No abstract

No abstract

The search on endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in non-fatty food was evaluated. A fast, high-throughput, accurate, multiresidue method for the analysis of selected EDC pesticides in fruit and vegetable food samples was developed. The QuEChERS technique was used for sample preparation. Fast GC-MS was performed with a narrow-bore capillary column and a quadrupole benchtop detector with electron ionization (EI) and negative chemical ionization (NCI). A part of the work was devoted to the comparison of NCI versus EI approach concerning the sensitivity of detection and to the study of selectivity enhancement in NCI mode. Matrix-matched standard solutions were utilized for calibration. The methods validation was performed. Fortification studies at 1, 5, 10 and 250 mg kg À1 for 35 pesticides in EI mode and 0.1, 1, 5 and 250 mg kg À1 for 28 pesticides in NCI mode were performed. Average recoveries for each fortification level ranged from 70 to 110% with 480% of recoveries between 90 and 110%. Limits of quantification (LOQs) were established at 5 mg kg À1 for EI and at 1 mg kg À1 for NCI mode, which is lower than the lowest maximum residue level (MRL) value set by the European Commission in fruit and vegetables. The developed and validated fast GC-MS method was successfully applied to the search of EDC pesticides at ultratrace concentration level in real fruit and vegetable samples in Slovakia. Thirty-four samples of 20 different commodities were analyzed. Seven samples contained residues of three or more EDCs pesticides.