High-performance liquid chromatography coupled to inductively coupled plasma - Mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICP-MS) for quantitative metabolite profiling of non-metal drugs

ICP - (tandem) mass spectrometry or ICP-MS(/MS) is a well-known technique for ultra-trace element determination. It can also be used in the context of elemental speciation when combined as a sensitive element-specific detector with an adequate separation technique, e.g., (ultra)high-performance liquid chromatography ((U)HPLC). As the ICP-MS signal intensity is independent of the structure of the molecule the analyte element is present in, (U)HPLC-ICP-MS(/MS) offers a promising alternative for quantitative drug metabolite profiling, eliminating the disadvantages of the standard technique, i.e. HPLC followed by radiodetection. This review describes the current status of (U)HPLC-ICP-MS(/MS) in the field of quantitative metabolite profiling of pharmaceutical drugs not containing a metal, with special emphasis on quantification approaches. Next to the possibilities for interference-free monitoring of the most typical (non-metal) hetero-elements in pharmaceuticals, also derivatization strategies for drugs originally not containing an element that can be monitored using ICP-MS(MS) are discussed within this review paper.