Identification and Study of Biomarkers from Novichok-Inhibited Butyrylcholinesterase in Human Plasma

• Main Authors: Woo-Hyeon Jeong, Jin-Young Lee, Kyoung-Chan Lim, Hyun-Suk Kim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: nerve agent; Novichok; LC-MS/MS; chemical warfare agents
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/26/13/3810
• ISSN: 1420-3049

To identify biomarkers of ethyl (1-(diethylamino)ethylidene)phosphoramidofluoridate (A234)- or methyl (1-(diethylamino)ethylidene)phosphoramidofluoridate (A232)-inhibited butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), we investigated nonapeptide adducts containing the active site serine, which plays a key role in enzyme activity, using LC-MS/HRMS. Biomarkers were acquired as expected, and they exhibited a significant amount of fragment ions from the inhibiting agent itself, in contrast to the MS2 spectra of conventional nerve agents. These biomarkers had a higher abundance of [M+2H]²⁺ ions than [M+H]⁺ ions, making doubly charged ions more suitable for trace analysis.