Determination of Deoxynivalenol and Its Derivative in Corn Flour and Wheat Flour Using Automated On-line Solid-Phase Extraction Combined with LC–MS/MS

An automated on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) combined with LC–MS/MS method was developed for determination of deoxynivalenol (DON), 3-acetyl-DON and 15-acetyl-DON in corn flour and wheat flour samples. The extraction solvent of the samples was injected into the automated on-line SPE system to remove matrix interference. After washing step, the targets were eluted from the SPE cartridge into liquid chromatography (LC) column. Several SPE parameters including injection volume, elution volume and eluting flow rate were assessed and optimized. Method validation was evaluated and good linearity was obtained (R2 > 99%) with the limit of detection of 0.1–0.2 μg/kg. Recoveries were evaluated in spiked corn flour and wheat flour samples at three concentrations and the values ranged from 86.5% to 99.7%. The benefit of the present method with automated on-line SPE system is the ability to inject directly pure extracts into LC–MS/MS, offering faster analyses and improving analysis efficiency.