Integrating a Multiple
Isotopologue Reaction-Monitoring
Technique and LC-MS/MS for Quantitation of Small Molecules: Ten Mycotoxins
in Cereals as an Example
posted on 2024-03-14, 11:05authored byFeifei Sun, Yanshen Li, Haiguang Tan, Peixu Wu, Yingnan Shencheng, Haopeng Lin, Peng Lu, Rong Zhang, Shuyan Liu, Yi Li, Shupeng Yang
Accurate quantification of mycotoxin in cereals is crucial
for
ensuring food safety and human health. However, the preparation of
traditional multisample external calibration curves (MSCCs) is labor-intensive
and error-prone. Here, a multiple isotopologue reaction-monitoring
(MIRM)-LC-MS/MS method for accurate quantitation of ten major mycotoxins
in cereals was successfully developed and validated, where a novel
one-sample multipoint calibration curve (OSCC) strategy is used instead
of MSCCs. The OSCC can be established by examining the correlation
between the calculated theoretical isotopic abundances and the measured
abundance across various MIRM channels. In comparison to the MSCC,
the OSCC strategy exhibits outstanding performance including superior
selectivity, accuracy (78.4–108.6%), and precision (<12.5%).
Furthermore, the proposed OSCC-MIRM-LC-MS/MS method was successfully
applied to investigate mycotoxin contamination in cereal samples in
China. Considering the advantages of simplified workflows and improved
throughput, the OSCC-MIRM-LC-MS/MS methodology holds great promise
for accurately quantifying chemical contaminants in foods.