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Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography combined with mass spectrometry for determination of aflatoxins using dummy molecularly imprinted polymers deposited on silica-coated magnetic nanoparticles

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Abstract

This article describes a method for determination of four aflatoxins by a combination of ultra-high performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Magnetic dummy molecularly imprinted polymers (md-MIPs) are used for fairly selective preconcentration. The preparation of the md-MIP involves (a) coating of magnetic nanoparticles (with a typical diameter of 200 nm) with a shell of silica, (b) modifying the surface with methacryloxy groups, and (c) creating a MIP on the surface by graft imprinting in aqueous solutions using 5,7-dimethoxycoumarin as the dummy template, and methacrylic acid and 4-vinylpyridine as the functional monomers. After elution of the template, the md-MIPs can be used for fairly selective extraction of the aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2. Following magnetic separation of the particles, the aflatoxins were eluted and quantified by UHPLC-MS/MS. The limit of detection is 0.05 μg·kg−1 for aflatoxins B2 and G2, and 0.1 μg·kg−1 for aflatoxins B1 and G1. False-positive samples were identified by UHPLC-MS/MS in the positive ionization mode with multiple reaction monitoring.

We describe a method for determination of four aflatoxins by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Determination of aflatoxins was accomplished by the magnetic dummy molecularly imprinted polymers, followed by a magnetic separation and subsequent quantification by UHPLC-MS/MS.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No: 21505026 and 21275057) and Medical Science and Technology Project of Guangzhou (No: 20141 A010055).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, 510440, China

    Lei Tan, Rong He, Kuncai Chen, Rongfei Peng, Cong Huang & Rong Yang

  2. MOE Key Laboratory of Laser Life Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    Youwen Tang

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  1. Lei Tan
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  2. Rong He
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  3. Kuncai Chen
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  4. Rongfei Peng
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Correspondence to Lei Tan.

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Tan, L., He, R., Chen, K. et al. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography combined with mass spectrometry for determination of aflatoxins using dummy molecularly imprinted polymers deposited on silica-coated magnetic nanoparticles. Microchim Acta 183, 1469–1477 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-016-1790-y

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