Blue Chitin columns for the extraction of heterocyclic amines from urine samples

During normal cooking of meat, a class of mutagenic/carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines is formed. Heterocyclic amines are rapidly absorbed and metabolised in the human body, and for estimation of the intake of heterocyclic amines, it is useful to determinate their levels in the urine. Blue Chitin columns were used for the extraction and purification of heterocyclic amines from urine samples spiked with 14 different heterocyclic amines. The samples were analysed using LC-MS. The results show that Blue Chitin columns provide a straightforward and rapid means of extracting heterocyclic amines from urine samples, and that Blue Chitin column are also useful in the purification of urinary metabolites.