Analysis of UV ink photoinitiators in packaged food by fast liquid chromatography at subambient temperature coupled to tandem mass spectrometry

A fast method of liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was developed for the analysis of eleven UV ink photoinitiators in packaged food. Chromatographic separation was achieved in a pentafluorophenylpropyl (PFPP) column at 5ºC and acetonitrile:25 mM formic acid-ammonium formate (pH 2.7) in gradient elution. To reduce sample treatment, a QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) method for the extraction and clean-up of UV photoinitiators in packaged foods was evaluated. Triple quadrupole working in H-SRM on Q1 mode was used for both quantitation and confirmation purposes and the most intense and selective transitions were chosen. Quality parameters of the developed QuEChERS LC-MS/MS method were established and applied for the analysis of photoinitiators in food packaged at ng kg-1 levels

Simultaneous analysis of natural pigments and E-141i in olive oils by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

This work describes the development of an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method for the determination of carotenoids (β-carotene, lutein, β-criptoxanthin, neoxanthin, violaxanthin) and chlorophylls, as well as their related compounds (chlorophyll A and B, pheophytin A and B and the banned dyes Cu-pyropheophytin A, Cu-pheophytin A and B) in olive oils. For this purpose, the feasibility of electrospray ionization (ESI), atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) and atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI) for the ionization of these compounds was evaluated and compared. Tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) fragmentation was discussed for each family of compounds, and the most characteristic and abundant product ions were selected to propose a selective and sensitive UHPLC-MS/MS method. The best results were obtained using APCI and APPI, while ESI provided the worst signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) for all compounds. For the analysis of olive oils, a simple solid-phase extraction (SPE) with silica cartridges was applied before the determination by UHPLC-MS/MS (APCI and APPI) in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. Method quality parameters were stablished, and the results demonstrate the good performance of the new methods, providing low limits of detection (0.004-0.9 mg L−1), high extraction efficiencies (62-95%) and low matrix effects (< 25%). The developed UHPLC-API-MS/MS(APCI and APPI) methods were applied to the analysis of olive oil samples, and β-carotene, pheophytinA, pheophytin B and lutein were detected and quantified in all of them at concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 9.5 mg L−1

Strategies for the multi-residue analysis of 100 pesticides by liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry

Analytical strategies for screening, quantitation and confirmation of a group of 100 pesticides in fruit and vegetable samples by LC-MS and LC-MS/MS were developed. The pesticides studied belong to different chemical families of herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. A selection of some degradation products was also included. Chromatographic separation was performed using a Zorbax Eclipse XDB-C8 column (150 mm × 4.6 mm and 5 µm particle size), and gradient elution with acetonitrile-water (both with 0.1% formic acid) as mobile phase. LC-MS/MS using highly-selective selected reaction monitoring (H-SRM) acquisition mode monitoring two transitions for each compound showed to be the most sensitive methodology. Quantitation was carried out using matrix-matched standard calibration and good linearity of response was demonstrated (r > 0.998). Limits of detection (by acquiring two transitions and with the ion-ratio requirements) ranged between 0.01 and 20 µg/kg were obtained. So, in general, the sensitivity achieved meets the maximum residue levels (MRLs) established by the European Union regulation for food monitoring programs. Pesticide confirmation was carried out following European Union guidelines. In order to prevent false-positives, further confirmatory strategies were proposed. LC-MS in highly-selective selected ion monitoring (H-SIM) mode with accurate mass measurement was used to obtain an orthogonal criterion (exact mass) for confirmation. Accurate mass measurements were always bellow 0.9 mDa for almost all pesticides studied (similar to those described with TOF instruments). A user reversed energy ramp (RER) product ion scan spectra library was generated by means of a data dependent analysis for routine library searching of pesticides. The combination of LC-MS/MS in H-SRM mode and the generation of the RER product ion scan spectra and library search were then used to achieve further confirmation on pesticide analysis. The LC-MS and LC-MS/MS strategies developed were successfully applied for the analysis and confirmation of pesticides in different types of fruit and vegetables samples, and examples of the screening, quantitation and confirmation of pesticides in these samples are shown in this work

Chloride-attachment atmospheric pressure photoionisation for the determination of short-chain chlorinated paraffins by gas chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry

In this work, a new gas chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (GC-HRMS) method based on atmospheric pressure photoionisation (APPI) has been developed for the accurate determination of short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) as a reliable alternative to the established methods. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time these compounds has been analysed by GC-MS using atmospheric pressure photoionisation (APPI). Efficient ionisation of SCCPs was achieved using the new GC-APPI source by the formation of [MþCl]e adduct ions in negative ion mode using dopant-assisted APPI with a mixture of acetone/CCl4 (3:1, v/v). Operating at a resolution of 70,000 FWHM (full width at half maximum) and monitoring the [MþCl]e adduct ions for each congener group, a selective determination of the SCCPs was achieved, avoiding isobaric interferences between homologue groups with different carbon chain length and chlorination degree. Moreover, the GC-APPI-HRMS response of each congener group was mainly influenced by its concentration and did not depend on the number of chlorine atoms in the molecule as occurs with the GC-MS methods based on the electron-capture negative ionisation (ECNI). Thus, the contribution of the different carbon and chlorine homologue groups in the SCCP mixtures was determined by the internal normalization method, and the quantification was performed independently of the chlorine content of the SCCP standard mixture employed. The developed GC-APPI-HRMS method offers some interesting advantages over the existing methods, particularly the possibility to quantify individual SCCP congener groups, the use of a simple calibration method for quantification, and an important timesaving in the data processing, especially over ECNI-based traditional methods. The GC-APPI-HRMS method allowed the determination of SCCPs at low concentration levels in fish samples with lowmethod limits of detection (17e34 pg g1 wet weight for total SCCPs), good precision (RSD < 7%) and trueness (relative error < 8%) and can be proposed as a reliable alternative of the established methods for the determination of these pollutants in environmental sample

Gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with atmospheric pressure chemical ionization for fluorotelomer alcohols and perfluorinated sulfonamides determination

Ionization and in source-fragmentation behavior of four fluorotelomer alcohols (FTOH) (4:2 FTOH, 6:2FTOH, 8:2 FTOH and 10:2 FTOH) and four N-alkyl fluorooctane sulfonamides/-ethanols (N-MeFOSA, N-EtFOSA, N-MeFOSE and N-EtFOSE) by APCI has been studied and compared with the traditionally usedEI and CI. Protonated molecule was the base peak of the APCI spectrum in all cases giving the possibilityof selecting it as a precursor ion for MS/MS experiments. Following, CID fragmentation showed commonproduct ions for all FOSAs/FOSEs (C4F7and C3F5). Nevertheless, the different functionality gave charac-teristic pattern fragmentations. For instance, FTOHs mainly loss H2O + HF, FOSAs showed the losses ofSO2and HF while FOSEs showed the losses of H2O and SO2. Linearity, repeatability and LODs have beenstudied obtaining instrumental LODs between 1 and 5 fg. Finally, application to river water and influentand effluent waste water samples has been carried out in order to investigate the improvements in detec-tion capabilities of this new source in comparison with the traditionally used EI/CI sources. Matrix effectsin APCI have been evaluated in terms of signal enhancement/suppression when comparing standardsin solvent and matrix. No matrix effects were observed and concentrations found in samples were inthe range of 1-100 pg L−1far below the LODs achieved with methods previously reported. Unknownrelated perfluoroalkyl substances, as methyl-sulfone and methyl-sulfoxide analogues for FTOHs, werealso discovered and tentatively identified

Preventing false negatives with high-resolution mass spectrometry: the benzophenone case

Benzophenone (BP) is one of the many contaminants reported as present in foodstuff due to its migration from food packaging materials. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is acknowledged in the literature as the method of choice for this analysis. However, cases have been reported where the use of this methodology was not enough to unambiguously confirm the presence of a contaminant. In previous work performed by the authors, the unequivocal identification of BP in packaged foods was not possible even when monitoring two m/z transitions, since ion ratio errors higher than 20% were obtained. In order to overcome this analytical problem a fast, sensitive and selective liquid chromatography-high resolution-mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) methodology has been developed and applied to the analysis of BP in packaged foods. A direct comparison between liquid chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) and LC-MS/MS data indicated better selectivity when working with LC-HRMS at a resolving power of 50,000 FWHM than when monitoring two m/z transitions by LC-MS/MS. The resolving power used enabled the detection and identification of Harman as the compound impeding the confirmation of BP by LC-MS/MS. Similar quantitative results were obtained by an Orbitrap mass analyser (Exactive ¿) and a triple quadrupole mass analyser (TSQ Quantum Ultra AM ¿)

Atmospheric pressure photoionization mass spectrometry of fullerenes

Atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI) was evaluated for the analysis of fullerenes. An important response improvement was found when using toluene mediated APPI in negative mode if compared with other API sources (electrospray and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization). Fullerene APPI negative mass spectra were dominated by the isotopic cluster of the molecular ion, although isotopic patterns for M+1, M+2 and M+3 ions showed higher than expected relative abundances. These discrepancies are explained by the presence of two isobaric ions, one due to 13C and the other to the addition of hydrogen to a double bond of the fullerene structure. Triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry and ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry and accurate mass measurements were used to confirm these assignments. Additionally, cluster ions M+16 and M+32 were characterized following the same strategy. Ions due to the addition of oxygen and alkyl additions were attributed to the presence of methanol in the mobile phase. For the fast chromatographic separation of fullerenes (less than 3.5 min) a sub-2 µm C18 column and isocratic elution (toluene:methanol 45:55 v/v) was used. Highly selective-selected ion monitoring (H-SIM) mode (mass resolving power >12,500 FWHM) was proposed monitoring the two most intense isotope ions in the [M]-¿ cluster. Method limits of quantitation down to 10 pg L-1 for C60 and C70 fullerenes and between 0.75-5.0 ng L-1 for larger fullerenes were obtained. Finally, the UHPLC-APPI-MS method was used to analyze fullerenes in river and pond water samples

Determination of capsaicinoids and carotenoids for the characterization and geographical origin authentication of paprika by UHPLC-APCI- HRMS

The production area mislabeling of a food product is considered a fraudulent practice worldwide. In this work, a method that uses ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry using atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (UHPLC-APCI-HRMS) was used for the geographical origin authentication of paprika based on the determination of capsaicinoids and carotenoids. Satisfactory instrumental method performance was obtained, providing good linearity (R2 > 0.998), run-to-run and day-to-day precisions (%RSD < 15 and 10%, respectively), and trueness (relative errors < 10%), while method limits of quantification were between 0.21 and 51 mg·kg-1. Capsaicinoids and carotenoids were determined in 136 paprika samples, from different origins (La Vera, Murcia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic) and types (hot, sweet, and bittersweet). The composition of capsaicinoids and carotenoids was used as chemical descriptors to achieve paprika authentication through a classification decision tree built by partial least squares regression−discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) models and reaching a rate of 80.9%

Desorption electrospray ionization-high resolution mass spectrometry for the screening of veterinary drugs in cross contaminated feddstuffs

In this study, a desorption electrospray ionization-high resolution mass spectrometry (DESI-HRMS) screening method was developed for fast identification of veterinary drugs in cross-contaminated feedstuffs. The reliable detection was performed working at high resolution (70,000 full with half maximum, FWHM) using an orbitrap mass analyser. Among the optimized DESI parameters, the solvent (acetonitrile-water, 80:20, v/v) and the sample substrate (poly-tetrafluoroethylene, PTFE) were critical to obtain the best sensitivity. To analyse the solid feed samples, different approaches were tested and a simple solid-liquid extraction and the direct analysis of an aliquot (2 μL) of the extract after let it dry on the PTFE printed spot provided the best results. The identification of the veterinary drugs (target and non-target) in the cross-contaminated feedstuffs based on the accurate mass measurement and the isotopic pattern fit was performed automatically using a custom-made database. The positive crosscontaminated feed samples were quantified by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). The results obtained demonstrate that DESI-HRMS can be proposed as a fast and suitable screening method to identify positive cross-contaminated feedstuffs reducing the number of samples to be subsequently quantified by UHPLC-MS/MS thus improving the productivity in quality control laboratories

Modified distribution in the polyphenolic profile of rosemary leaves induced by plant inoculation with an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus

BACKGROUND: Rosemary forms an arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis with a group of soilborne fungi belonging to the phylum Glomeromycota, which can modify the plant metabolome responsible for the antioxidant capacity and other health beneficial properties of Rosemary. RESULTS: The effect of inoculating rosemary plants with an AM fungus on their growth via their polyphenolic fingerprinting was evaluated after analyzing leaf extracts from non-inoculated and inoculated rosemary plants by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry. . Plant growth parameters indicated that mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased plant height and biomass. Chemical modifications in the plant polyphenolic profile distribution were found after a principal components analysis (PCA) loading plots study. Four compounds hosting strong antioxidant properties: ferulic acid, asiatic acid, carnosol, and vanillin were related to mycorrhizal rosemary plants while caffeic and chlorogenic acids had a higher influence in non-mycorrhizal plants. CONCLUSION: Mycorrhization was found to stimulate growth in order to obtain a higher biomass of plant leaves in short time and avoiding chemical fertilization, while analytical results demonstrate that there is an alteration in the distribution of polyphenols in plants colonized by the symbiotic fungus, which can be related to an improvement in nutritional properties with future industrial significance