FGBU “VGNKI” DEVELOPED A METHOD FOR DETECTING THE CONTENT OF CHLORAMPHENICOL IN ANIMAL PRODUCTS
The “All-Russian State Centre for Quality and Standardization of Veterinary Drugs and Feed” (FGBU “VGNKI”) developed a method for determining the residual content of chloramphenicol in animal products using high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection (HPLC-MS/MS).
The issue of contamination of food products of animal origin with antimicrobial agents still remains relevant. The main reason for the presence of antibiotics in food is the excessively widespread use of antimicrobial drugs for the treatment and prevention of bacterial diseases of farm animals, as well as stimulating their growth and increasing productivity.
Chloramphenicol is a broad-spectrum antibiotic with high activity against most gram-positive and gram-negative microorganisms. The antibiotic is used for acute gastrointestinal diseases of animals of microbial etiology. Human consumption of food products containing chloramphenicol can lead to allergic reactions, disrupt the intestinal microflora, cause dysbacteriosis and develop other undesirable effects.
In recent years, in many countries there has been a trend to impose strict requirements for quality control and food safety in terms of determining the content of veterinary drugs. Thus, in the countries of the European Union the use of chloramphenicol for treatment of animals is prohibited. According to the provisions of the technical regulations of the Customs Union TR CU 021/2011 “On food safety”, the MRL for chloramphenicol in agricultural products in the Russian Federation is <0.0003 mg/kg.
Despite existing detection methods for this antibiotic, it is still difficult to quantify it at low concentrations. As part of the research work, the staff of the FGBU “VGNKI” managed to identify key factors that make it difficult to determine the minimum amount of the analyzed substance.
During the study, the ionization parameters of the desired compound were optimized, the optimal conditions for chromatographic separation were selected, and the method of sample preparation for the analysis of raw materials of animal origin was improved.
The developed method allows to determine chloramphenicol in animal products (meat, meat products, poultry, eggs, offal, milk, honey, fish and shrimp) in the concentration ranging between 0.1 to 100 μg/kg.
The technique will be used as part of government monitoring of the safety of products of animal origin, as well as for the control of this compound during exports to foreign countries.
