Recent Progress in Analytical Methods for Determination of Urinary 3-Hydroxypropylmercapturic Acid, a Major Metabolite of Acrolein

3-Hydroxypropylmercapturic acid (3-HPMA), a major metabolite of acrolein in urine, has been recognized as a noninvasive biomarker of exposure to cigarette smoke. Since acrolein is formed endogenously from polyamines and is also formed during oxidative stress and aggravates tissue damage by changing protein activity through its conjugation in pathological lesions, it is thought that the urinary 3-HPMA level is useful as a biomarker to monitor the severity of several diseases related to acrolein. To study the correlation between 3-HPMA and disease severity, it is important to understand the properties of analytical methods for determination of 3-HPMA. In this article, we summarize the analytical methods for determination of urinary 3-HPMA and discuss the utility of 3-HPMA as one of the biomarkers for the diagnosis of brain infarction.