High-throughput determination of multi-mycotoxins in Chinese yam and related products by ultra fast liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry after one-step extraction

A simple, accurate and sensitive ultra fast liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UFLC-MS/MS) method was developed for high-throughput determination of aflatoxins (AFB(1), AFB(2), AFG(1) and AFG(2)), ochratoxin A (OTA), fumonisins (FB1 and FB2) and zearalenone (ZEA) in Chinese yam, yam flours and yam-derived products. Mycotoxins were extracted from the samples with methanol water-formic acid (79:20:1, v/v/v) and no further cleanup step before analysis. After optimization of some crucial parameters including sample preparation, chromatographic separation and MS/MS conditions, the method was successfully validated to exhibit excellent performance in terms of satisfactory linearity (r >= 0.9977), limits of detection (<= 0.15 ngmL(-1)) and quantification (<= 0.5 ng mL(-1)) with good precision (RSD for intra- and inter-day variations of <= 4.65% and 6.31%, respectively), good accuracy (recoveries of 71.0-106.0%) and robustness, together with short run time (8 min/sample). The developed method was applied for simultaneous detection and quantification of the above 8 mycotaxins in 27 batches of Chinese yam and related products collected from different markets and pharmacies in China. The results revealed that 1 normal sample and 4 moldy samples were found to be contaminated with different mycotoxins. The detected concentrations of AFB(1) in 2 moldy samples exceeded the regulatory maximum residue levels. The proposed method was capable for simultaneous determination of mycotoxins in this and other types of complex matrices. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.