Characterization of mustard seeds and paste by DART ionization with time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Direct analysis in real time (DART) is a novel technique with great potential for rapid screening analysis. The DART ionization method coupled with high‐resolution time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (TOF‐MS) has been used for characterization of mustard seeds and table mustard. The possibility to use DART to analyse glucosinolates was confirmed on determination of sinalbin (4‐hydroxybenzyl glucosinolate). The DART‐TOF‐MS method was optimized and validated. A set of samples of mustard seeds and mustard products was analyzed. High‐performance liquid chromatography and DART‐TOF‐MS were used to determine glucosinolates in mustard seeds and compared. The correlation equation between these methods was DART = 0.797*HPLC + 6.987, R 2 = 0.972. The DART technique seems to be a suitable method for evaluation of the quality of mustard seeds and mustard products. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.