Bifunctional magnetic nanoparticles for analysis of aldehyde metabolites in exhaled breath of lung cancer patients

We report here the preparation of dual-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles, with the nanoparticles as extraction sorbents, a magnetic solid phase extraction method was developed and applied for the analysis of trace amount of aldehydes in human exhaled breath condensate. In the material, octyl-functionalized internal surface provided hydrophobic groups for extraction, non-ionic surfactant (Tween-20)-coated outer surface offered hydrophilic network structure to prevent the access of macromolecules, strong magnetic property of nanoparticles simplified the analytical procedure. The experimental results showed that the prepared nanoparticles exhibited good dispersibility in aqueous solution and excellent extraction efficiency toward aldehydes. Six aldehydes were derivatized with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine and then the formed hydrazones were extracted by the nanoparticles and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-photo diode array detector. Under the optimal conditions, the method provided low limits of detection (2.9-21.5 nmol L−1), satisfactory reproducibility (relative standard deviations, 2.9-13.1%) and acceptable recoveries (73.7-133.1%). The developed method was applied successfully to determine the aldehydes metabolites in the exhaled breath condensate samples of healthy people and lung cancer patients. The dual-functionalized material is suitable for biological sample analysis. The proposed method provides an alternative approach for quantification of aldehyde metabolites in complex biological samples.