Application of stable isotope dilution assays based on liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry for the assessment of folate bioavailability

A pilot study was performed to prove the suitability of stable isotope dilution assays for assessing the bioavailability of endogenous folates in foods. By using [2H4]folic acid, [2H4]tetrahydrofolate, [2H4]5-methyltetrahydrofolate, [2H4]5-formyltetrahydrofolate and [2H4]10-formylfolic acid as internal standards, folates in spinach, apple juice and blood plasma were quantified by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. To liberate the pteroyl monoglutamates, sample extracts of foods were treated by rat plasma. Sample clean-up was achieved by solid-phase extraction on anion-exchange cartridges, which proved to be sufficient to obtain mass chromatograms devoid of matrix interferences. The bioavailability study was designed as a short-time protocol with three meals, the first consisting of 600 g spinach (meal A), the second consisting of 600 g apple sauce with additionally 400 μg synthetic folic acid (meal B) and the third consisting solely of 600 g apple sauce (meal C). Prior to the meals, the participating volunteer’s tissue was saturated with folates to achieve a significant response of plasma folate to the meals. After consumption of meals A and B a significant rise in folate plasma level compared to meal C (mean level at 28 μg/ml) was observed. The relative bioavailability of folate following meal A exceeded significantly the suggested value of 50% for food folates by taking the dose-normalized area under the curve (AUC) following ingestion of meal B as reference.