Mild and selective labeling of malondialdehyde with 2-aminoacridone: assessment of urinary malondialdehyde levels

Malondialdehyde (MDA) has become a well-established biomarker for oxidative stress. The most commonly used way to determine urinary MDA levels is the thiobarbituric acid (TBA) assay, which suffers from several drawbacks. In this manuscript, we describe a novel derivatization strategy for the highly sensitive and selective fluorescence-based determination of MDA in urinary samples. The methodology is based on the mild labeling of MDA with 2-aminoacridone, which can be carried out in aqueous citrate buffer at 40 degrees C, yielding a highly fluorescent substance. No further sample preparation than mixing with the necessary chemicals is necessary. The formed MDA derivative can conveniently be separated from the label itself and matrix constituents by gradient LC in less than 5 minutes on a cyano-based reversed-phase material. The method was validated with respect to matrix effects, linearity, selectivity and sensitivity (values as low as 1.8 nM for the LOD and 5.8 nM for the LOQ could be achieved). Standard addition quantitation was applied for the determination of MDA in human urine samples. Additionally, the protocol was applied to the measurement of a stability indicating analysis of MDA in urine at different storage conditions.