Structural Analysis Of Gangliosides Based On Electrospray Quadrupole Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

Gangliosides are glycosphingolipid compounds containing sialic acid, which are natural components of vertebrate cell membranes. As a clinical drug, gangliosides are widely used in the treatment of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, central nervous system injury, neurodegenerative diseases and peripheral neuropathy. The structural identification of gangliosides helps to understand the composition of the drug and improve the quality of the drug. In this work, an electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry ( ESI-Q-TOF-MS ) method for analysis of ganglioside structure was established. The optimization of the mass spectrometry parameters were established based on testing of two gangliosides controls. The mass spectrometry conditions were established (positive mode , capillary voltage of 3500 V, fragmentor voltage of 200 V, and collision energy of 40 eV) to obtain the fragment structure of the sugar chain. The fragmentation structure of ceramide was obtained with collision energy of 80 eV. The method was applied to the structural analysis of 9 gangliosides prepared in the laboratory. The samples were categorized and classified by comparison with molecular weights of the reference substances. Detailed structure analysis was performed based on the characteristic fragments in the secondary mass spectra of the samples. The results of this study indicated that the method could be applied to the mass spectrometric identification of various gangliosides, laying a foundation for more complex ganglioside mass spectrometry analysis.