Quantification of monoamine neurotransmitters and melatonin in sea lamprey brain tissues by high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

► Developed and validated a rapid LC-MS/MS method. ► Determined three monoamine neurotransmitters and melatonin in brain tissues. ► Studied recovery and matrix effects of different sample pretreatment methods. ► Analyzed brain tissues from a total of 360 sea lampreys. ► Reported firstly on the measurements of neurotransmitters and melatonin in the sea lamprey.