Comparison between the Results of the Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Analysis of Solutions of the Silyl Derivatives of Dried Exhaled Breath Condensate Samples from Patients with Bronchial Asthma and COPD and Healthy Volunteers

Exhaled breath condensate (EBC) as a test material in metabolomic studies continues to receive the attention of analysts. The exhaled air condensate is a sample whose composition reflects the characteristics of biochemical processes in the body; this is a relatively pure matrix, as compared to blood, which contains more polar components (including nonvolatile ones) unlike exhaled air. In addition, EBC sampling is noninvasive. The silylation products of lyophilized EBC samples from healthy volunteers and patients with bronchial asthma (BA) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were studied using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with electron ionization. The total ion current chromatograms corresponding to the samples of BA and COPD patients exhibited silyl derivatives of mono-D-fructose and disaccharides. It was hypothesized that D-fructose can be a marker of biochemical processes occurring in the patients diagnosed with BA and COPD.