Global Analysis of 2-Hydroxy Fatty Acids by Gas Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Reveals Species-Specific Enrichment in Echinoderms

Abnormal levels of 2-hydroxy fatty acids (2-OH FAs) are characterized in multiple diseases, and their quantification in foodstuffs is critical to identify the sources of supplementation for potential treatment. However, due to the structural complexity and limited available standards, the comprehensive profiling of 2-OH FAs remains an ongoing challenge. Herein, an innovative approach based on gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was developed to determine the full profile of these FA metabolites. MS and MS/MS spectra of the trimethylsilyl (TMS) derivatives of 2-OH fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) were collected for peak annotation by their signature fragmentation patterns. The structures were further confirmed by validated structure-dependent retention time (RT) prediction models, taking advantage of the correlation between the RT, carbon chain length, and double bond number from commercial standards and pseudostandards identified in the whole-brain samples from mice. An in-house database containing 50 saturated and monounsaturated 2-OH FAs was established, which is expandible when additional molecular species with different chain lengths and backbone structures are identified in the future. A quantitation method was then developed by scheduled multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) and applied to investigate the profiling of 2-OH FAs in echinoderms. Our results revealed that the levels of total 2-OH FAs in sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicas (8.40 ± 0.28 mg/g dry weight) and starfish Asterias amurensis (7.51 ± 0.18 mg/g dry weight) are much higher than that in sea urchin Mesocentrotus nudus (531 ± 108 μg/g dry weight). Moreover, 2-OH C24:1 is the predominant molecular species accounting for 67.9% of the total 2-OH FA in sea cucumber, while 2-OH C16:0 is the major molecular species in starfish. In conclusion, the current innovative GC-MS approach has successfully characterized distinct molecular species of 2-OH FAs that are highly present in sea cucumbers and starfish. Thus, these findings suggest the possibility of developing future feeding strategies for preventing and treating diseases associated with 2-OH FA deficiency.