New Methodologies for Qualitative and Semi-Quantitative Determination of Carbon-Centered Free Radicals in Cigarette Smoke Using Liquid ChromatographyTandem Mass Spectrometry and Gas Chromatography-Mass Selective Detection

Several approaches were explored to develop a high throughput procedure for relative determination of 14 different carbon-centered free radicals, both acyl and alkylaminocarbonyl type, in cigarette smoke. Two trapping procedures using 3-cyano-2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-1-pyrrolidinyloxy, or 3-cyanoproxyl radical (3-CNP) were designed for this study: a) trapping in solution and b) trapping on a solid support which was a Cambridge filter pad. Fresh whole smoke and vapor phase smoke from mainstream cigarette smoke from Kentucky Reference Cigarettes 2R4F, as partitioned via an unadulterated Cambridge filter pad, were transferred into each trapping system in separate experiments. The 3-CNP coated Cambridge filter pad approach was shown to be superior to the impinger procedure as described in this study. Gas chromatography coupled with mass selective detection (GC-MS) was employed for the first time as an alternate means of detecting several relatively highly concentrated radical adducts. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with precursor ion monitoring and selected ion monitoring (SIM) was used for detecting the large array of radicals, including several not previously reported: formyl, crotonyl, acrolein, aminocarbonyl, and anilinocarbonyl radicals. Relative quantitation was achieved using as external calibration standards of 4-(1-pyrrolidino)benzaldehyde and nicotine. It was determined that the yield of carbon-centered free radicals by reference cigarette 2R4F was approximately 265 nmoles/cigarette at 35 mL puff/60 sec interval/2 sec duration smoking conditions.