Detection of p-Nitroaniline Released from Degradation of 4,4′-Dinitrocarbanilide in Chicken Breast during Thermal Processing

Abstract

The diphenylurea 4,4′-dinitrocarbanilide (DNC) is the residue of concern left in edible tissues of broilers fed diets containing the anticoccidial nicarbazin. When chicken meat is submitted to thermal processing, p-nitroaniline (p-NA) is expected from DNC degradation. This work aimed at evaluating whether thermal processing of DNC-containing chicken meat induces p-NA appearance. First, a hydrolysis assay was performed in aqueous solutions at 100 °C in different pH, confirming that DNC cleavage yields p-NA. Then a novel LC-MS/MS method was used to detect traces of this aromatic amine in DNCcontaining chicken breast fillets subjected to cooking methods. Our evidence showed p-NA occurrence in such chicken meat samples, which corroborated results from hydrolysis assay. The p-NA appearance in fillets was rather discrete during boiling treatment, but its concentration became pronounced over time for grilling, frying, and roasting, achieving respectively 326.3, 640.0, and 456.9 μg/kg. As far as we are concerned, no other research identified degradation products from DNC residue in heat-processed chicken fillets. Therefore, this study leads to additional approaches to assess impacts on food safety.

Design, Synthesis, and Characterization of Tracers and Development of a Fluorescence Polarization Immunoassay for Rapid Screening of 4,4′-Dinitrocarbanilide in Chicken Muscle

“…The current analytic methods for the determination of DNC in food matrices utilize high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and HPLC-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) [9][10][11][12][13]. These methods are accurate and sensitive, but require well-equipped laboratories, high capital expenditures, highly trained personnel, and generally involve time consuming sample preparation steps.…”