Gel Permeation Chromatography Purification and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Detection of Multi-Pesticide Residues in Traditional Chinese Medicine

Wan-E Zhuang, Zhen-Bin Gong

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DOI: 10.4236/ajac.2012.31005                

Abstract

The measurement of 23 organochlorine, organophosphorus, and pyrethroid pesticides in typical traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), flos lonicerae, was made using gel permeation chromatography (GPC) purification and gas chroma- tography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) detection. The pesticides were extracted with ultrasonic device and 5.0 mL mixture of ethyl acetate and cyclohexane (1:1, v/v). Coextractants from sample matrices which may have interfere to the qualitative and quantitative analysis, such as pigments, were removed using GPC purification. Simultaneous full scan and selective ion monitor (scan/SIM) mode for GC-MS was used for qualitative and quantitative analysis, which pro- vided retention time and characteristic fragments ratio for each pesticide so as to positively identify each analyte. Rela- tive standard deviations (RSDs) were within 7.7% (5.0 - 22.5 μg/kg, n = 3). The recoveries of pesticide standards at the spiked concentration of 5.0 - 22.5 μg/kg were between 87.1% and 110.9%. Limits of detection (LODs) for the analytes were 0.16 - 3.2 μg/kg, which could meet the demand of routine analysis and TCM quality control.

Keywords

Traditional Chinese Medicine; Multi-Pesticide Residue; Flos Lonicerae; Gel Permeation Chromatography; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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