Single-Laboratory Validation of a Method for the Determination of Vitamin D3 in Dietary Supplements by Liquid Chromatography with Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)

A single-laboratory validation (SLV) for the analysis of vitamin D3 was performed in four types of dietary supplements (capsules, soft gels, syrups, and tablets) using LC-MS/MS. Samples were treated by alkaline saponification for oil-based soft gels and utilized EDTA solution for capsules, syrups, and tablets prior to n-hexane extraction. Vitamin D3 in sample extracts was separated on a reversed-phase C18 column (100 × 2.1 mm, 2.7 μm) using a mobile phase of a 95 + 5 (v/v) mixture of 5 mM ammonium formate in methanol containing 0.1% formic acid and 5 mM ammonium formate in 0.1% formic acid running at a flow rate of 0.2 mL/min. Vitamin D3 was confirmed by the presence of three fragment ions at m/z 107, 159, and 259 within a defined retention time window from the precursor ion at m/z 385. Quantitation was based on the peak area at m/z 367 to that of the internal standard (d3-vitamin D3) at m/z 370 with reference to the respective response ratios of the calibration standards. The linear response of vitamin D3 ranged from 0.10 to 6.29 mg/L and the correlation coefficient (r) of the six-point calibration curves was >0.999. Accuracy, in terms of the spiked recoveries from blank syrup and starch powder at three different concentration levels, was 101-103%. Precision, determined by two different analysts over a period of 5 weeks, ranged from 2.7 to 7.0% for the four preparations. The SLV demonstrates the present LC-MS/MS method is reliable and robust for the determination of vitamin D3 in the studied dietary supplements. Considering the attainment of satisfactory SLV results, further validation through intra-laboratory collaborative study is recommended.