Polyether ionophores residues in Minas Frescal cheese by UHPLC-MS/MS

ABSTRACT

An analytical method was developed and validated for the determination of three polyether ionophores (monensin, lasalocid, and salinomycin) in 60 samples of Brazilian Minas Frescal cheese by UHPLC-MS/MS. Linearity ranged from 1 to 8 μg kg⁻¹ for monensin and salinomycin, and from 0.50 to 4 μg kg⁻¹ for lasalocid. Limits of detection and quantitation were 0.50 μg kg⁻¹ and 1 μg kg⁻¹, respectively, for both monensin and salinomycin, and 0.25 μg kg⁻¹ and 0.50 μg kg⁻¹, respectively, for lasalocid. Recoveries were between 69% and 84% with coefficients of variation up to 16.28% for repeatability and 13.79% for intermediate precision. A total of 60 samples of Minas Frescal cheese were analysed and only monensin residues were found. Monensin was detected in 55% of the samples and quantified in 5 of them at mean levels varying from 1.00 to 1.73 μg kg⁻¹. The proposed method demonstrated the suitability for monitoring these substances in cheese.

KEYWORDS:

• Veterinary drug residues
• antibiotics
• anticoccidials
• polyether ionophores
• cheese
• food safety

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Coordination for the São Paulo Research Foundation–Agilent Technologies for supplying the Agilent UHPLC 1290-MS/MS 6460 system employed in this study (FAPESP-Agilent Grant number 2013/50452-5).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior [3300301702P1].