Determination of trimethylamine-N-oxide in combination with L-carnitine and γ-butyrobetaine in human plasma by UPLC/MS/MS.

An ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the quantification of trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) simultaneously with TMAO-related molecules L-carnitine and γ-butyrobetaine (GBB) in human blood plasma. The separation of analytes was achieved using a Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC)-type column with ammonium acetate-acetonitrile as the mobile phase. TMAO determination was validated according to valid US Food and Drug Administration guidelines. The developed method was successfully applied to plasma samples from healthy volunteers.