Simultaneous Determination of L- and D-Amino Acids in Proteins: A Sensitive Method Using Hydrolysis in Deuterated Acid and Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Analysis

Determination of the L- and D-amino acid composition in proteins is important for monitoring process-induced racemization, and thereby protein quality loss, in food and feed. Such analysis has so far been challenging due to the need for sample hydrolysis, which generates racemization, thereby leading to an overestimation of D-amino acids. Here, validation of an LC-MS/MS-based method for the simultaneous determination of L- and D-amino acids in complex biological matrixes, like food and feed, was performed in combination with deuterated HCl hydrolysis. This approach eliminated a racemization-induced bias in the L- and D-amino acid ratios. The LC-MS/MS method was applied for the analysis of 18 free amino acids, with a quantification limit of either 12.5 or 62 ng/mL, except for D-phenylalanine, for which quantification was impaired by background interference from the derivatization agent. For hydrolyzed samples, the composition of 10 L- and D-amino acids pairs could be determined in protein. The average relative standard deviation was 5.5% and 6.1%, depending on the type of hydrolysis tubes. The method was applied on a green protein isolate (lucerne), which contained an average of 0.3% D-amino acids. In conclusion, this method allows for an unbiased analysis of L- and D-amino acid ratios in complex protein samples, such as food and feed.