A study of the origin of chloramphenicol isomers in honey

Abstract

Due to the unexpected detection of chloramphenicol isomer residues in honey, we have studied the hypothesis of unauthorized or unintended use of unregistered veterinary drug preparations. First, we have investigated honey samples in which a discrepancy was observed between the results of the immunological screening methods and the confirmatory liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method. In all samples, previously identified to be contaminated with the banned antibiotic chloramphenicol according to LC-MS/MS only, the presence of dextramycin (SS-para isomer of chloramphenicol) was detected by chiral LC-MS/MS. The source of dextramycin in honey was investigated by studying the preparations utilized in apiaries from which the above non-compliant honey samples have been received. In all these preparations (beehive strips applied against the mite Varroa destructor) chloramphenicol was detected in the concentrations ranging from 33 to 34,400 μg kg . Chiral LC-MS/MS demonstrated the presence of chloramphenicol and dextramycin in different ratios, and it was concluded that these preparations can be the source of chloramphenicol and dextramycin residues in honey. These preparations were of foreign production and are not officially registered in accordance with current legislation.

The Influence of Chemical Contaminants on the Physicochemical Properties of Unifloral and Multifloral Honey

“…The chloramphenicol residues were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. The analysis was performed in two steps: sample preparation and immunoenzymatic analysis [ 73 , 74 , 75 ].…”

Rapid quantitative detection of chloramphenicol in three food products by lanthanide-labeled fluorescent-nanoparticle immunochromatographic strips

“…The honey samples were prepared using the protocol described by Dmytro Yanovych, 23 with some modifications. First, 2 g of honey sample was dissolved in 3 mL of distilled water; and the honey solution was extracted with 6 mL of ethyl acetate, shaken vigorously for 60 s, and centrifuged at 1000 g for 10 min at RT.…”

Occurrence, toxicity and adsorptive removal of the chloramphenicol antibiotic in water: a review

“…Hence, the human body is more vulnerable, and prone to infections as well as uncontrolled bleeding. Many countries such as the USA, European Union, and Canada have limited the use of chloramphenicol for animal and human therapies (Samsonova et al 2012 ; Yanovych et al 2018 ). However, Samsonova et al ( 2012 ) pointed out that chloramphenicol is still being used in some developing countries for the purposes of aquaculture.…”