Rapid and highly accurate detection of steryl glycosides by ultraperformance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS).

This study describes the development and validation of a fast, accurate, and precise UPLC-Q-TOF-MS method for the analysis of steryl glycosides (SGs). The best combination of separation and sensitivity was obtained with a methanol/water gradient and formic acid as additive, using electrospray ionization (ESI). SGs were detected almost exclusively as sodiated adducts, allowing identification of the intact molecule, including the sugar moiety.