Simultaneous detection of 4(5)-methylimidazole and acrylamide in biscuit products by isotope-dilution UPLC-MS/MS

Acrylamide, hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural in ready-to-eat foods consumed by child population: Presence, risk assessment and future perspectives

Food intake contributes to adequate growth and neurodevelopment of children. Ready-to-eat foods, frequently consumed by this population, are sources of acrylamide (AA), hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and furfural (FF). In this sense, a review of the AA, HMF, and FF presence in ready-to-eat foods was evaluated through a systematic search to infer the risk of exposure in the child population. About 75.8%, 24.2%, and 21% of the studies found AA, HMF, and FF in ready-to-eat foods, respectively. AA is predominant in processed and ultra-processed foods, while HMF and FF are commonly found in fruit-based foods. Only 17.7% of the studies assessed the children's risk of exposure, based on the contaminant concentration in ready-to-eat food and not after gastrointestinal digestion, a more realistic measure. Therefore, with the obtained information and found gaps, it is expected that new strategies will be proposed to assess the vulnerability of the child population to these processing contaminants.

Characterisation and identification of chemical constituents in aqueous extract of Fomes officinalis Ames based on ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole-Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry

INTRODUCTION

Fungal species are an attractive resource for physiologically functional food and drug precursor. Fomes officinalis Ames, a medicinal fungus, is traditionally used as a folk medicine in traditional Chinese medicine prescription for the therapy of cough and asthma. The water-soluble substances in Chinese herbal medicines are likely to play an important physiological function. However, information on probing and identifying chemical components of the aqueous extract of Fomes officinalis Ames (AFO) remains unknown.

OBJECTIVE

This study was conducted to screen and characterise the chemical components of AFO.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

An effective and sensitive ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole-Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS) method with the Full MS/PIL/dd-MS2 acquisition approach was applied for the profiling of chemical components in AFO. An HSS T3 column was used for component separation, and a strategy of simultaneous targeted and untargeted multicomponent characterisation was implemented. Multiple identification approaches were used, including accurate molecular mass and elemental composition matching, literature and database searching, and fragmentation rules elucidation.

RESULTS

A total of 115 components, including 20 amino acids and derivatives, six nucleobases, nine nucleosides, 75 dipeptides, two tripeptides, and three other components, were tentatively identified. Among them, the targeted exploring method screened six nucleobases and nine nucleosides including modified nucleosides. To our best knowledge, this is the first time a report has been done on the presence of the 115 compounds in AFO.

CONCLUSION

Profiling and characterisation compounds of AFO enriched its material basis, which would lay the foundation for improving potential medicinal and nutritional values and effecting comprehensive quality control of Fomes officinalis Ames.

Towards a consensus LC-MS/MS method for the determination of acrylamide in food that prevents overestimation due to interferences

Acrylamide is prone to misquantification, and critical steps in the analytical procedures need to be identified and controlled to ensure a reliable determination. Four methods were considered to illustrate misquantification issues with acrylamide. For two methods varying by the extent of their sample preparations, cases of overestimation in cocoa samples reaching up to a 20-fold factor are shown. A second example, applied to a variety of food products, includes two other methods varying by their chromatographic conditions. As a follow up of a study conducted in 2020 about the identification of N-acetyl-ß-alanine as an interference of acrylamide in coffee, the extent of this interference was evaluated in a selection of coffee samples, cereal-based products and baby foods. The ultimate objective of this manuscript was to resolve such cases of misquantification and validate a wide scope and robust method allowing an interference free acrylamide analysis. To do so, an extraction procedure based on the EN 16618:2015 standard with water extraction and two consecutive solid phase extraction (SPE) steps was applied with modified liquid chromatographic conditions. The method was validated in coffee, cereals, baby foods, cocoa and pet foods with excellent performance in terms of recovery (97-108%) and precision (RSD_r and RSD_iR <12 %). The breath of scope was further proved through trueness determination in quality control materials and reference materials including French fries, potato crisps, vegetable crisps, instant coffee, infant food and biscuit (cookie), with trueness values found within a 94-107% range.

A Review of the Analytical Methods for the Determination of 4(5)-Methylimidazole in Food Matrices

4(5)-Methylimidazole (4(5)MEI) is a product of the Maillard reaction between sugars and amino acids, which occurs during the thermal processing of foods. This compound is also found in foods with caramel colorants additives. Due to its prevalence in foods and beverages and its potent carcinogenicity, 4(5)MEI has received federal and state regulatory agency attention. The aim of this review is to present the extraction procedures of 4(5)MEI from food matrices and the analytical methods for its determination. Liquid and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry are the techniques most commonly employed to detect 4(5)MEI in food matrices. However, the analysis of 4(5)MEI is challenging due to the high polarity, water solubility, and the absence of chromophores. To overcome this, specialized sample pretreatment and extraction methods have been developed, such as solid-phase extraction and derivatization procedures, increasing the cost and the preparation time of samples. Other analytical methods for the determination of 4(5)MEI, include capillary electrophoresis, paper spray mass spectrometry, micellar electrokinetic chromatography, high-performance cation exchange chromatography, fluorescence-based immunochromatographic assay, and a fluorescent probe.

Development of an Isotope Dilution UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS-Based Method for Simultaneous Determination of Typical Advanced Glycation End Products and Acrylamide in Baked and Fried Foods

In this work, a stable isotope dilution ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of N^ε-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML), N^ε-(carboxyethyl)lysine (CEL), and acrylamide (AA) in baked and fried foods. Ground food samples were extracted with acetone followed by two parallel assays. In assay A, a cleanup procedure based on dispersive solid-phase extraction was conducted for AA, free CML, and CEL analysis using the supernatant. In assay B, a multistep process including reduction, protein precipitation, acid hydrolysis, and solid-phase extraction was conducted for bound CML and CEL analysis using precipitation. The developed method was validated in terms of linearity, sensitivity (limit of detection, LOD; limit of quantitation, LOQ), accuracy, and precision. The results showed that the method had a wide linear range (0.25-500 ng/mL for CML and CEL, 0.5-500 ng/mL for AA), low LOD and LOQ (0.47-0.94 and 1.52-1.91 μg/kg, respectively), and good linearity (R² > 0.999). The recovery test on baby biscuit and French fries samples showed the recovery rates of 90.2-108.3% for CML, 89.0-106.1% for CEL, and 94.5-112.3% for AA with satisfactory precision (relative standard deviation (RSD) < 10%). Finally, the developed method was successfully applied to 11 baked and fried food samples, and total CML, CEL, and AA contents varied in the ranges of 4.07-35.88 mg/kg, 1.99-14.49 mg/kg, and 5.56-506.64 μg/kg, respectively. Therefore, the isotope dilution UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS method developed herein is promising for routine analysis of CML, CEL, and AA in baked and fried foods.

Sodium 4-styrenesulfonate functionalized nanofibers mat as 96-well plate solid-phase extraction adsorbent for quantitative determination of multiple β-agonists residues in pork samples

In this work, sodium 4-styrenesulfonate functionalized polyacrylonitrile nanofibers mat (SS/PAN NFM) was firstly prepared and applied as 96-well plate solid-phase extraction adsorbent for quantitative determination of seven β-agonists residues in pork samples. The functional modification endowed the SS/PAN NFM with superior adsorption performance for target β-agonists. The adsorption process is spontaneous (ΔG < 0), the initial adsorption rate can reach 6.03-9.09 mg/g/min and the maximum adsorption capacity is calculated to be 48.3 mg/g at 298 K. Moreover, SS/PAN NFM can be reused for 12 times without degradation in adsorption capability. Combined with UPLC-MS/MS, the limits of detection can reach 0.006-0.24 μg/kg, the recoveries ranged from 87.2% to 111% and the relative standard deviations of intra-day and inter-day precisions were in the scope of 1.75%-11.6% and 5.08%-13.5%, respectively. The obtained results fully demonstrated the practicability of this method in preventing the hazard of β-agonists residues.

Review of Research into the Determination of Acrylamide in Foods

Acrylamide (AA) is produced by high-temperature processing of high carbohydrate foods, such as frying and baking, and has been proved to be carcinogenic. Because of its potential carcinogenicity, it is very important to detect the content of AA in foods. In this paper, the conventional instrumental analysis methods of AA in food and the new rapid immunoassay and sensor detection are reviewed, and the advantages and disadvantages of various analysis technologies are compared, in order to provide new ideas for the development of more efficient and practical analysis methods and detection equipment.