Determination of Steroid Hormones in Human Hair as a Retrospective Biomarker with HPLC-MS/MS

The study developed a new LC-MS/MS-based method for identifying concentrations of seven steroid hormones in human hair, offering improved specificity, sensitivity, and reproducibility over traditional immunochemical assays. This method allowed for the simultaneous measurement of cortisol, cortisone, testosterone, progesterone, corticosterone, DHEA, and androstendione, with detection limits ranging from 0.1 to 9.0 pg/mg and linear ranges up to 1000 pg/mg. The findings suggested that this approach could enhance the accuracy of psychoneuroendocrinological research by providing a reliable retrospective assessment of long-term hormone secretion.