Screening of veterinary drug residues in food by LC-MS/MS. Background and challenges

Screening of 152 Veterinary Drug Residues in Animal Source Foods by LC-MS/MS, Multilaboratory Validation Study: Final Action 2020.04

BACKGROUND

The presence of veterinary drug residues in food-producing animals and animal products is regulated through the enforcement of maximum residue limits (MRLs). To answer the need of the food sector to monitor these substances in a wide range of food commodities, stakeholders at AOAC INTERNATIONAL identified the need for a reliable confirmatory screening method. Such a qualitative approach is required for compliance checking and to support product release in manufacturing.

OBJECTIVE

Data were collected from five independent laboratories that applied the First Action Official Method 2020.04 to demonstrate adequate performance under reproducibility conditions. The probability of detection (POD) was calculated in blank test samples and test samples spiked at the screening target concentration (STC) level, with the objective to achieve PODs ≤10% and ≥90%, respectively. Additionally, the effectiveness of the screening method was evaluated by participating in 92 proficiency tests.

METHODS

Four streams were optimized to screen for 152 veterinary drug residues by LC-MS/MS in a wide variety of food commodities including milk-based ingredients and related products (e.g., milk fractions, infant formula, infant cereals, and baby foods), meat- and fish-based ingredients and related products (fresh, powdered, cooked, infant cereals, and baby foods), and other ingredients based on eggs, animal fat, and animal byproducts. The four streams covered 105 antibiotic residues, anti-inflammatory and antiparasitic agents (stream A), 23 beta-lactams (stream B), 14 aminoglycosides (stream C), and 10 tetracyclines (Stream D).

RESULTS

The multilaboratory validation led to PODs at the STC ≥94% and PODs in the blank ≤9%. Further application of the multilaboratory validated method to 92 proficiency tests provided more than 99% satisfactory submitted results (n = 784).

CONCLUSION

The interlaboratory reproducibility determined for this method met the acceptance criteria defined in AOAC Standard Method Performance Requirement (SMPR®) 2018.010.

HIGHLIGHTS

AOAC has approved the method for Final Action status.

Microbial Degradation of Tetracycline Antibiotics: Mechanisms and Environmental Implications

The escalating global consumption of tetracyclines (TCs) as broad-spectrum antibiotics necessitates innovative approaches to mitigate their pervasive environmental persistence and associated risks. While initiatives such as China's antimicrobial reduction efforts highlight the urgency of responsible TC usage, the need for efficient degradation methods remains paramount. Microbial degradation emerges as a promising solution, offering novel insights into degradation pathways and mechanisms. Despite challenges, including the optimization of microbial activity conditions and the risk of antibiotic resistance development, microbial degradation showcases significant innovation in its cost-effectiveness, environmental friendliness, and simplicity of implementation compared to traditional degradation methods. While the published reviews have summarized some aspects of biodegradation of TCs, a systematic and comprehensive summary of all the TC biodegradation pathways, reactions, intermediates, and final products including ring-opening products involved with enzymes and mechanisms of each bacterium and fungus reported is necessary. This review aims to fill the current gap in the literature by offering a thorough and systematic overview of the structure, bioactivity mechanism, detection methods, microbial degradation pathways, and molecular mechanisms of all tetracycline antibiotics in various microorganisms. It comprehensively collects and analyzes data on the microbial degradation pathways, including bacteria and fungi, intermediate and final products, ring-opening products, product toxicity, and the degradation mechanisms for all tetracyclines. Additionally, it points out future directions for the discovery of degradation-related genes/enzymes and microbial resources that can effectively degrade tetracyclines. This review is expected to contribute to advancing knowledge in this field and promoting the development of sustainable remediation strategies for contaminated environments.

Comprehensive Screening of Salinomycin in Feed and Its Residues in Poultry Tissues Using Microbial Inhibition Tests Coupled to Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA)

Salinomycin is a coccidiostat approved as a feed additive for the prevention of coccidiosis in poultry. Official control of its residues is set by the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/1644. The aim of our study was to assess the suitability of three microbial inhibition tests (MITs), Premi®Test, Explorer 2.0, and the Screening Test for Antibiotic Residues (STAR) linked to the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), for the screening of salinomycin residues in the tissues of broiler chickens (breast and thigh muscle, heart, liver, gizzard, kidneys, lungs, spleen, skin, and fat) fed commercially produced feed containing 70 mg.kg-1 of salinomycin in the complete feed. The first residue screening (Sampling A) was performed on the last day of administration of the salinomycin-medicated feed (day 30), and the second screening (Sampling B) was performed on the day of slaughter (day 37) after the expiry of the withdrawal period with the feeding of non-medicated feed. Based on the quantitative confirmation of salinomycin residues in the examined chicken tissues by the ELISA method (Sampling A from 0.025 to 0.241 mg.kg-1; Sampling B from 0.003 to 0.076 mg.kg-1), all the MITs with the preference of the bacterial strain Bacillus stearothermophilus var. calidolactis ATCC 10149 demonstrated the ability to detect the residues of salinomycin in the examined tissues of broiler chickens at the level of the maximum residue limits set from 0.015 to 0.150 mg.kg-1 by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1914 and confirmed the relevance of their sensitivity to the coccidiostat salinomycin.

Rapid testing of antibiotic residues to increase food safety awareness of animal origin

Background and Aim

Antibiotics are used to improve growth, reduce disease, and decrease mortality in animals grown for food. The government regulates and prohibits the use of antibiotics, in particular, the use of antibiotic growth promoter (AGP) in livestock; however, it is not yet known whether the use of antibiotics is in accordance with regulations so that there are no antibiotic residues in food of animal origin. To ensure food safety of animal origin and to raise awareness of food safety, it is necessary to detect antibiotic residues in fish, eggs, and chicken meat from Yogyakarta Special Province through monitoring and monitoring. To ensure food safety and regulatory compliance in food samples, antibiotic residue screening techniques are essential. A number of methods, such as time-consuming and costly chromatographic and spectroscopic methods, have been developed for the detection of antibiotic residues in food samples; however, not all laboratories have these facilities. Therefore, a rapid diagnosis of food of animal origin is required. The purpose of this study was to rapidly test antibiotic residues by using Premi®test kits (R-Biopharm AG, Germany) to increase awareness of food safety of animal origin.

Materials and Methods

We tested 345 animal-based food samples from traditional markets, supermarkets, and central markets in five districts of Yogyakarta Special Province for antibiotic residues using rapid test kits and observation questionnaires to identify risk factors.

Results

The presence of antibiotic residues in food-animal origin samples from the Yogyakarta region had an antibiotic residue level of 9.28% (32/345), consisting of fish samples 11.3% (18/97), eggs 15.65% (1/114), and chicken meat samples 0.87% (13/102). The highest percentage of samples positive for residual antibiotics was 21.9% (7/32) from supermarket meat samples. The highest amounts of antibiotic residues were found in fish samples collected from Sleman Regency, up to 25% (8/32), whereas in supermarket fish samples, there were as high as 18.8% (6/32).

Conclusion

Antibiotic residues in animal-based food can be attributed to various factors, including product source, transportation conditions, and environmental conditions. The widespread distribution of antibiotic residues in fish comes from environmental conditions during maintenance, distribution, and retailing. Monitoring antibiotic residue prevalence in food-animal origins, particularly chicken meat, eggs, and fish, is crucial for improving animal food quality and safety.

Gold nanoparticles as colorimetric probes in food analysis: Progress and challenges

The rapid, sensitive and reliable food safety control is urgently needed due to the harmful effects of the food contaminants on human health. Colorimetric approach has exhibited promising potential for the detection of food contaminants due to their easy preparation, rapid detection, high sensitivity, and naked-eye sensing. In recent years, AuNPs-based colorimetric probes have been extensively explored for food analysis. The present article reviews the development of AuNPs-based colorimetric probes for colorimetric sensing and their applications in food analysis. It generally summarizes the properties of AuNPs and introduces the preparation and functionalization methods of AuNPs. An overview of the colorimetric sensing mechanisms of AuNPs-based probes and their applications in analysis of food contaminants are also provided. Although AuNPs-based colorimetric probes show many advantages in detection of food contaminants, challenges remain in terms of complexity of food matrices, multiple analytes detection in a single go, and testing conditions interference.

Method Validation and Measurement Uncertainty (MU) Evaluation on Enrofloxacin and Ciprofloxacin in the Aquatic Products

This study aimed to investigate a detection method of enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin to be avail for strictly supervising the quality and safety of aquatic products. The results displayed that the optimal extraction conditions for enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin were the following five aspects: 15 g dosages of Na2SO4 to dehydrate, 8‰ of acetonitrile and 50% hydrochloric acid to deproteinization, 2 mL dosages of n-hexane to degrease, 10 min of ultrasonic time, and 20 min of extraction (stand) time. Meanwhile, it was also obtained for the optimal detection performance indexes of the recovery, precision, and accuracy from the tests of shrimp, grass carp, and tilapia. In particular, the expanded uncertainties were 2.8601 and 0.8613, and the factors of both the calibration curves (Urel(C)) and the analysis of the experiment (Urel(E)) were the two MU main contributors for enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin together with the results above 40%. Consequently, the developed novel method was suited for the determination of the enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin residues in aquatic products and would contribute to reinforce in supervision and inspection of the quality and safety of aquatic products.

Stability study of selected veterinary drug residues spiked into extracts from different food commodities

Analyte stability is more commonly a confounding factor in analytical chemistry than many analysts recognize. In this study, we assessed the stability of 31 common veterinary drugs in water and final extracts of bovine (milk and kidney/liver) and chicken (muscle and egg) matrices. Two different sample preparation methods were evaluated for one-month storage of the final extracts at typical room, refrigerator, and freezer temperatures. Liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry (LC-MS) by triple quadrupole and high-resolution techniques was used for analysis of the extracts spiked at different relevant concentrations for general regulatory purposes (10-1000 ng/g sample equivalent). Comparison of results between two labs demonstrated that stable drugs (≤20% loss) at all tested conditions consisted of danofloxacin, enrofloxacin, florfenicol, flubendazole, hydroxy-flubendazole, flumequine, flunixin, 5-hydroxy-flunixin, lincomycin, and meloxicam. The tested drugs found to be the most unstable (>20% loss at room temperature within a matter of days) consisted of the β-lactams (ampicillin, cefalexin, cloxacillin, and penicillin G). Curiously, the following antibiotics (mostly macrolides) were apparently more stable in sample extracts than water: emamectin, erythromycin, ivermectin, lasalocid, monensin, tilmicosin, tulathromycin, and tylosin. Those and the other drug analytes (ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, florfenicol amine, 2-amino-flubendazole, oxytetracycline, sulfadiazine, sulfadimethoxine, sulfamethazine, and trimethoprim) were mostly stable for a month in refrigerated extracts, especially at higher concentrations, but not in all cases. In practice, freezer storage of extract solutions was found to be acceptable for at least a month, with a few exceptions.

Recent Advances in Fluorescent Nanoprobes for Food Safety Detection

Fluorescent nanoprobes show similar fluorescence properties to traditional organic dyes, but the addition of nanotechnology accurately controls the size, shape, chemical composition, and surface chemistry of the nanoprobes with unique characteristics and properties, such as bright luminescence, high photostability, and strong biocompatibility. For example, modifying aptamers or antibodies on a fluorescent nanoprobe provides high selectivity and specificity for different objects to be tested. Fluorescence intensity, life, and other parameters of targets can be changed by different sensing mechanisms based on the unique structural and optical characteristics of fluorescent nanoprobes. What's more, the detection of fluorescent nanoprobes is cost-saving, simple, and offers great advantages in rapid food detection. Sensing mechanisms of fluorescent nanoprobes were introduced in this paper, focusing on the application progress in pesticide residues, veterinary drug residues, heavy metals, microbes, mycotoxins, and other substances in food safety detection in recent years. A brief outlook for future development was provided as well.

Evaluation of Antibiotics Residues in Milk and Meat Using Different Analytical Methods

Veterinary drugs are pharmacologically and biologically active chemical agents. At present, veterinary drugs are extensively used to prevent and treat animal diseases, to promote animal growth, and to improve the conversion rate of feed. However, the use of veterinary drugs in food-producing animals may leave residues of the parent compounds and/or their metabolites in food products resulting in harmful effects on humans. To ensure food safety, sensitive and effective analytical methods have been developing rapidly. This review describes sample extraction and cleanup methods, and different analytical techniques are used for the determination of veterinary drug residues in milk and meat. Sample extraction methods, such as solvent extraction, liquid-liquid extraction, and cleanup methods such as dispersive solid-phase extraction and immunoaffinity chromatography, were summarized. Different types of analytical methods such as microbial, immunological, biosensor, thin layer chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry were discussed for the analysis of veterinary drug residues in animal-derived foods. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry is the most widely used analytical technique for the determination of antibiotic drug residues. This is due to the powerful separation of LC and accurate identification of MS, and LC-MS/MS is more popular in the analysis of veterinary drug residues.

Development of a detection method for 10 non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs residues in four swine tissues by ultra-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

The ultra-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) detection method was developed for the residues of 10 NSAIDs (salicylic acid, acetylsalicylic acid, acetaminophen, diclofenac, tolfenamic acid, antipyrine, flunixin meglumine, aminophenazone, meloxicam, metamizole sodium) in swine muscle, liver, kidney, and fat. Swine tissue samples were extracted by phosphorylated acetonitrile with the addition of an appropriate amount of internal standard working solution, defatted with acetonitrile-saturated n-hexane, and purified by Hydrophile-Lipophile Balance (HLB) solid-phase extraction column, then separated by UPLC BEH shield RP₁₈ column with 0.1% formic acid in water/0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile with gradient elution, which was detected in the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) modes. The correlation coefficient of the standard curve equation is greater than 0.99, and the coefficient of variation within and between batches is less than 14.4%. We evaluated the analytical method using two green assessment tools. The method established in this study met the requirements of NSAID residue analysis and provides analytical tools for determining and confirming NSAIDs in swine tissue samples. This is the first report on the simultaneous determination of 10 NSAIDs in four swine tissues by the UPLC-MS/MS method and accurate quantification using deuterated internal standards.

Multiresidues Multiclass Analytical Methods for Determination of Antibiotics in Animal Origin Food: A Critical Analysis

Veterinary drugs are widely used to prevent and treat diseases. The European Union has forbidden the use of antibiotics as growth promoters since 2006. Its abusive use leads to the presence of antibiotic residues (AR) in foods of animal origin which is associated with antibiotic resistance. The monitoring of AR in food intended for human consumption is of utmost importance to assure Food Safety. A systematic bibliographic review was carried out on the analytical methodologies, published in 2013, for the determination of AR in foods of animal origin. The food processing effect in the AR detected in animal products is also addressed. However, there is a preference for multiresidues multiclass methods, i.e., methodologies that allow determining simultaneously different classes of antibiotics, which is still a challenge for researchers. The wide diversity of physico-chemical properties of these drugs is an obstacle to achieving excellent analytical performance for a vast number of molecules analyzed concurrently. New techniques in sample preparation continue to be developed in order to obtain a compromise between good recoveries and extracts without interferences (clean extracts). The most widely used analytical methodology for the determination of AR is liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. However, the current trend is focused on the use of powerful high-resolution MS detectors such as Time of Flight and Orbitrap with modern chromatographic systems. Cooking time and temperature control are the key processing conditions influencing the reduction of AR in foods.

Smartphone-Facilitated Mobile Colorimetric Probes for Rapid Monitoring of Chemical Contaminations in Food: Advances and Outlook

Smartphone-derived colorimetric tools have the potential to revolutionize food safety control by enabling citizens to carry out monitoring assays. To realize this, it is of paramount significance to recognize recent study efforts and figure out important technology gaps in terms of food security. Driven by international connectivity and the extensive distribution of smartphones, along with their built-in probes and powerful computing abilities, smartphone-based sensors have shown enormous potential as cost-effective and portable diagnostic scaffolds for point-of-need tests. Meantime, the colorimetric technique is of particular notice because of its benefits of rapidity, simplicity, and high universality. In this study, we tried to outline various colorimetric platforms using smartphone technology, elucidate their principles, and explore their applications in detecting target analytes (pesticide residues, antibiotic residues, metal ions, pathogenic bacteria, toxins, and mycotoxins) considering their sensitivity and multiplexing capability. Challenges and desired future perspectives for cost-effective, accurate, reliable, and multi-functions smartphone-based colorimetric tools have also been debated.

Development and Validation of a Method for Determination of 43 Antimicrobial Drugs in Western-Style Pork Products by UPLC-MS/MS with the Aid of Experimental Design

Western-style pork products have attracted many modern urban consumers, and these products have rapidly entered the Chinese market. The current hazard analysis of processed meat products mainly focuses on processing hazards (PAHs, microorganisms, and food additives), with less attention to veterinary drug residues. According to the survey results, the residues of antimicrobial drugs (sulfonamides and quinolones) in pork and its products in China are a severe problem, which may cause metabolic reactions, toxic effects, or enhance drug resistance. This study applied a modified QuEChERS method combined with ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MSMS) to develop a rapid and sensitive method for determining antimicrobial drugs in bacon and ham was successfully evaluated methodologically by EU 2002/657/EC. This study used a three-level, three-factor Box-Behnken design (BBD) to optimize the QuEChERS method by response surface methodology. The excellent linearity of the calibration curve was shown in the corresponding concentration range with a coefficient of determination greater than 0.99. The values of decision limit (CCα) and detection capability (CCβ) were in the range of 10.9-31.3 μg/kg and 11.8-52.5 μg/kg, respectively. The method successfully detected two trace levels of antimicrobial drugs in commercially available samples, including sulfadiazine and moxifloxacin.

A REVIEW ON DETERMINATION OF THE VETERINARY DRUG RESIDUES IN FOOD PRODUCTS

In this paper, we discuss veterinary medicine and its applications in the food field as well as its risk to the health of humans and animals by the residues. We review how the veterinary residues enter and cause some detrimental effects. We also mention two techniques to determine the residue of veterinary medication that existed in food originating from animals, including classic and advanced techniques. Finally, we discuss the potential of various developed methods compared to some traditional techniques.

Determination of Eleven Veterinary Drugs in Chicken Meat and Liver

Brazil chicken production is around 13 million tons and about a third is exported to over 150 countries, placing Brazil as the world largest chicken meat producer, and therefore it is crucial to follow the legislation of all importer markets. This study conducted a survey by chance in 45 meat industries able to export. Therefore, 2580 chicken meat samples were collected and submitted to 11 analyte extraction and chromatographic verification of compliance in an accredited laboratory. Ten chemical residues (amoxicillin, bacitracin, colistin, dinitolmide + zoalene, spectinomycin, roxarsone, tiamulin, tylosin, trenbolone acetate and virginiamycin) were investigated in chicken meat and one (halofuginone hydrobromide) in chicken liver. The results showed that no compound exceeded the maximum residue limits established by seven legislations. All residue concentrations found were below the method quantification limit, thereby confirming the capability of Brazilian chicken meat industries in complying to foreign markets.

Screening of 154 Veterinary Drug Residues in Foods of Animal Origin Using LC-MS/MS: First Action 2020.04

BACKGROUND

Veterinary drug residues in food are substances (>200 compounds) exhibiting potential health risks for consumers, thus being regulated in national legislations and the Codex Alimentarius. Most of the compounds are regulated based upon a maximum residue limit (MRL) while a few of them are banned in food for humans. The food sector needs a reliable and consensus analytical platform able to monitor these substances in a wide range of food commodities.

OBJECTIVE

Several confirmatory methods based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry are available in the literature for either screening or quantification of veterinary drug residues in food, but usually applicable to limited scope of matrices. The current work describes the single-laboratory validation (SLV) of a method for screening 154 veterinary drug residues in several food categories.

METHODS

This work describes a streamlined platform making use of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for screening 105 antibiotics, 41 antiparasitics, 5anti-inflammatory agents, and 3 tranquilizers in foods of animal origin. For the best performance across the commodities (dairy-, meat-, fish-, and egg-based materials), four method streams were established. As a screening tool, probabilities of detection (PODs) were assessed at the screening target concentration (STC < MRL) and the blank.

RESULTS

The SLV led to PODs at the STC >94% and PODs in the blank < 4%.

CONCLUSION

Performance is in agreement with the acceptance criteria defined in SMPR 2018.010.

HIGHLIGHTS

The Expert Review Panel approved the present method as AOAC Official First Action 2020.04.

Chemical Contamination Pathways and the Food Safety Implications along the Various Stages of Food Production: A Review

Historically, chemicals exceeding maximum allowable exposure levels have been disastrous to underdeveloped countries. The global food industry is primarily affected by toxic chemical substances because of natural and anthropogenic factors. Food safety is therefore threatened due to contamination by chemicals throughout the various stages of food production. Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in the form of pesticides and other chemical substances such as Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) have a widely documented negative impact due to their long-lasting effect on the environment. This present review focuses on the chemical contamination pathways along the various stages of food production until the food reaches the consumer. The contamination of food can stem from various sources such as the agricultural sector and pollution from industrialized regions through the air, water, and soil. Therefore, it is imperative to control the application of chemicals during food packaging, the application of pesticides, and antibiotics in the food industry to prevent undesired residues on foodstuffs. Ultimately, the protection of consumers from food-related chemical toxicity depends on stringent efforts from regulatory authorities both in developed and underdeveloped nations.

Praegnatio Perturbatio-Impact of Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals

The burden of adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth and low birth weight is considerable across the world. Several risk factors for adverse pregnancy outcomes have been identified. One risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcomes receiving considerable attention in recent years is gestational exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Humans are exposed to a multitude of environmental chemicals with known endocrine-disrupting properties, and evidence suggests exposure to these EDCs have the potential to disrupt the maternal-fetal environment culminating in adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes. This review addresses the impact of maternal and fetal exposure to environmental EDCs of natural and man-made chemicals in disrupting the maternal-fetal milieu in human leading to adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes-a risk factor for adult-onset noncommunicable diseases, the role lifestyle and environmental factors play in mitigating or amplifying the effects of EDCs, the underlying mechanisms and mediators involved, and the research directions on which to focus future investigations to help alleviate the adverse effects of EDC exposure.

Selected Instrumental Techniques Applied in Food and Feed: Quality, Safety and Adulteration Analysis

This review presents an overall glance at selected instrumental analytical techniques and methods used in food analysis, focusing on their primary food science research applications. The methods described represent approaches that have already been developed or are currently being implemented in our laboratories. Some techniques are widespread and well known and hence we will focus only in very specific examples, whilst the relatively less common techniques applied in food science are covered in a wider fashion. We made a particular emphasis on the works published on this topic in the last five years. When appropriate, we referred the reader to specialized reports highlighting each technique's principle and focused on said technologies' applications in the food analysis field. Each example forwarded will consider the advantages and limitations of the application. Certain study cases will typify that several of the techniques mentioned are used simultaneously to resolve an issue, support novel data, or gather further information from the food sample.

Comparison of four different multiclass, multiresidue sample preparation methods in the analysis of veterinary drugs in fish and other food matrices

In 2018, AOAC International issued Standard Method Performance Requirements (SPMR) 2018.010 - Screening and Identification Method for Regulated Veterinary Drug Residues in Food. In response, we compared 4 different multiresidue methods of sample preparation using the same analytical method entailing ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Tilapia was chosen for testing, and the analytes and monitoring levels were from SPMR 2018.010. The methods consist of efficient procedures with published validation results from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), and an enhanced-matrix removal (EMR)-Lipid protocol from China. Each method was used to prepare 102 final extracts of tilapia spiked or not at different levels with the 78 targeted analytes plus metabolites. The same FDA/USDA rules of mass spectral identification were employed in all analyses to assess rates of false positives and negatives. Quantitative accuracy of the methods was also compared in terms of recoveries and reproducibility of spiked tilapia, incurred catfish, and spiked and certified reference material of bovine muscle. Each method yielded generally acceptable results for the targeted veterinary drugs, but the USDA "extract & inject" method was the fastest, simplest, and cheapest to achieve equally or more acceptable results for the widest scope of analytes for the tested food matrices.

Rapid Analysis and Authentication of Meat Using the MasSpec Pen Technology

Food authenticity and safety are major public concerns due to the increasing number of food fraud cases. Meat fraud is an economically motivated practice of covertly replacing one type of meat with a cheaper alternative raising health, safety, and ethical concerns for consumers. In this study, we implement the MasSpec Pen technology for rapid and direct meat analysis and authentication. The MasSpec Pen is an easy-to-use handheld device connected to a mass spectrometer that employs a solvent droplet for gentle chemical analysis of samples. Here, MasSpec Pen analysis was performed directly on several meat and fish types including grain-fed beef, grass-fed beef, venison, cod, halibut, Atlantic salmon, sockeye salmon, and steelhead trout, with a total analysis time of 15 s per sample. Statistical models developed with the Lasso method using a training set of samples yielded per-sample accuracies of 95% for the beef model, 100% for the beef versus venison model, and 84% for the multiclass fish model. Predictors of meat type selected included several molecules previously reported in the skeletal muscles of animals, including carnosine, anserine, succinic acid, xanthine, and taurine. When testing the models on independent test sets of samples, per-sample accuracies of 100% were achieved for all models, demonstrating the robustness of our method for unadulterated meat authentication. MasSpec Pen feasibility testing for classifying venison and grass-fed beef samples adulterated with grain-fed beef achieved per-sample prediction accuracies of 100% for both classifiers using test sets of samples. Altogether, the results obtained in this study provide compelling evidence that the MasSpec Pen technology is a powerful alternative analytical method for meat analysis and investigation of meat fraud.

Suitability of High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry for Routine Analysis of Small Molecules in Food, Feed and Water for Safety and Authenticity Purposes: A Review

During the last decade, food, feed and environmental analysis using high-resolution mass spectrometry became increasingly popular. Recent accessibility and technological improvements of this system make it a potential tool for routine laboratory work. However, this kind of instrument is still often considered a research tool. The wide range of potential contaminants and residues that must be monitored, including pesticides, veterinary drugs and natural toxins, is steadily increasing. Thanks to full-scan analysis and the theoretically unlimited number of compounds that can be screened in a single analysis, high-resolution mass spectrometry is particularly well-suited for food, feed and water analysis. This review aims, through a series of relevant selected studies and developed methods dedicated to the different classes of contaminants and residues, to demonstrate that high-resolution mass spectrometry can reach detection levels in compliance with current legislation and is a versatile and appropriate tool for routine testing.

Veterinary Drug Residues in Animal-Derived Foods: Sample Preparation and Analytical Methods

Veterinary drugs are used to treat livestock and aquatic diseases and thus are introduced into animal-derived foods, endangering consumer health and safety. Antibiotic resistance is rapidly becoming a major worldwide problem, and there has been a steady increase in the number of pathogens that show multi-drug resistance. Illegal and excessive use of veterinary drugs in animals and aquaculture has serious adverse effects on humans and on all other environmental organisms. It is necessary to develop simple extraction methods and fast analytical methods to effectively detect veterinary drug residues in animal-derived foods. This review summarizes the application of various sample extraction techniques and detection and quantification methods for veterinary drug residues reported in the last decade (2010-2020). This review compares the advantages and disadvantages of various extraction techniques and detection methods and describes advanced methods, such as those that use electrochemical biosensors, piezoelectric biosensors, optical biosensors, and molecularly imprinted polymer biosensors. Finally, the future prospects and trends related to extraction methods, detection methods and advanced methods for the analysis of veterinary drug residues in animal-derived foods are summarized.

Screening of 49 antibiotic residues in aquatic products using modified QuEChERS sample preparation and UPLC-QToFMS analysis

A precise analytical method was established for rapid screening of 49 antibiotic residues in aquatic products by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QToFMS). The quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe (QuEChERS) process was refined for effective sample preparation. The homogenized samples of aquatic products were extracted with 3% acetic acid in acetonitrile, salted out with anhydrous magnesium sulfate and sodium chloride, and cleaned up by octadecylsilane (C18) and primary-secondary amine (PSA) powder. Then, the purified samples were separated on a BEH C18 column using 0.1% formic acid and methanol as mobile phases by gradient elution, detected by MS under positive Electron Spray Ionization (ESI+) mode. The linear range of matrix-matched calibration curve was 1–100 μg/L for each compound with the correlation coefficients in the range of 0.9851–0.9999. The recoveries of target antibiotics at the different spiked levels ranged from 60.2% to 117.9% except for lincomycin hydrochloride, whereas relative standard deviations (RSDs) were between 1.6% and 14.0% except for sulfaguanidine in grass Carp, Penaeus vannamei and Scylla serrata matrices. The limits of detection (LODs) (S/N = 3) for the analytes were 0.05–2.40 μg/kg, 0.08–2.00 μg/kg and 0.10–2.27 μg/kg and the limits of quantification (LOQs) (S/N = 10) were 0.16–8.00 μg/kg, 0.25–6.66 μg/kg and 0.32–7.56 μg/kg in grass Carp, Penaeus vannamei and Scylla serrata, respectively. The method was successfully applied to grass Carp, Penaeus vannamei and Scylla serrata, demonstrating its ability for the determination of multi-categories antibiotic residues in aquatic products.

Food safety and quality assessment: comprehensive review and recent trends in the applications of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS)

Ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) is an analytical separation and diagnostic technique that is simple and sensitive and a rapid response and low-priced technique for detecting trace levels of chemical compounds in different matrices. Chemical agents and environmental contaminants are successfully detected by IMS and have been recently considered to employ in food safety. In addition, IMS uses stand-alone or coupled analytical diagnostic tools with chromatographic and spectroscopic methods. Scientific publications show that IMS has been applied 21% in the pharmaceutical industry, 9% in environmental studies and 13% in quality control and food safety. Nevertheless, applications of IMS in food safety and quality analysis have not been adequately explored. This review presents the IMS-related analysis and focuses on the application of IMS in food safety and quality. This review presents the important topics including detection of traces of chemicals, rate of food spoilage and freshness, food adulteration and authenticity as well as natural toxins, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, veterinary, and growth promoter drug residues. Further, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), acrylamide, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), biogenic amines, nitrosamine, furfural, phenolic compounds, heavy metals, food packaging materials, melamine, and food additives were also examined for the first time. Therefore, it is logical to predict that the application of the IMS technique in food safety, food quality, and contaminant analysis will be impressively increased in the future. HighlightsCurrent status of IMS for residues and contaminant detection in food safety.To assess all the detected contaminants in food safety, for the first time.Identified IMS-related parameters and chemical compounds in food safety control.

Recent advances in gold nanoparticles-based biosensors for food safety detection

Food safety issue remains a challenge worldwide. Common substances in food can pose a great threat to human health including but not limited to food borne-pathogens, heavy metals, mycotoxins, pesticides, herbicides, veterinary drugs, allergens and illegal additives. To develop rapid, low-cost, portable and on-site detection methods of those contaminants and allergens to ensure food safety, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) of versatile shapes and morphologies such as nanorods, nanoclusters, nanoflowers, nanostars, nanocages, nanobipyramids and nanowires have been employed as probes because they possess extraordinary properties that can be used to design biosensors enabling detecting various contaminants and allergens. By means of surface modification, AuNPs can directly or indirectly sense specific targets based on different mechanisms, such as hydrogen bonds, nucleic acid hybridization, aptamer-target binding, antigen-antibody recognition, enzyme inhibition, and enzyme-mimicking activity. AuNPs can induce a distinct color change from red to blue when they transform from a monodispersed state to an aggregated state in liquid solution, which can be observed by naked eyes. If Raman molecules are functionalized on AuNPs, their aggregation will alter the interparticle distance and induce the surface-enhanced Raman scattering that can be employed for highly sensitive detection. Ultra-small AuNPs such as Au nanoclusters also feature in fluorescence that enable a fluorescent readout. The formats of AuNPs for food safety detection in real world range broadly including but not limited to films, fibers, liquid solutions, tapes, chips and lateral flow strips. In this review, recent applications of AuNPs-based biosensors for food safety detection will be discussed, mainly in the aspect of different contaminants and allergens encountered in food samples.

Where are all the anthelmintics? Challenges and opportunities on the path to new anthelmintics

Control of helminth parasites is a key challenge for human and veterinary medicine. In the absence of effective vaccines and adequate sanitation, prophylaxis and treatment commonly rely upon anthelmintics. There are concerns about the development of drug resistance, side-effects, lack of efficacy and cost-effectiveness that drive the need for new classes of anthelmintics. Despite this need, only three new drug classes have reached the animal market since 2000 and no new classes of anthelmintic have been approved for human use. So where are all the anthelmintics? What are the barriers to anthelmintic discovery, and what emerging opportunities can be used to address this? This was a discussion group focus at the 2019 8th Consortium for Anthelmintic Resistance and Susceptibility (CARS) in Wisconsin, USA. Here we report the findings of the group in the broader context of the human and veterinary anthelmintic discovery pipeline, highlighting challenges unique to antiparasitic drug discovery. We comment on why the development of novel anthelmintics has been so rare. Further, we discuss potential opportunities for drug development moving into the 21st Century.

Development and validation of an LC-MS/MS method for quantifying nine antimicrobials in human serum and its application to study the exposure of Chinese pregnant women to antimicrobials

Background

To study the prevalence of the exposure of pregnant women to antimicrobials, a sensitive and reliable liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) method was developed and validated to determine nine antimicrobials, namely sulfadimidine, sulfapyridine, sulfadiazine, sulfathiazole, ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin, tetracycline, and lincomycin, in human serum.

Methods

The sample preparation procedure included protein precipitation followed by a cleanup step with solid phase extraction (SPE). Separation was carried out using a CORTECS T3 column (100 × 2.1 mm, 2.7 µm) by gradient elution with a runtime of 8.0 min. Detection was performed on a triple quadruple tandem mass spectrometer with scheduled multiple reaction monitoring (sMRM) in positive ion scan mode.

Results

The calibration curves were linear over the concentration range of 0.5–50 ng/ml, and the limit of quantitation was between 0.01 and 0.2 ng/ml. For each level of quality control samples, the inter‐ and intra‐assay precision values were less than 12.0%, and the accuracy ranged from 86.1% to 109.0%. No significant matrix effect or carryover was observed. The antimicrobials of interest were stable under all investigated conditions. The validated method was applied to analyze clinical samples from pregnant women in China, and 10 out of 500 samples showed the presence of antimicrobial residues. Moreover, compared with the time‐resolved fluoro‐immunoassay (TRFIA) method, the developed method showed greater sensitivity and specificity.

Conclusion

This study provides a simple and rapid LC‐MS/MS method for the simultaneous measurement of nine antimicrobials in serum samples, which could be a useful tool in clinical utilization.

Use of Micellar Liquid Chromatography to Determine Mebendazole in Dairy Products and Breeding Waste from Bovine Animals

Mebendazole is an anthelmintic drug used in cattle production. However, residues may occur in produced food and in excretions, jeopardizing population health. A method based on micellar liquid chromatography (MLC) was developed to determine mebendazole in dairy products (milk, cheese, butter, and curd) and nitrogenous waste (urine and dung) from bovine animals. Sample treatment was expedited to simple dilution or solid-to-liquid extraction, followed by filtration and direct injection of the obtained solution. The analyte was resolved from matrix compounds in less than 8 min, using a C18 column and a mobile phase made up of 0.15 M sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)–6% 1-pentanol phosphate buffered at pH 7, and running at 1 mL/min under isocratic mode. Detection was performed by absorbance at 292 nm. The procedure was validated according to the guidelines of the EU Commission Decision 2002/657/EC in terms of: specificity, method calibration range (from the limit of quantification to 25–50 ppm), sensitivity (limit of detection 0.1–0.2 ppm; limit of quantification, 0.3–0.6 ppm), trueness (92.5–102.3%), precision (<7.5%, expressed at RSD), robustness, and stability. The method is reliable, sensitive, easy-to-handle, eco-friendly, safe, inexpensive, and provides a high sample-throughput. Therefore, it is useful for routine analysis as a screening or quantification method in a laboratory for drug-residue control.

Assessment of veterinary drugs present in pork kidney from a Midwest US retail market

A total of 1040 pork kidneys were purchased from 4 retail stores located in a Midwestern US town and screened for antibiotics with the Charm-KIS™ screening test. Six samples (0.6%) tested positive with the Charm-KIS™. Sixty-five samples from each retail location and the 18 Charm-KIS™ positive or 'caution' samples were also subjected to ELISA to determine the presence of commonly used veterinary drugs including flunixin, ractopamine, sulfamethazine, and/or tetracycline of the 278 samples assessed by ELISA, flunixin, ractopamine, sulfamethazine, and tetracycline residues were found to be 0%, 22%, 4%, and 10% ELISA positive respectively, and had greater than limit of quantitation concentrations as measured by LC-MS/MS.  All residue levels determined by LC-MS/MS were well below US tolerances, regardless of analyte.  These findings suggest that veterinary drugs are being used in accordance with US regulations and that veterinary drug residues in pork do not pose a health concern to US consumers.

Testing the validity of reference standard materials and stock solutions of veterinary drugs using LC-MS/MS

This paper reports a practical approach for the stability testing of 37 veterinary drugs in stock standard solutions stored at -20°C for 1-3 years and the study of expiry date extension of 7 expired reference standard materials stored at 4°C. Stored stock solutions were compared versus freshly prepared stock solutions and concentrations determined using LC-MS/MS. The validity of expired reference materials was tested by new valid reference materials. LC-MS/MS method and parameters were optimised to get the maximum signal stability of the analytes. Statistical analysis was developed and performed to evaluate the stability results according to the acceptability criteria of 10% set by the European Commission guidance document SANTE/11813/2017. The stability of most of the stock solutions of the following veterinary drug families: β-agonists, illegal dyes, inhibitors, macrolides, penicillins, quinolones, sulfonamides and tetracyclines ranged from 12 to 36 months. β-Agonist compounds have the maximum stability period of 36 months while penicillin's stock solution in methanol showed the least stability. The results of testing the expiry date extension of reference standard materials demonstrated that there was no any deterioration of all tested compounds after manufacturer expiry date by 4-7 years.

Multiplex immunoassay based on biochip technology for the screening of antibiotic residues in milk: validation according to the European guideline

The Infiniplex for milk® (IPM) kit is a quick method for the simultaneous and qualitative detection of more than 100 molecules including antibiotic residues, mycotoxins, anti-inflammatories and antiparasitic drugs into a single test that does not require milk treatment. The IPM® kit was validated according to the European decision EC/2002/657 and according to the European guideline for the validation of screening methods (2010). Our validation was focused only on antibiotic residues. The washing step was identified as the most critical step of the assay. Insufficient washes could cause a significant background noise that prevents imaging. Positive controls have to be freshly prepared each day (insufficient stability). The method was specific with a low false-positive rate of 1.7% on 5 discrete test regions (DTR) ((beta-lactams, lincomycin, virginiamycin, quinolones and sulphonamides)) and a false-positive rate of 0% on the 26 other DTR. During our validation, the 42 determined detection capabilities CCβ for 12 antibiotic families (aminoglycosides, cephalosporins, lincosamides, macrolides, miscellaneous antibiotics, penicillins, phenolated polymixins, polypeptide antibiotics, quinolones, sulphonamides, tetracyclines) were at between once and twice the decision levels stated by the manufacturer. Forty CCβ determined were lower than the respective regulatory limits (i.e. MRL, RC, MRPL) in milk, except for tilmicosin (1.5 times the MRL) and neospiramycin (>1.25 times the MRL). The estimated CCβ of thiamphenicol, cloxacillin, danofloxacin, sulphathiazol, ceftiofur and sulphamonomethoxine were lower than or at the MRL. However, it was difficult to approach an accurate CCβ with only qualitative results. It is impossible to know whether or not we were close to the cut-off value. The software could be improved by differentiating between low-positive and high-positive results. The results of our participation in three qualitative proficiency tests in 2016 and 2017 for the detection of quinolones, tetracyclines and sulphonamides in cows' milk were very satisfactory.

An Integrated LC-MS-Based Strategy for the Quality Assessment and Discrimination of Three Panax Species

The quality assessment and discrimination of Panax herbs are very challenging to perform due to the complexity and variability of their chemical compositions. An integrated strategy was established using UHPLC-Q-Exactive/HRMS and HPLC-ESI-MS/MS to achieve an accurate, rapid, and comprehensive qualitative and quantitative analysis of Panax japonicas (PJ), Panax japonicus var. major (PM), and Panax zingiberensis (PZ). Additionally, discrimination among the three species was explored with partial least squares–discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least squares–discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) score plots. A total of 101 compounds were plausibly or unambiguously identified, including 82 from PJ, 78 from PM, and 67 from PZ. Among them, 16 representative ginsenosides were further quantified in three herbs. A clear discrimination between the three species was observed through a multivariate statistical analysis on the quantitative data. Nine compounds that allowed for discrimination between PJ, PM, and PZ were discovered. Notably, ginsenoside Rf (G-Rf), ginsenoside F3 (G-F3), and chikusetsu saponin IV (CS-IV) were the three most important differential compounds. The research indicated that the integrated LC-MS-based strategy can be applied for the quality assessment and discrimination of the three Panax herbs.

Molecularly Imprinted Polymers as Extracting Media for the Chromatographic Determination of Antibiotics in Milk

Milk-producing animals are typically kept stationary in overcrowded large-scale farms and in most cases under unsanitary conditions, which promotes the development of infections. In order to maintain sufficient health status among the herd or promote growth and increase production, farmers administer preventative antibiotic doses to the animals through their feed. However, many antibiotics used in cattle farms are intended for the treatment of bacterial infections in humans. This results in the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria which pose a great risk for public health. Additionally, antibiotic residues are found in milk and dairy products, with potential toxic effects for the consumers. Hence the need of antibiotic residues monitoring in milk arises. Analytical methods were developed for the determination of antibiotics in milk, with key priority given to the analyte extraction and preconcentration step. Extraction can benefit from the production of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) that can be applied as sorbents for the extraction of specific antibiotics. This review focuses on the principals of molecular imprinting technology and synthesis methods of MIPs, as well as the application of MIPs and MIPs composites for the chromatographic determination of various antibiotic categories in milk found in the recent literature.

Screening of veterinary drug residues in food by LC-MS/MS. Background and challenges

Regulatory agencies and government authorities have established maximum residue limits (MRL) in various food matrices of animal origin for supporting governments and food operators in the monitoring of veterinary drug residues in the food chain, and ultimately in the consumer's plate. Today, about 200 veterinary drug residues from several families, mainly with antibiotic, antiparasitic or antiinflammatory activities, are regulated in a variety of food matrices such as milk, meat or egg. This article provides a review of the regulatory framework in milk and muscle including data from Codex Alimentarius, Europe, the U.S.A., Canada and China for about 220 veterinary drugs. The article also provides a comprehensive overview of the challenge for food control, and emphasizes the pivotal role of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), either in tandem with quadrupoles (LC-MS/MS) or high resolution MS (LC-HRMS), for ensuring an adequate consumer protection combined with an affordable cost. The capability of a streamlined LC-MS/MS platform for screening 152 veterinary drug residues in a broad range of raw materials and finished products is highlighted in a production line perspective. The rationale for a suite of four methods intended to achieve appropriate performance in terms of scope and sensitivity is presented. Overall, the platform encompasses one stream for the determination of 105 compounds in a run (based on acidic QuEChERS-like), plus two streams for 23 β-lactams (alkaline QuEChERS-like) and 10 tetracyclines (low-temperature partitioning), respectively, and a dedicated stream for 14 aminoglycosides (molecularly-imprinted polymer).