Penicillic acid in fruits: Method development, validation by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and survey in southern China.

Penicillic acid in fruits: Method development, validation by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and survey in southern China.

J Sci Food Agric. 2020 Nov 02;:

Authors: Guan W, You Y, Li J, Hong J, Wu H, Rao Y

Abstract
BACKGROUND: Penicillic acid (PA) is produced by Aspergillus spp. and Penicillum spp., which are common postharvest and storage fungi of fruits. PA can be of concern for human health due to its toxicity and high fruit consumption by the population. However, no data on PA occurrence in various fruits was yet reported. A quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) approach for PA determination in various fruits was developed and applied to explore PA incidence in fruits.
RESULTS: The modified QuEChERS procedure with extraction by ethyl acetate and purification by multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), primary secondary amino (PSA), and octadecyl silane (C18) was established to determine PA in various fruits by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The average recoveries were 72.9-102.2% and relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 1.3-7.9%. A total of 161 fruits samples, including kiwi, apple, peach, grape, and mandarins/orange, were collected in southern China. The incidence of PA in fruits was 14.9%, and the levels of PA contamination were 0.200-0.596 μg·kg-1 . Our results suggested that orange/mandarins, grape, and kiwi were favorable matrices for Aspergillus spp. and Penicillum spp. to produce PA, rather than peach and apple.
CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report about PA contamination in various fruits in China. Our study emphasized the necessity of the current established method, which could be used for continuous monitoring of PA and reducing the health risk to Chinese consumers. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

PMID: 33140404 [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]

Source: Industry