Abstract:

In this study, high performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/
MS) was used to establish a simple and stable method for the detection of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) of
Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML) in sweet and sour pork ribs. Samples were reduced by sodium borohydride after removing
lipid. HCl was then added to hydrolyze the protein in the samples. After hydrolysis, the target compounds were cleaned
up by Oasis MCX SPE cartridges and then separated by Phenomenex Synergi 4 μ Hydro-RP 80A column with ammonium
acetate aqueous solution and methanol solution as mobile phases. HPLC-MS analysis was conducted using electron spray
ionization (ESI) in the positive ion mode (ESI+) and quantification was performed in multiple-reaction monitoring (MRM)
mode by stable isotope dilution method. The limit of detection was 1.40 μg/g and the average recoveries of CML ranged
from 90.94% to 105.26% with relative standard deviation (RSD) in the range of 5.80%-15.46%. The contents of CML in
Huaiyang style sweet and sour spareribs were analyzed. The results showed that heating time, heating temperature and the
addition of sugar and oil caused a significant increase in CML content.

Key words: advanced glycation end products, Nε-(carboxymethyl)lysine, sweet and sour pork ribs, high performance liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry, multiple reaction monitoring