Quantitative determination of polychlorinated biphenyls in chicken based on QuEChERS extraction and GC-MS/MS detection

Abstract

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), a class of synthetic organic compounds consisting of chlorine atoms on two coupled biphenyl rings, have been declared class A carcinogens by the World Health Organization. Here, we report a new method for the determination of PCBs content in chicken. The method employs QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) extraction, followed by gas chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) detection for the identification and quantification of seven indicative PCBs (PCB28, PCB52, PCB101, PCB118, PCB138, PCB153, PCB180). The PCBs were extracted by acetone with an Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) extraction kit, followed by a clean-up step using primary secondary amine, octadecyl silica, florisil, and anhydrous magnesium sulfate. PCBs in the extracts were subsequently quantified by GC-MS/MS. The method was validated, and the correlation coefficients of the curves were found to be higher than 0.99. The limits of detection for the seven indicative PCBs ranged from 0.1 to 0.5 ng/g, and the limits of quantification were 0.3–1.5 ng/g. Satisfactory recovery rates ranged from 96% to 115%, with a maximum relative standard deviation of 9%. For simple pretreatment and accurate detection, this method is quick and efficient in detecting batches of seven indicative PCBs in chicken.