Determination of bile acid profiles in scat samples of wild animals by liquid chromatography-electrospray mass spectrometry

Abstract

A practical and accurate analytical method using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was developed to determine the bile acid profile in the scat samples of various wild animals such as mountain lion, bobcat, coyote, raccoon, fox, etc. Bile acid extraction from the scat sample of the wild animals and its detection using the LC-MS technique are very easy and can be done in a short period of time with good resolution. The bile acid profiles are different in each species and the analytical method is very effective in identifying the wild animals under investigation. The detection limits of all bile acids were very low (∼1.0 ng mL⁻¹) and the analytical method provides excellent reproducibility.