Liquid chromatography–electrospray tandem mass spectrometry of dansylated polyamines and basic amino acids

Liquid chromatogrpahy‐electrospray tandem mass spectrometry allows identification of dansylated basic amino acids and polyamines with a high degree of specificity, including unambiguous acid and 2 hydroxycadaverine, and N1‐ and N8‐acetylspermidine. In favorable cases, characteristic fragmentation mechanisms permit identification even in the absence of authentic reference compounds. The method readily identified acetyldiaminopropane, citrul‐line, and diacetylspermine as metabolic products of Erwinia amylovora.