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HomeChemical Analysis for Food and Beverage TestingAnalysis of Pesticides and their Metabolite Residues

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

Table 1.Conditions used for pesticide analysis by HPLC according to GB23200.121-2021
Table 2.MS conditions used for pesticide 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.

Table 3.Calibration data obtained for avermectin using pesticide standard solutions 1-5 (c = 2.0, 5.0, 10.0, 50.0 and 200 μg/L).

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)

Table 4Precision (RSD) of the method at a pesticide concentration of 50 µg/kg in the cabbage sample for avermectin, acephate and acetamiprid as examples, data for all other pesticides and metabolites was comparable
Table 5.% Recovery of the method at a pesticide concentration of 100 µg/kg in the vegetable sample. Results for avermectin, acephate and acetamiprid as examples, data for all other pesticides and metabolites was comparable

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.

Table 6.Overview of GB Method criteria and the presented method

Real sample measurements

Table 7 provides the full compound listing for 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

1.
Anastassiades M, Lehotay SJ, Štajnbaher D, Schenck FJ. 2003. Fast and Easy Multiresidue Method Employing Acetonitrile Extraction/Partitioning and “Dispersive Solid-Phase Extraction” for the Determination of Pesticide Residues in Produce. J AOAC Int. 86(2):412-431. https://doi.org/10.1093/jaoac/86.2.412
2.
GB 23200.113-2018, "Determination of 208 pesticides and their metabolites residues in plant-derived foods by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry". [Internet]. Available from: http://down.foodmate.net/standard/yulan.php?itemid=53165
3.
GB 23200.121-2021, “determination of 331 pesticides and their metabolites residues in plant-derived food by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry”. . [Internet]. Available from: http://down.foodmate.net/standard/yulan.php?itemid=97823
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