Developments in the Monitoring of Patulin in Fruits Using Liquid Chromatography: an Overview

Ilona Sadok,Magdalena Staniszewska,Anna Stachniuk

doi:10.1007/s12161-018-1340-9

Abstract

Patulin is a mycotoxin that exhibits a number of toxic effects in animals. The main sources of patulin intake in human diet that was shown for EU consumers are apple juice and nectar and for this reason, apple-based food is most often monitored for this mycotoxin. However, the presence of patulin in other fruits, including stone fruits, and soft fruits has been reported as well. Most of them are seasonal, suitable for consumption for short time, and are usually processed in order to be commercially available throughout the year. Patulin can also be generated during food storage and remains stable over food processing procedures. Therefore, constant monitoring of different fruit-based products ought to be carried out to provide proper estimation of human exposure to this toxin. The preferred approach used for mycotoxin determination in a variety of foods is liquid chromatography (LC) allowing quantitative analysis of patulin content. This paper presents recently proposed LC methods with ultraviolet and mass spectrometric detection for patulin quantification in fruits and derived products. We focus on developments in sample preparation and the applied analytical conditions.

Highlights

Patulin (4 hydroxy 4H-furo[3,2 c]pyran-2(6H)-one) (Fig. 1) is a heterocyclic lactone with molecular weight of 154.12 g mol−1 and low volatility
high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV absorbance detectors and liquid chromatography (LC)-MS/MS systems are frequently used for patulin quantification in fruit commodities, we have summarized below the developments in this field within recent decade
The analysis using the HPLC coupled with ultraviolet (UV) or diode array (DAD) detectors present the most popular chromatographic techniques used for patulin determination in different fruits and their products

Summary

Introduction

Patulin (4 hydroxy 4H-furo[3,2 c]pyran-2(6H)-one) (Fig. 1) is a heterocyclic lactone with molecular weight of 154.12 g mol−1 and low volatility. Patulin determination in complex food matrices (like highly pigmented fruits, jams, marmalades, dried rings) sets new challenges for quantification analysis due to low sensitivity resulting from complex matrices. To overcome these analytical problems, additional improvements in current protocols and development of new methodologies for sample preparation, as well as advanced analytical equipment (i.e., liquid chromatograph coupled with mass spectrometry) are necessary. Consumer risk increases with the possible production of this mycotoxin during fruits storage (Reddy et al 2010) and food processing due to patulin resistance to applied conditions For this reason, different fruits and derived products (juices, purees, ciders, jams, marmalades, vinegars, dried rings) should be monitored for patulin contamination.

HPLC Methods with UV Absorbance Detection

Findings

Conclusions