Determination of Florfenicol, Thiamfenicol and Chloramfenicol at Trace Levels in Animal Feed by HPLC⁻MS/MS.

Rosa Elvira Gavilán,Jose Manuel Miranda,Alberto Cepeda,Beatriz Vazquez,Ewelina Patyra,Carolina Nebot

doi:10.3390/antibiotics8020059

Rosa Elvira Gavilán, Jose Manuel Miranda + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics8020059

Copy DOI

Abstract

Administration of florfenicol and thiamfenicol through medicated feed is permitted within the European Union, always following veterinary prescription and respecting the withdrawal periods. However, the presence of low levels of florfenicol, thiamfenicol, and chloramfenicol in non-target feed is prohibited. Since cross-contamination can occur during the production of medicated feed and according to Annex II of the European Regulation 2019/4/EC, the control of residue levels of florfenicol and thiamfenicol in non-target feed should be monitored and avoided. Based on all the above, a sensitive and reliable method using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry was developed for the simultaneous detection of chloramfenicol, florfenicol, and thiamfenicol at trace levels in animal feed. Analytes were extracted from minced feed with ethyl acetate. Then, the ethyl acetate was evaporated, the residue was resuspended in Milli-Q water and the extract filtered. The method was in-house validated at carryover levels, with concentration ranging from 100 to 1000 µg/kg. The validation was conducted following the European Commission Decision 2002/657/EC and all performance characteristics were successfully satisfied. The capability of the method to detect amfenicols at lower levels than any prior perspective regulation literature guarantees its applicability in official control activities. The developed method has been applied to non-compliant feed samples with satisfactory results.

Highlights

Globalization permits food produced in one country to be sold in other countries, sometimes on an intercontinental level
Low production cost is very important in food of animal origin, for which farmers fight with animal disease
Florfenicol was the only amfenicol detected, and it was detected in one individual sample at a concentration of 0.36 mg/kg. This sample belonged to a group of four samples used to monitor florfenicol carryover after the production of a bath of medicated feed with 80 mg/kg of florfenicol. These results indicated that florfenicol carryover may occur during the manufacture of medicated feed and should be investigated in more detail

Summary

Introduction

Globalization permits food produced in one country to be sold in other countries, sometimes on an intercontinental level. Globalization contributes to competition between production companies. The final goal of any type of business is to have low production cost and high benefits. Low production cost is very important in food of animal origin, for which farmers fight with animal disease. The use of certain veterinary medicine is permitted to control, prevent, and treat illness. The most employed medicines, in this case, include antibiotics and antiparasitic agents

Objectives

Methods

Conclusion