were >88% for aspartate, glutamine, glutamate, glycine and γ-aminobutyric acid, with the limit of quantification varying from 5 to 30 pmol. The method was successfully applied for the measurement of amino acids under fed and fasted conditions.