Residue behavior and dietary intake risk assessment of carbosulfan and its metabolites in cucumber

The residue behavior and dietary intake risks of carbosulfan and its metabolites in cucumbers were investigated. A quick and reliable method for determining carbosulfan and its metabolite residues in cucumbers was established using ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The fortified recoveries ranged from 87.2% to 91.0% with relative standard deviations of 3.2%-8.1%. The dissipation results showed that carbosulfan was transformed into carbofuran and 3-hydroxy carbofuran in cucumbers. The half-life of carbosulfan was 1.5 days, and the half-life of carbofuran was 45 days. The final residues of carbosulfan varied from 0.245 to 0.005 mg/kg and carbofuran varied from 0.123 to 0.008 mg/kg. After a 5-day application period the residues of carbosulfan was 0.113 mg/kg that was below the maximum residue limit set by China (0.2 mg/kg), and the residues of carbofuran was 0.055 mg/kg that was higher than the maximum residue limit set by China (0.02 mg/kg). The risk assessment results indicated that the dietary intake risks of carbosulfan and carbofuran from cucumber consumption were safe for Chinese consumers, but pre-harvest intervals should be strictly recommended for 7 days at the recommended dose to ensure that food quality conforms to the MRL standard. This study provides a method and data for scientifically evaluating dietary intake risks of carbosulfan and its more toxic metabolites.