Abstract

In this study, high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/ MS) was employed to detect 26 antidiabetic compounds in adulterated dietary supplements using a simple, selective method. The work presented herein may help prevent incidents related to food adulteration and restrict the illegal food market. The best separation was obtained on a Shiseido Capcell Pak® C18 MGII (2.0 mm × 100 mm, 3 μm), which improved the peak shape and MS detection sensitivity of the target compounds. A gradient elution system composed of 0.1 % (v/v) formic acid in distilled water and methanol at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min for 18 min was utilized. A triple quadrupole mass spectrometer with an electrospray ionization source operated in the positive or negative mode was employed as the detector. The developed method was validated as follows: specificity was confirmed in the multiple reaction monitoring mode using the precursor and product ion pairs. For solid samples, LOD ranged from 0.16 to 20.00 ng/mL and LOQ ranged from 0.50 to 60.00 ng/mL, and for liquid samples, LOD ranged from 0.16 to 20.00 ng/mL and LOQ ranged from 0.50 to 60.00 ng/mL. Satisfactory linearity was obtained from calibration curves, with R2 > 0.99. Both intra and inter-day precision were less than 13.19 %. Accuracies ranged from 80.69 to 118.81 % (intra/inter-day), with a stability of less than 14.88 %. Mean recovery was found to be 80.6-119.0 % and less than 13.4 % RSD. Using the validated method, glibenclamide and pioglitazone were simultaneously determined in one capsule at concentrations of 1.52 and 0.53 mg (per capsule), respectively