Melamine detection by mid- and near-infrared (MIR/NIR) spectroscopy: a quick and sensitive method for dairy products analysis including liquid milk, infant formula, and milk powder

Melamine (2,4,6-triamino-1,3,5-triazine) is a nitrogen-rich chemical implicated in the pet and human food recalls and in the global food safety scares involving milk products. Due to the serious health concerns associated with melamine consumption and the extensive scope of affected products, rapid and sensitive methods to detect melamine's presence are essential. We propose the use of spectroscopy data-produced by near-infrared (near-IR/NIR) and mid-infrared (mid-IR/MIR) spectroscopies, in particular—for melamine detection in complex dairy matrixes. None of the up-to-date reported IR-based methods for melamine detection has unambiguously shown its wide applicability to different dairy products as well as limit of detection (LOD) below 1 ppm on independent sample set. It was found that infrared spectroscopy is an effective tool to detect melamine in dairy products, such as infant formula, milk powder, or liquid milk. ALOD below 1 ppm (0.76 ± 0.11 ppm) can be reached if a correct spectrum preprocessing (pretreatment) technique and a correct multivariate (MDA) algorithm—partial least squares regression (PLS), polynomial PLS (Poly-PLS), artificial neural network (ANN), support vector regression (SVR), or least squares support vector machine (LS-SVM)—are used for spectrum analysis. The relationship between MIR/NIR spectrum of milk products and melamine content is nonlinear. Thus, nonlinear regression methods are needed to correctly predict the triazine-derivative content of milk products. It can be concluded that mid- and near-infrared spectroscopy can be regarded as a quick, sensitive, robust, and low-cost method for liquid milk, infant formula, and milk powder analysis.     

Determination of Melamine and Derivatives in Foods by Liquid Chromatography Coupled to Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry and Diode Array Detection

Two liquid chromatographic methods based on atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry (LC-APCI-MS) and diode array detection (DAD) are evaluated for the rapid determination of melamine (MEL) and structurally related compounds, including ammeline (AMN), ammelide (AMD), and cyanuric acid (CA) in foods. Both procedures used ion-exchange LC and isocratic elution. Samples were extracted by homogenization with acetonitrile/water/diethylamine. Specificity was demonstrated for LC-MS by the retention characteristics and MS spectra, by comparing with commercial standards. Specificity was only demonstrated in the case of LC-DAD for MEL and AMN, considering the retention characteristics and UV spectra. The recoveries obtained for spiked samples were satisfactory for all the analytes with LC-MS. The proposed procedure, LC-APCI-MS, was successfully applied to the analysis of different baby foods, including infant formula and breakfast cereal, and samples of rice flour, potato starch, soya drink, and coconut drink.     

Development of a high performance liquid chromatography method and a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method with pressurized liquid extraction for simultaneous quantification and confirmation of cyromazine, melamine and its metabolites in foods of animal origin

Simple and sensitive methods have been developed for simultaneous detection of cyromazine, melamine and their metabolites (ammeline, ammelide and cyanuric acid) in samples of animal origins. These include a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method and a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method and are useful in regular monitoring and in toxicity studies of these molecules. Representative samples used in this study include muscles and livers of swine, bovine, sheep and chicken, kidneys of swine, bovine and sheep, and milk powder. A new sample preparation procedure with pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) at 1400psi and 70°C was investigated. Quantification of these five compounds by HPLC was achieved using an APS-2 column with UV detection at 230 nm. Limit of detection (LOD) was at 10 μgkg(-1), and limit of quantification (LOQ) was at 40 μgkg(-1). Recoveries of the five analytes in spiked samples ranged from 72.2% to 115.4% with RSD less than 12%. Confirmatory analysis of the analytes was performed using LC-MS/MS in selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode. The LOD and LOQ were 5 μgkg(-1) and 15 μgkg(-1), respectively. This is the first simultaneous analysis of cyromazine, melamine, ammeline, ammelide and cyanuric acid residues in complex tissue samples using PLE and HPLC. It is expected that these methods will find many practical applications in evaluating the safety of cyromazine, melamine and their metabolites.     

Development of nanofibrillated cellulose coated with gold nanoparticles for measurement of melamine by SERS

The objective of this study was to develop nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC)-based substrate for rapid detection of melamine in milk by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). NFC were served as a highly porous platform to load with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), which can be used as a flexible SERS substrate with nanoscale roughness to generate strong electromagnetic field in SERS measurement. The NFC/AuNP substrate was characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy and electron microscopy. Milk samples contaminated by different concentrations of melamine were measured by SERS coupled with NFC/AuNP substrate. The spectral data analysis was conducted by multivariate statistical analysis [i.e. partial least squares (PLS)]. Satisfactory PLS result for quantification of melamine in milk was obtained (R = 0.9464). The detection limit for melamine extracted from liquid milk by SERS is 1 ppm, which meets the World Health Organization’s requirement of melamine in liquid milk. These results demonstrate that NFC/AuNP substrate has improved homogeneity and can be used in SERS analysis for food safety applications.     

Membrane sampling with microdialysis coupled to HPLC/UV for on-line simultaneous determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in non-dairy coffee creamer

An on-line microdialysis/high-performance liquid chromatography method was developed for the simultaneous determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in non-dairy coffee creamer. To collect these analytes from aqueous samples, the microdialysis system featured a microdialysis probe incorporating a polyarylethersulfone membrane and employed 0.05 M HCl in 0.1% (v/v) MeOH as the perfusate, with optimal efficiency obtained at a flow rate of 1 μL min(-1). The chromatographic conditions were optimized when using a reverse-phase phenyl column and a mobile phase of phosphate buffer solution in 10% (v/v) MeOH, buffered at pH 3.0. Good linearity relationship (r(2) > 0.9987), intra- and inter-day precisions (RSDs < 6.6%), recoveries (96.9 - 105.0%), and limits of detection (melamine, 3 ppb; cyanuric acid, 150 ppb) were observed for the two analytes. This method has been successfully applied to simultaneous determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in commercial creamers with the recoveries in the range of 97.5 to 102.6%.     

水热法简单高效合成三聚氰酸

以三聚氰胺为原料,通过热聚合和水热处理,简单高效地合成了三聚氰酸。 通过用X射线单晶衍射(XRD)、核磁共振波谱仪(NMR)、傅里叶变换红外光谱仪(FTIR)、质谱和元素分析仪对产物进行了结构表征。 在最优的水热反应温度140 ℃下,反应2 h,总产率可达54%。 该合成方法工艺简单,污染少,为工业制备三聚氰酸提供了一种新的参考方案。     

Rapid analysis of melamine in infant formula by sweeping-micellar electrokinetic chromatography

In the present study, an analytical method using capillary electrophoresis with on-line preconcentration technique was developed for rapid determination of melamine in infant formula. Both stacking and sweeping preconcentration techniques had been investigated for the comparison of their effectiveness in melamine analysis. The limit of detection of melamine standard was 0.5 ng/mL for the field amplified sample stacking (FASS) technique and 9.2 ng/mL for the sweeping technique. Although the FASS technique provided better concentration efficacy than the sweeping technique, the matrix effect was more profound with the former. Matrix effect was evaluated by comparing the enhancement factor (EF) of melamine standard and post-extraction spiked infant formula solution. The EF was changed from 429.86 ± 9.81 to the level less than 133.31 with significant peak distortion in the FASS system, and it was remained unchanged in the sweeping system. Sweeping-micellar electrokinetic chromatography (sweeping-MEKC) was demonstrated to be most suitable for real sample analysis. Under optimum sweeping-MEKC conditions, melamine content in infant formulas could be determined within 6 min. The developed solid phase extraction (SPE) procedures coupled with the sweeping-MEKC method was subjected to method validation. Run-to-run repeatability (n = 3) and day-to-day reproducibility (n = 3) of peak area were within 3.6% and 4.8% RSD, respectively. The accuracy was tested by spiking 0.5 and 2 μg/mL of melamine standard in the melamine contaminated milk powder provided by the European Commission, and the recoveries were 93.4 ± 0.5% and 98.7 ± 0.4%, respectively. Results of this study show a great potential for the sweeping-MEKC method as a tool for the fast screening of melamine in infant formulas.     

Preliminary study on application of mid infrared spectroscopy for the evaluation of the virgin olive oil "freshness"

The freshness of virgin olive oils (VOO) from typical cultivars of Garda regions was evaluated by attenuated total reflectance (ATR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, in combination with multivariate analysis. The olive oil freshness decreased during storage mainly because of oxidation processes. In this research, 91 virgin olive oils were packaged in glass bottles and stored either in the light or in the dark at room temperature for different periods. The oils were analysed, before and after storage, using both chemical methods and spectroscopic technique.Classification strategies investigated were partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), and soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA).The results show that ATR-MIR spectroscopy is an interesting technique compared with traditional chemical index in classifying olive oil samples stored in different conditions. In fact, the FTIR PCA results allowed a better discrimination among fresh and oxidized oils, than samples separation obtained by PCA applied to chemical data. Moreover, the results obtained by the different classification techniques (PLS-DA, LDA, SIMCA) evidenced the ability of FTIR spectra to evaluate the olive oil freshness. FTIR spectroscopy results are in agreement with classical methods. The spectroscopic technique could be applied for the prediction of VOOs freshness giving information related to chemical modifications. The great advantages of this technique, compared to chemical analysis, are related to rapidity, non-destructive characteristics and low cost per sample. In conclusion, ATR-MIR represents a reliable, cheap and fast classification tool able to assess the freshness of virgin olive oils.     

亲水作用色谱-串联质谱法同时测定液态奶中三聚氰酸和三聚氰胺

建立了亲水作用色谱-串联质谱同时测定液态奶中三聚氰酸和三聚氰胺的方法。液态奶样品经体积分数2.5%甲酸溶液提取、离心后乙腈稀释,亲水作用色谱柱分离,电喷雾串联四极杆质谱检测器检测,分别在负、正离子模式下测定三聚氰酸和三聚氰胺。三聚氰酸和三聚氰胺分别在0.5～100μg/L、0.1～50μg/L范围内线性关系良好。在0.25～15mg/kg、0.1～7.5mg/kg添加水平范围内,三聚氰酸平均回收率为84.5%～98.0%(RSD为2.1%～6.1%),三聚氰胺平均回收率为85.5%～88.9%(RSD为3.2～5.8%)。三聚氰酸、三聚氰胺定量限分别为0.25mg/kg、0.1mg/kg。     

Melamine contamination

In the summer of 2008, serious illnesses and deaths of babies in China were linked to melamine-tainted powdered infant formula. Melamine contains several metabolites, such as ammeline, ammelide, and cyanuric acid, and has been used for the adulteration of foods or milk to increase their apparent protein content. It is assumed that melamine and its metabolites are absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract, and precipitate in the kidney to form crystals. A new tolerable daily intake of 0.2 mg kg^?1 body weight was adapted by the World Health Organization in 2008. This paper reviews the variety of analytical methods that have been used for the analysis of melamine in food. The limit of detection of these various methods is 0.05–100 ppm. The maximum acceptable concentration in food has been set at 50 ppb by the US FDA. A fast and ultrasensitive procedure for screening, detection, and characterization of melamine and its derivative compounds needs to be established. Currently, mass-spectrometry technologies provide an alternative to derivatization for regulatory analysis of food.     

Naked eye sensing of melamine using rationally tailored gold nanoparticles: hydrogen-bonding and charge-transfer recognition

A highly sensitive analytical method based on Au nanoparticles rationally tailored with recognition elements uracil-5-carboxylic acid (UCA) and 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS) for the visual sensing of melamine at the parts-per-billion (ppb) level is described. The tailored Au nanoparticles function as an excellent color indicating reporter and it recognizes the target analytes by triple hydrogen-bonding or charge-transfer interaction in aqueous solution. The interaction of melamine with UCA- or TNBS-tailored reporters induces a rapid visible color change due to the aggregation of reporters. The color change was spectrally monitored to precisely quantify the amount of melamine. The charge-transfer interaction of melamine with TNBS-tailored reporter brings a remarkable change in the spectral signature even at the ppb level. Such an interaction paves the way for the detection of melamine at the 5 ppb level, which is well below the safety limit set by UN food standard commission. This method is highly selective and the common interfering analytes such as cyanuric acid, cytosine, glucose, thymine, uracil, etc., do not interfere in the sensing of melamine. The practical utility of the method is demonstrated by quantifying the amount melamine in real samples.     

Determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in powdered milk using injection-port derivatization and gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry with furan chemical ionization

A reliable, sensitive and eco-friendly injection-port trimethylsilylated (TMS) derivatization and gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) with furan chemical ionization (furan-CI) method was developed to determine melamine and cyanuric acid in powdered milk samples. The effects of several parameters related to the TMS-derivatization process (i.e., injection-port temperature, residence time and volume of silylating agent) and of various CI agents were investigated. Addition of a solution (3 μL) of bis(trimethyl)silyltrifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) containing 1% trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS) reagent to a 20-μL extract from the powdered milk sample gave an excellent yield of the tris-TMS-derivatives of melamine and cyanuric acid at an injection-port temperature of 90 °C. Furthermore, using furan as the CI agent in conjunction with tandem mass spectrometry provided the greatest sensitivity and selectivity of detection. The limits of quantitation (LOQs) for melamine and cyanuric acid were 0.5 and 1.0 ng/g in 0.5-g of powdered milk samples, respectively. The recoveries from spiked samples – after simple ultra-sonication with 5% dimethyl sulfoxide in acetonitrile coupled with n-hexane liquid–liquid extraction – ranged from 72% to 93% with relative standard deviations of lower than or equal to 18%. In three of four real powdered milk samples, melamine was detected at concentrations ranging from 36 to 1460 ng/g; and cyanuric acid was detected in two of these samples at concentrations of 17 and 180 ng/g.     

气相色谱-质谱法快速测定牛奶中的三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸

建立了气相色谱-质谱法测定牛奶中三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸含量的分析方法。样品经二乙胺-乙腈-水溶液超声提取,离心,滤液用氮气吹干后加入硅烷化衍生试剂衍生,气相色谱-质谱测定,选择离子模式监测,外标法定量。在0.025～2 mg/kg范围内,目标物的峰面积与其质量浓度的线性关系良好(r>0.98);在0.5,1.0和2.5 mg/kg的添加水平,三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸的平均回收率分别为84%～87%和75%～102%,相对标准偏差(RSD)分别为5.7%～11.7%和4.9%～7.8%;三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸的检出限(LOD)分别为0.05 mg/kg和0.10 mg/kg。结果表明:该方法简便、快速、灵敏、准确,适合牛奶中三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸的确证和定量测定。     

Simultaneous determination and confirmation of melamine and cyanuric acid in animal feed by zwitterionic hydrophilic interaction chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry

We developed a new method to analyze animal feed and feed ingredients for melamine and cyanuric acid. The method is capable of extracting and detecting both melamine and cyanuric acid in a single procedure, whether present as free compounds or bound together as the melamine:cyanurate complex. A novel chromatographic system based on zwitterionic hydrophilic interaction chromatography (ZIC-HILIC) columns enables separation and detection of both compounds in one run. Samples are extracted with a strong aqueous acid which is then diluted to bring the concentration within the working range of the method. The method is applicable over the range of 0.5 to 50 micrograms/gram (microg/g). Samples at higher concentrations may be diluted into this range, which is equivalent to 3.6-360 ng/mL in the injection solvent. Analytes are detected using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. The data confirm the presence of both compounds according to criteria recommended by the US FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine. The LC/MS/MS method provides an alternative to derivatization and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for regulatory analysis of feed samples. Published in 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous determination of cyromazine,melamine and their biodegradation products by ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatography

An ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection method for the determination of cyromazine, melamine and its biodegradation products (ammeline, ammelide, cyanuric acid and biuret) was developed. C18 column was utilised to separate the six analytes with a mobile phase consisting of perchloric acid-ammonia solution and acetonitrile, under gradient elution and variable flow rate. The detection wavelengths were 205 nm for cyanuric acid and biuret and 222 nm for cyromazine, melamine, ammeline and ammelide. For analysis of sediment samples, the extraction solution containing acetonitrile, ammonia and water (80:10:10 by volume) was used to extract the analytes from sediment matrix. Using the extraction method for the spiked sediment sample, high linearity of matrix-matched standard curve could be obtained for the six analytes. The method detection limit was 0.1 μg g^?1 for melamine and cyromazine, 0.2 μg g^?1 for ammeline and ammelide, 1.2 μg g^?1 for cyanuric acid and 1.0 μg g^?1 for biuret in sediment matrix. The recoveries of these compounds were 70.1–98.3% and the relative standard deviations were 0.5–4.4%. Finally, the proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of the sediment sample near the wastewater outlet of a melamine-producing factory.     

Fast quantitative determination of melamine and its derivatives by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

A simple, sensitive and fast method for the determination of melamine and its derivatives in milk powder using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) was developed. Neither time-consuming sample preparation, nor special target plates, or other extra equipment are necessary. The common matrix sinapinic acid (SA) was used with a dried-droplet preparation. Detection limits (signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio = 3) for standard solutions of melamine, ammeline and cyanuric acid were 10, 25 and 10 μg/L, respectively. The limit of quantification (LOQ) for melamine was 25 μg/L and excellent linearity (R(2): 0.9990) was maintained over the range of 10-2000 μg/L. Ammeline and cyanuric acid were analyzed with an LOQ of 50 μg/L and also excellent linearity (R(2): 0.9997 and R(2): 0.9998). Good accuracy and precision were obtained for all concentrations within the range of the standard curve. The developed method was successfully used for the determination of melamine, ammeline and cyanuric acid in milk powder samples with a simple sample preparation. The LOQ of melamine was 0.5 μg/g. Ammeline and cyanuric acid were detectable at 0.5 and 5 μg/g. This method showed excellent accuracy, precision and linearity and significantly reduces the needed analysis time, as only approximately 10 s/sample measuring time is required. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first published method to quantify melamine and derivatives by MALDI-TOF-MS.     

Melamine and Cyanuric Acid in Foodstuffs and Pet Food: Method Validation and Sample Screening

Hazardous levels of melamine in food and feed products have been of great concern after the outbreak of contamination reported in Chinese commodities in 2008. Despite the existence of several analytical methods for melamine (MEL) detection in food, few provide a full validation data set, especially when MEL and cyanuric acid (CYA) are analyzed simultaneously. The aim of this study was to validate an analytical methodology for MEL and CYA analysis in foodstuffs by GC-MS after trimethylsilylation with N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. Linearity was obtained in the range of 0.4 to 800 mg/kg for both compounds, with limits of detection (LODs) of 0.15 and 0.05 mg/kg for MEL and CYA, respectively. Screening in 20 food products [3 soya milk powder, 1 baby milk powder, 3 soya powder, 13 diversified cookies and biscuits (8 from China and 2 from Portugal), and 3 dog food) revealed MEL incidence in 55% of the cases, with a maximum concentration of 3.4 mg/kg. CYA was not detected in all samples.     

Synthesis of cyclic bis- and trismelamine derivatives and their complexation properties with barbiturates

Cyclic bis- and trismelamine derivatives were prepared from cyanuric chloride by stepwise substitutions with appropriate amines. The complexation abilities of these melamine derivatives with barbituric acid derivatives were evaluated by UV-vis spectroscopy and (1)H NMR. The structure was also confirmed by X-ray crystallography. Both the acyclic and the cyclic bismelamine derivatives formed a 1 : 1 complex via six hydrogen bonds with barbituric acid derivatives. van't Hoff analyses on the complexation of the bismelamines with the barbituric acid derivative revealed that the complexation of the cyclic bismelamine was entropically favored and enthalpically less favored process than those of the acyclic bismelamine. X-Ray crystallographic analysis and (1)H NMR studies revealed that the cyclic trismelamine bound one barbituric acid derivative into the cavity via six hydrogen bonds by two melamine moieties and another barbituric acid via three hydrogen bonds by the residual melamine moiety.     

Detection of melamine in milk by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy coupled with magnetic and Raman-labeled nanoparticles

A new method based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has been developed for sensitive and rapid detection of melamine. Spherical magnetic-core gold-shell nanoparticles (AuNPs) and rod-shaped gold nanoparticles (nanorods) labeled with a Raman-active compound were used to form a complex with the melamine molecules. 5,5'-Dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) was used as Raman-active compound because it is readily adsorbed by a gold nanoparticle surface forming a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) and has strong Raman scattering at 1330 cm(-1), because of the symmetric NO(2) stretch. The calibration curve was obtained by plotting Raman band area at 1330 cm(-1) against melamine concentration. A linear relationship was obtained with a high determination coefficient (R(2)=0.997). The method was validated for linearity, sensitivity, precision (intra-day and inter-day repeatability), and recovery. In the model system, the limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) were 0.38 and 1.27 mg L(-1), respectively. For melamine-spiked milk samples, LOD and LOQ values were 0.39 mg L(-1) and 1.30 mg L(-1), respectively. Intra and inter-day precision were 3.73 and 4.94 %, respectively. This method was applied to samples of skimmed milk that had been spiked with melamine at different concentrations. The recovery of the method was 95-109 % in the concentration range 2-15 mg L(-1), and average RSD was 1.71 %. Total analysis time was less than 15 min.     

固相萃取-亲水相互作用色谱/串联质谱法同时测定食品中三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸

建立了固相萃取-亲水相互作用色谱/串联质谱同时测定食品中三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸残留量的方法。采用乙腈和水提取试样中残留的三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸,正己烷脱脂,提取液经亲水性键合硅胶和阳离子交换树脂复合填料柱(MCT柱)净化。采用亲水相互作用色谱柱进行分离,质谱采用正、负离子切换模式电离,多反应监测模式检测,同位素内标法定量。三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸在10～2500 μg/L范围内呈线性相关,相关系数(r)均大于0.99,定量限分别为25和50 μg/kg。本方法在动物源性食品、植物源性食品、乳及乳制品等不同样品中的三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸高、中、低3个添加水平的回收率分别在70.0%～129.6%和70.0%～128.6%之间,相对标准偏差分别在1.4%～23.3%和2.8%～18.7%之间。该方法可满足食品中三聚氰胺和三聚氰酸同时定量测定的需要。