Sample Preparation, Identification, and Determination of Twelve Macrolides in Raw Food Materials and Food Products Using High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

A simple technique for the isolation, identification, and determination of 12 macrolide antibiotics (azithromycin, roxithromycin, josamycin, spiramycin I–III, tilmicosin, tylosin, erythromycin, clarithromycin, tylvalosine, and tulathromycin) in raw food materials and food products is developed based on high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The range of the detected macrolide content is 1–400 ng/g, the limits of detection are 0.01–0.50 ng/g, and the limits of quantification are 0.04–2 ng/g. A scheme for identification and quantification of the detected antibiotics using the standard addition method is proposed. The relative standard deviation of the analysis does not exceed 21%. The duration of the sample screening is 40 min and the time required for quantification of the detected antibiotics is 1.0–1.5 h.