title: Development of a method for the measurement of dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS) is a steroid that is increasingly being recognized as a potential drug of abuse in many countries. This is due to its reputation as a hormone that may be able to retard the ageing process. The measurement of DHEAS is useful in the diagnosis of medical conditions such as congenital adrenal hyperplasia and polycystic ovary syndrome. Thus, a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method has been developed to determine DHEAS concentrations in human serum.
  
  
  METHODS
  The chromatography was performed using a Waters 2795 Alliance HT LC system coupled to a Mercury Fusion-RP column fitted with a SecurityGuard column.
  
  
  RESULTS
  DHEAS and the internal standard, deuterated DHEAS, both had a retention time of 1.5 min. The transition determined by the Micromass Quattro tandem mass spectrometer for DHEAS was m/z 367.3>4 96.7 and for the internal standard m/z 369.3>96.6. The method was linear up to 20 micromol/L; the lower limit of detection and the lower limit of quantitation were both 1 micromol/L. The intra- and interassay imprecision were <11% over a concentration range of 1-18 micromol/L for the in-house quality control and <12% for the intra- and interassay imprecision for the Bio-Rad Lyphocheck QC.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The measurement of DHEAS by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry is robust and has a simple sample preparation procedure with a rapid cycle time of only 4 min.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Biochemistry Department, Wythenshawe Hospital, Southmoor Road, Wythenshawe, Manchester M23 9LT, UK. carrie.chadwick@smuht.swest.nhs.uk
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Chadwick
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.forename: B G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Keevil
mesh_terms: D002853:Chromatography, Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D006801:Humans; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate