Development of QuEChERS/HPLC technique for the determination of veterinary drug residues in beef samples

Abstract

The application of antibiotics in animals for therapeutic and growth promotion purposes and to meet the need to increase meat production has been reported to cause the development of antibiotic resistance and other health risks due to the consumption of poultry products. Therefore, the need for rapid and accurate analytical methods for the determination of drug residues has become necessary. The Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) technique involves liquidliquid extraction by partitioning with acetonitrile, followed by clean-up with a mixture of magnesium sulphate and a primary secondary amine. The extract obtained was then analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The figures of merit of the analytical methodology were determined using optimized parameters and the calibration curve was linear over the tested concentration range. The linearity ranged from 5 to 500 µg/kg for all the drug residues, and the correlation coefficients (r2 ) were greater than 0.99. The limit of detection (LOD) ranged within 1.45 – 5.02 µg/kg while the limit of quantification (LOQ) ranged within 4.68 – 6.72 µg/kg. The inter-day and intra-day precisions for beef samples had respective ranges of 1.94 – 19.03 % and 2.78 - 9.04%, and the average recoveries were from 79.48 to 107.48 %. The selectivity was determined by a blank matrix containing external standards and a sample spiked with target analyte and the results indicate a good selectivity with no interferences.

Keywords

• antibiotics
• hplc
• quechers
• sample preparation
• veterinary drugs