Analysis of Pesticides and their Metabolite Residues in Plant-Based Food by LC-MS/MS acc. to GB 23200.121-2021
Jack Wang
R&D APAC lab, Shanghai, China
Abstract
According to the GB 23200.121-2021 standard, a method for the simultaneous determination of pesticides (331) and their 44 metabolites in plant-based food by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was established. After QuEChERS sample preparation and purification using Supel™ QuE Citrate Extraction Tube & Supel™ QuE PSA/ENVI-Carb Cleanup Tube, an LC-MS/MS setup using a 2 µm particle Purospher® STAR RP-18 endcapped UHPLC column was utilized for analysis. Quantitation was performed using an external matrix-matched standard calibration. All pesticide residues displayed an excellent linearity in the concentration range from 0.01 to 0.2 mg/L, and the correlation coefficients R2 were greater than 0.9950. The recoveries were 67.2% to 108%, relative standard deviations were ranging from 3.5% to 8.5%, and the limit of quantitation (LOQ) was <10 μg/kg for all compounds. The method can be used for the detection and analysis of 331 pesticide residues and their 44 metabolites in plant-based food according to the GB method with high accuracy and reliability.
Overview of Sections:
Introduction
Pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables can pose a threat to the health of consumers. Hence, it is desirable to keep the level of pesticide residues in plant-based food as low as possible and make sure they are not exceeding given maximum residue levels (MRLs). To ensure this, frequent monitoring of those levels is required to ensure the consumer's health. With this background, a simple and quick sample preparation technology was introduced with the QuEChERS method (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe) which was developed in the early 2000s by Anastassiades and Lehotay1 and it became the main sample preparation method for pesticide determination in food. It was formalized in official methods such as AOAC 2007.01 and EN 15662.
In 2018 and 2021, the China Administration for Market Regulation issued GB 23200.113-2018,"Determination of 208 Pesticides and their Metabolites Residues in Plant-derived Foods by Gas chromatography-Mass spectrometry”2 and GB 23200.121-2021 “Determination of 331 Pesticides and their Metabolite Residues in Plant-Based Food by LC-MS/MS”3.These two national standards describe the QuEChERS principle for the sample preparation for the first time in official GB methods, which got since vigorously promoted and used.
The GB standard 23200.121-2021 specifies the analysis parameters for the determination of pesticides and pesticide metabolite residues in plant-based food for 23 sample matrices. With a single injection analysis, 331 pesticides and 44 metabolites (in total 375 compounds) can be monitored, including highly toxic and prohibited organophosphorus and carbamate pesticides as well as commonly sold pesticide varieties such as triazole fungicides and benzoyl urea pesticides (Table 7).
In this application, using cabbage as a sample, a method is presented following the GB standard 23200.121-2021 and employing Supel™ Que Citrate Extraction Tubes and Supel™ Que PSA/Envi-Carb Clean up Tubes for the QuEChERS sample preparation and a Purospher® STAR RP-18 endcapped (2 µm) UHPLC column for the LC-MS/MS analysis. The method is evaluated against the criteria stated in the GB standard.
Experimental
The pre-treatment method in this experiment (QuEChERS) and the use of a matrix-matched external calibration were in accordance with what is described in the GB 23200.121-2021 standard. The following procedures were applied:
Standard, Sample, and Reagent Preparation
Analyzed Samples
- Weigh 500 g of cabbage, chop and mix thoroughly. Sample by the quartering method or homogenize in a tissue masher, and store in polyethylene bottles. One is the sample is to be analyzed, another is used retention sample. The samples were stored at -18℃ and the retention period was 3 months.
- Sample blank solution: The used cabbage sample was prepared according to the sample preparation specified in GB 23200.121-2021 and tested according to the method by LC-MS/MS. The result showed that none of the target compounds could be detected in the sample.
Reagent Preparation
- Extraction solvent: Add 10 mL acetic acid to 990 mL acetonitrile and mix well to obtain a solution of 1% acetic acid in acetonitrile (1:99, v:v).
- Mobile phase [A]: Weigh 0.1261 g ammonium formate, dissolve in an aqueous solution of 0.01% formic acid, and dilute to 1000 mL to obtain a solution of 2 mmol/L (2 mM) ammonium formate/formic acid in water.
- Mobile phase [B]: Weigh 0.1261 g ammonium formate, dissolve with 0.01% formic acid methanol solution, and dilute to 1000 mL, to obtain a solution of 2 mmol/L (2 mM) ammonium formate/formic acid in methanol.
Standard Preparation
- Pesticide Standard Stock Mixture: A mix of the 331 pesticides and their 44 metabolites in methanol with a concentration of 100 µg/mL each is used for standard preparation.
- Pesticide stock solution I (10 µg/mL): Transfer 1 mL of a standard stock mixture of 331 pesticides and their 44 metabolites (concentration: 100 µg/mL) into a 10 mL amber glass volumetric flask and fill up to the mark with ethyl acetate. Store the standard solution at 0 °C - 4 °C and protected from light.
- Pesticide stock solution II (1.00 µg/mL): Pipette 1 mL of pesticide stock solution I into a 10 mL amber glass volumetric flask and fill up to the mark with ethyl acetate to obtain a pesticide stock solution II with a pesticide/metabolite concentration of 1.00 µg/mL each. Store at 0 °C – 4 °C and protected from light.
- Pesticide standard solutions 1-5: Prepare a total of five standard working solutions (nos. 1-5) by pipetting 2 μL, 5 μL, 10 μL, 50 μL, and 200 μL of pesticide stock solution II into five separate 2 mL vials. Add matrix blank solution (cabbage blank extract) with a pipette to get to a final volume of 1 mL. The concentrations of the pesticides in the resulting solutions are 2.0, 5.0, 10.0, 50.0, and 200 μg/L, respectively.
Sample Preparation:
- Extraction: Weigh 10 g of a homogenized cabbage sample into a 50 mL plastic centrifuge tube, and add 10 mL 1% acetic acid in acetonitrile, the content of one Supel™ QuE citrate extraction tube (55227-U, containing 4 g magnesium sulfate, 1 g sodium chloride, 1 g trisodium citrate, and 0.5 g disodium hydrogen citrate) and one ceramic milling ball. Shake the centrifuge tube vigorously for 1 min, then centrifuge at 4200 rpm for 5 min.
Add 6 mL of the supernatant to a 15 mL PSA/ENVI-Carb tube (Supel™ QuE QuEChERS PSA/ENVI-Carb Tube 1, 55446-U, containing 15 mg Supelclean™ ENVI-Carb, 150 mg Supelclean™ PSA, and 900 mg magnesium sulfate), vortex, and mix for 1 min. Centrifuge at 4200 rpm for 5 minutes and filter the resulting solution using a 0.22 μm microporous filtration membrane. - Spiking experiments: For the determination of method recovery (%) and precision, prepare two samples by mixing 10.0 g of vegetable sample with 500 μL and 1000 μL of pesticide stock solution II, respectively. The concentrations of the pesticides in the two samples are 50 µg/kg (utilized for the analysis of precision) and 100 µg/kg (used for recovery).
Instruments and Equipment
- ANPEL EUFO-945416 vortex mixer
- Eppendorf 5810R centrifuge, speed ≥ 10000 rpm
- Mettler Toledo ME204T/02 electronic balances, sensitivity 0.01 mg and 0.01 g, respectively
- IKA T-18 high-speed homogenizer
LC-MS Analysis
Results and Discussion
Separation
Cabbage samples were prepared by QuEChERS and then analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS, with the mass spectrometer being operated in MRM mode. Determination of pesticide residues and pesticide metabolites was performed using an external matrix-matched calibration. The developed method was applied for the analysis of 331 pesticide residues and 44 metabolites (see the full list in Table 7) and compared to the requirements of the GB Standard regarding calibration linearity, precision, recovery, and sensitivity.
Calibration data
The results of the calibration experiments utilizing pesticide standard solutions 1-5 are displayed in Figure 1 and Table 3. for avermectin as an example pesticide, all other compounds provided similar results. The linearity (R2) ranged from 0.9953 to 0.9999, meeting the GB 23200.121-2021 requirement of >0.9950.
Data Precision and Recovery (%)
The cabbage sample with a pesticide spike concentration of 50 µg/kg was used for precision evaluation, while the second sample (pesticide spike concentration 100 µg/kg) was utilized for the evaluation of recovery. Results obtained for three pesticides as examples are shown in Tables 4 and 5 below. The precision for all analytes ranged between 3.5% and 8.5% RSD meeting the GB 23200.121-2021 criteria of <15%. Analyte recoveries for all compounds were determined to be between 67% and 108%, lying in the GB 23200.121-2021 specified range of 60-120%.
For the sensitivity determination the baseline noise of a blank cabbage sample was employed. The resulting limit of quantification (LOQ) was <10 µg/kg for the 331 pesticides and their 44 metabolites (Table 6)
Summary Suitability Criteria
In Table 6 a summarized overview on the suitability criteria of the GB method and the determined values is provided, showing that the developed method complies with the GB 23200.121-2021 requirements.
Real sample measurements
Table 7 provides the full compound listing for this study.
Table 7. Compound listing of pesticides and their metabolites covered in this study
Comp. No. |
Compound Name | Comp. No. |
Compound Name | Comp. No. |
Compound Name | Comp. No. |
Compound Name |
2 | Acephate | 84 | Dimoxystrobin | 167 | Iprodione | 248-1 | Prochloraz |
3 | Acetamiprid | 85 | Diniconazole | 168-1 | Iprovalicarb-1 | 248-2 | Prochloraz-metabolite BTS44595 |
4 | Acetochlor | 86 | Dinocap | 168-2 | Iprovalicarb-2 | 248-3 | Prochloraz-metabolite BTS44596 |
5 | Alachlor | 87 | Dinotefuran | 169 | Isazofos | 249 | Procymidone |
6 | Albendazole | 88-4 | Disulfoton sulfone | 170 | Isocarbophos | 250 | Profenofos |
7-1 | Aldicarb | 88-5 | Disulfoton sulfoxide | 171 | Isofenphos-methyl | 251 | Promecarb |
7-2 | Aldicarb sulfone | 88-1 | Disulfoton-1 | 172 | Isoprocarb | 252 | Prometryn |
7-3 | Aldicarb sulfoxid | 89 | Diuron | 173 | Isoprothiolane | 253 | Propachlor |
8 | Ametoctradin | 90 | Edifenphos | 174 | Isoproturon | 254 | Propamocarb |
9 | Ametryn | 91 | Emamectin benzoate | 175-1 | Isopyrazam-1 | 255 | Propanil |
10 | Amidosulfuron | 92 | Enestroburin | 175-2 | Isopyrazam-2 | 256 | Propaquizafop |
11 | Amisulbrom | 93 | EPN | 176-1 | Isoxaflutole | 257 | Propargite |
12 | Anilofos | 94 | Epoxiconazole | 176-2 | Isoxaflutole- diketonitrile |
258 | Propieonazole |
13 | Atrazine | 95 | Ethion | 177 | Ivermectin | 259 | Propisochlor |
1 | Avermectin | 96 | Ethiprole | 178 | Kresoxim-methyl | 260 | Propoxur |
14 | Azinphos-methyl | 97 | Ethirimol | 179 | Lactofen | 261 | Propyrisulfuron |
15 | Azoxystrobin | 98 | Ethofumcsale | 180 | Linuron | 262 | Propyzamide |
17 | Benazolin-ethyl | 99 | Ethoprophos | 181 | Lufenuron | 263 | Proquinazid |
18 | Bendiocarb | 100 | Ethoxysulfuron | 182-2 | Malaoxon | 264 | Prosulfocarb |
19 | Bensolfuron methyl | 101 | Etofenprox | 182-1 | Malathion | 265 | Pyraclostrobin |
20 | Benzovindiflupyr | 102 | Etoxazole | 183 | Mandipropamid | 266 | Pyraflufen-ethyl |
21 | Benzoximate | 103 | Etrimfos | 184 | Mefenacet | 267 | Pyrametostrobin |
22 | Bifenox | 104 | Famoxadone | 185 | Mepronil | 268 | Pyraoxystrobin |
23 | Bifenthrin | 105 | Fenamidone | 186 | Mesosulfuron- methyl |
269 | Pyrazosulfuron-ethyl |
24 | Biorcsmethrin | 106 | Fenaminstrobin | 187 | Metaflumizone | 270-1 | Pyrethrin-1 |
25-1 | Bitertanol-1 | 107-1 | Fenamiphos | 188 | Metalaxyl | 270-2 | Pyrethrin-2 |
25-2 | Bitertanol-2 | 107-2 | Fenamiphos sulfone |
189 | Metamifop | 271 | Pyribenzoxim |
16 | Bonalaxyl | 107-3 | Fenamiphos sulfoxide |
190 | Metamitron | 272 | Pyridaben |
26 | Boscalid | 108 | Fenarimol | 191 | Metazachlor | 273 | Pyridalyl |
27-1 | Bromuconazole-1 | 109 | Fenazaquim | 192 | Metazosulfuron | 274 | Pyridaphenthion |
27-2 | Bromuconazole-2 | 110 | Fenbuconazole | 193 | Metconazole | 275 | Pyriftalid |
28 | Bupirimate | 111 | Fenhexamid | 194-1 | Methacrifos-1 | 276 | Pyrimethanil |
29 | Buprofezin | 112 | Fenobucarb | 194-2 | Methacrifos-2 | 277 | Pyrimorph |
30 | Butachlor | 113 | Fenothiocarb | 195 | Methamidophos | 278 | Pyriproxyfen |
31 | Butralin | 114-1 | Fenoxanil-1 | 196 | Methidathion | 279-1 | Pyrisoxazole-1 |
32 | Cadusafos | 114-2 | Fenoxanil-2 | 197-1 | Methiocarb | 279-2 | Pyrisoxazole-2 |
33 | Carbaryl | 115 | Fenoxaprop-ethyl | 197-2 | Methiocarb sulfone | 280 | Quinalphos |
34 | Carbendazim | 116 | Fenoxycarb | 197-3 | Methiocarb sulfoxide | 281 | Quizalofop-ethyl |
35-1 | Carbofuran | 117 | Fenpropathrin | 198 | Methomyl | 282 | Rotenone |
35-2 | 3-Hydroxy Carbofuran | 118 | Fenpropidin | 199 | Methoprene | 283 | Saflufenacil |
36 | Carboxin | 119 | Fenpropimorph | 200 | Methoxyfenozide | 284-1 | Sedaxane-1 |
37 | Carfentrazone-ethyl | 120 | Fenpyrazamine | 201 | Metolachlor | 284-2 | Sedaxane-2 |
38 | Chlorantraniliprole | 121 | Fenpyroximate | 202 | Metolcarb | 285 | Sethoxydim |
39 | Chlorbenzuron | 122-1 | Fensulfothion | 203 | Metrafenone | 286 | Silthiofam |
40 | Chlordimeform | 122-2 | Fensulfothion oxon | 204 | Metrilbuzin | 287 | Simazine |
41-1 | Chlorfenvinphos-1 | 122-3 | Fensulfothion oxon sulfone |
205 | Metsulfuron-methyl | 288 | Simetryn |
41-2 | Chlorfenvinphos-2 | 122-4 | Fensulfothion sulfone | 206-1 | Mevinphos-1 | 289-2 | Spinetoram I |
42 | Chlorfluazuron | 123-1 | Fenthion | 206-2 | Mevinphos-2 | 289-1 | Spinetoram J |
43 | Chloridazon | 123-2 | Fenthion sulfone | 207 | Molinate | 290-1 | Spinosad A |
44 | Chlorimuron-ethyl | 123-3 | Fenthion sulfoxide | 208 | Monocrotophos | 290-1 | Spinosad D |
45 | Chlorpropham | 124 | Fenvalerate | 209 | Myclobutanil | 291 | Spirodiclofen |
46 | Chlorpyrifos | 125-1 | Fipronil | 210 | Napropamide | 292 | Spiromesifon |
47 | Chlorpyrifos-methyl | 125-2 | Fipronil deulfinyl | 211 | Nitenpyram | 293-1 | Spirotramat |
48 | Chlorsulfuron | 125-3 | Fipronil silfide | 212 | Novaluron | 293-2 | Spirotramat-enol |
49 | Chlortoluron | 125-4 | Fipronil sulfone | 213 | Omethoate | 293-3 | Spirotramat-enol- glucoside |
50 | Chromafenozide | 126 | Flonicamid | 214 | Ortbosulfamuron | 293-4 | Spirotramat-keto- hydroxy |
51 | Cinosulfuron | 127 | Florasulam | 215 | Oxadiargyl | 293-5 | Spirotramat-mono- hydroxy |
52-1 | Clethodim | 128 | Fluazifop-butyl | 216 | Oxadiazon | 294 | Sulfentrazone |
52-2 | Clethodim sulfone | 129 | Fluazinam | 217 | Oxadixyl | 295 | Sulfotep |
52-3 | Clethodim sulfoxide | 130 | Flubendiamide | 218-2 | Oxamy oxime | 296 | Sulfoxaflor |
53 | Clofentezine | 131-1 | Flucetosulfuron-1 | 218-1 | Oxamyl | 297 | Tau-fluvalinate |
54 | Clomazone | 131-2 | Flucetosulfuron-2 | 219 | Oxaziclomefone | 298 | Tebnconazole |
55 | Clothianidin | 132 | Flucythrinate | 220-1 | Oxydemeton-methyl | 299 | Tebufenozide |
56 | Coumaphos | 133 | Fludioxonil | 221 | Oxyfluorfen | 300 | Tebuthiuron |
57 | Coumoxystrobin | 134 | Flufenacet | 222-1 | Paclobutrazol-1 | 301 | Teflubenzuron |
58 | Cyanazine | 135 | Flufenoxuron | 222-2 | Paclobutrazol-2 | 302-1 | Terbufos |
59 | Cyantraniliprole | 136 | Flumetralin | 223 | Parathion | 302-2 | Terbufos sulfone |
60-1 | Cyazofamid | 137 | Flumetsulam | 224 | Penconazole | 302-3 | Terbufos sulfoxide |
60-2 | Cyazofamid metabolite | 138 | Flumorph | 225 | Pencycuron | 303 | Terbuthylazine |
61 | Cyclosulfamuron | 139 | Fluopicolide | 226 | Pendimethalin | 304 | Tetraconazole |
62 | Cycloxydim | 140 | Fluopyram | 227 | Penflufen | 305 | Thiabendazole |
63 | Cyflufenamid | 141 | Fluoroglycofen-ethyl | 228 | Penoxsulam | 306 | Thiacloprid |
64 | Cyflumetofen | 142 | Flurtamone | 229 | Penthiopyrad | 307 | Thiamethoxam |
65 | Cymoxanil | 143 | Flusilazole | 230-1 | Permethrin-1 | 308 | Thidiazuron |
66 | Cyproconazole | 144 | Fluthiacet-methyl | 230-2 | Permethrin-2 | 309 | Thifensulfuron-methyl |
67 | Cyprodinil | 145 | Flutolanil | 231 | Phenamacril | 310 | Thifluzamide |
68 | Deltamethrin | 146 | Flutriafol | 232 | Phenmedipham | 311 | Thiophanate-methyl |
69 | Demeton | 147 | Fluxapyroxad | 233 | Phenthoate | 312 | Tolclofos-methyl |
220-2 | Demeton-S-methyl | 148 | Fonofos | 234-1 | Phorate | 313 | Tolfenpyrad |
220-3 | Demeton-S-methyl- sulfone |
149 | Forchlorfenuron | 234-2 | Phorate sulfone | 314 | Tralkoxydim |
88-2 | Demeton-S-sulfone | 150 | Formothion | 234-3 | Phorate sulfoxide | 315 | Triadimefon |
88-3 | Demeton-S-sulfoxide | 151 | Fosthiazate | 235 | Phosalone | 316 | Triadimenol |
70 | Diazinon | 152 | Furathiocarb | 236 | Phosfolan | 317 | Triallate |
71 | Dichlorvos | 153 | Halosulfuron-methyl | 237 | Phosfolan-methyl | 318 | Triasulfuron |
72 | Diclobutrazol | 154 | Heptenophos | 238-1 | Phosmet | 319 | Triazophos |
73 | Diclofop-methyl | 155 | Hexaconazole | 238-2 | Phosmet oxon | 320 | Tribenuron-methyl |
74 | Dicrotophos | 156 | Hexaflumuron | 239-1 | Phosphamidon-1 | 321 | Triclorfon |
75 | Dicthofencarb | 157 | Hexazinone | 239-2 | Phosphamidon-2 | 322 | Tricyclazole |
76 | Diethyl aminocthyl hexanoate |
158 | Hexythiazox | 240 | Phoxim | 324-2 | Triflumizde metabolite FM-6-1 |
77-1 | Difenoconazole-1 | 159 | Imazalil | 241 | Picolinafen | 324-1 | Triflumizole |
77-2 | Difenoconazole-2 | 160 | Imibenconazole | 242 | Picoxystrobin | 323 | Triflumizole |
78 | Diflubenzuron | 161 | Imidacloprid | 243 | Piperonyl butoxide | 325 | Triflumuron |
79 | Diflufenican | 162 | Imidaclthiz | 244-1 | Pirimicarb | 326 | Triflusulfuron-methyl |
80 | Dimepiperate | 163 | Indoxacarb | 244-2 | Pirimicarb-desmethyl | 327 | Triticonazole |
81 | Dimethenamid | 164 | Iodosulfuron-methyl-s odium |
244-3 | Pirimicarb-desmethyl- formamido |
328 | Tritosulfuron |
82 | Dimethoate | 165-1 | Ipconazole-1 | 245 | Pirimophos-methyl | 329 | Uniconazole |
83-1 | Dimethomorph-1 | 165-2 | Ipconazole-2 | 246 | Pretilachlor | 330 | Vamidothion |
83-2 | Dimethomorph-2 | 166 | Iprobenfos | 247 | Probenazole | 331 | Zoxamide |
Conclusion
The new GB 23200.121-2021 is the first national standard in China that combines QuEChERS sample preparation with LC-MS/MS analysis for the determination of multiple residues in complex samples such as plant-derived food (23 sample matrices covered). In this work, a set of 331 pesticides and 44 metabolites were analyzed in a cabbage sample according to the GB standard using Supel™ QuE QuEChERS mixes for extraction and sample cleanup and a Purospher® STAR RP-18 endcapped (2 µm) UHPLC column for analysis by LC-MS/MS employing dynamic MRM.
Quantitation was performed using an external matrix-matched standard calibration. The presented method complied with the quality criteria defined the GB standard regarding linearity, reproducibility, recovery, and limit of quantification (LOQ). All pesticide residues displayed an excellent linearity in the concentration range from 0.01 to 0.2 mg/L, with correlation coefficients R2 greater than 0.9950 as required by the GB method. The recoveries were 67.2% to 108% (GB criteria: 60-120%), relative standard deviations were ranging from 3.5-8.5% (GB criteria: <20%), and the LOQ was <10 μg/kg for all investigated compounds.
The shown method can therefore be used for the detection and analysis of pesticide residues and their metabolites in plant food acc. to GB 23200.121-2021 with high accuracy and reliability.
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REFERENCES
Appendix Table: MRM & RT Data
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