Establishment and Application of Infant Formula Fingerprints by RP-HPLC

An efficient method for rapid and simple identification of infant formula quality was investigated so as to prevent brand counterfeit of infant formulas. Reversed-phase, high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method combined with chemometric method was developed for fingerprints analysis. To optimize the RP-HPLC conditions, the RP-HPLC analysis was performed on a C-8 column by using gradient elution with 0.1% (v/v) aqueous trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in water as mobile phase A and 0.1% (v/v) TFA in acetonitrile as mobile phase B, the flow rate was 0.5 mL min(-1), and the detection wavelength was set at 214 nm. Three different stages of infant formulas of two series (R-1 and R-2) of R brand were analyzed to establish infant formula fingerprints of each series at different stages under optimal conditions. Five major common peaks in each chromatogram of the infant formulas were used in fingerprint analysis. The results showed that the RP-HPLC fingerprints and principal component analysis (PCA) method can effectively differentiate the infant formula of different brands, as well as the different series of infant formulas of the same brand, which provide an effective testing method for authenticity identification and brand protection in infant formulas.