Effect of irradiation for sterilization on beverage reference materials for the analysis of food additives

Accreditation and Quality Assurance - Reference materials for proficiency testing (PT) were prepared for 6 years. The target analytes were food additives, sorbic acid, benzoic acid, and...     

Interlaboratory comparison for the determination of pesticide residues in Chinese cabbage

The results of and findings from an interlaboratory comparison among laboratories carrying out food testing of pesticide residues in the APEC (Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation) region are presented and discussed to show critical roles of chemical metrology infrastructure in establishing traceability of measurements and in supporting existing measurement capability in safety and quality of food trade. The study material, which was prepared and certified by Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS), was freeze-dried Chinese cabbage powder fortified with two organophosphorous pesticides (diazinon and chlorpyrifos). Among 14 participants, 12 laboratories were accredited based on ISO/IEC17025 and one laboratory was under assessment for the accreditation at the time of this study. Though all participants demonstrated very good intra-day repeatability and inter-day intermediate precision, many of them showed a large bias from the certified values. It is suggested that in addition to the accreditation system, economies are encouraged to develop appropriate chemical metrology infrastructure, which could effectively support laboratories to assure measurement traceability to SI, for which NMIs could play significant roles through their metrological services recognized in Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) of the International Committee for Weights and Measures (Comité International des Poids et Mesures, CIPM).     

Evaluation of the internal temperatures of an 8.6 kDa protein cation exposed to a hot dispenser cathode employed in electron capture dissociation mass spectrometry

The 'effective' internal temperature of an 8.6 kDa ubiquitin cation was estimated under electron capture dissociation (ECD) conditions, in which a dispenser cathode electron source was mounted just outside an ion cyclotron resonance (ICR) cell, i.e., axially displaced at a distance less than 1 cm from the rear trap plate of the ICR cell. In this ECD configuration, thermal activation of the molecular ions stored in the ICR cell was anticipated since the heated dispenser cathode (T(cathode surface) > 1000 degrees C) emitted a large amount of (both visible and infrared) radiation as well as electrons. An evaluation of the internal temperature of ubiquitin 6+ and 7+ cations was made by comparing our ECD fragmentation patterns with those obtained by McLafferty et al. (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002; 124: 6407) as a function of the ion temperature. In McLafferty's configuration, the heating (or thermal activation) effect of their filament source was minimal since the filament was displaced by a distance as far as 70 cm from their ICR cell. A careful comparison reveals that the fragmentation patterns obtained in this work are very similar to those previously measured at T approximately 125 degrees C. In terms of sequence coverage, our ECD configuration provides better results, and in particular without the aid of any other simultaneous activation method, such as thermal heating, infrared multiphoton irradiation, or collisional activation, except for the visible and infrared radiation from the heated cathode.     

An uncertainty evaluation for multiple measurements by GUM

An approach for uncertainty evaluation is proposed to determine the overall uncertainty by combining the uncertainties of the individual results from multiple measurements. It is accomplished by the separate combinations of the individual random and systematic components of the uncertainties of the individual results. The approach is useful when the individual results are not statistically different. It is recognized that, owing to the correlation, the uncertainty resulting from systematic effects is not reduced by multiple measurements. On the contrary, the uncertainty resulting from random effects can be reduced. Received: 3 May 2002 Accepted: 16 July 2002     

Determination of serum cortisol using isotope dilution–liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry as a candidate reference method

We propose isotope-dilution mass spectrometry as a candidate reference method for determination of serum cortisol. The method uses liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS), interfaced with electrospray ionization, and selective monitoring of the [M+H]⁺ ions of cortisol and isotopically labeled cortisol. The isotope-dilution–liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (ID–LC–MS) method simplifies sample-preparation, because samples are processed by simple solvent extraction without further clean-up and derivatization. We studied the time required for complete equilibration of endogenous cortisol and labeled cortisol spiked into serum and found it to be less than 1 h. The repeatability and the reproducibility of the method were evaluated and found to be 0.55% of the measurement value. CRM 192 and 193 from the Bureau Communautaire de Reference were analyzed for verification of the method. The results obtained from the ID–LC–MS method agreed with the certified values. The relative uncertainty of measurement results for samples in the range of a few tens of micrograms per kilogram to several hundred micrograms per kilogram was evaluated and found to be 0.56%. Immunoassay carried out by three independent clinical laboratories produced results more than 15% higher than this ID–LC–MS method, suggesting the presence of bias in the immunoassay methods.     

Development of a certified reference material for the determination of acrylamide in potato chips

A certified reference material (CRM), KRISS CRM 108-10-003, has been developed for analysis of acrylamide in potato chips, as a representative of carbohydrate-rich food cooked in high-temperature oil. The material was prepared by grinding commercially available potato chips to a paste which was then homogenized, bottled in 15-g units, and stored at ?70 °C. Certification, homogeneity and stability testing, were carried out by liquid chromatography–isotope-dilution mass spectrometry (ID-LC–MS). A single ID-LC–MS measurement was performed for each of 10 selected units for certification and homogeneity assessment. The mean measurement result for the 10 bottles, 0.455?±?0.012 mg?kg^?1, was assigned as the certified value of the CRM. The between-bottle homogeneity was 0.8% of the certified value. The within-bottle homogeneity, tested by measuring three replicate sub-samples from each of three randomly selected bottles, was similar to the between-bottle homogeneity. The stability of the CRM under storage conditions (?70 °C) was tested for 21 months and no change in the acrylamide content was observed within the measurement uncertainty. Stability of the CRM at –20 °C (storage at user’s site) and room temperature (for regular use and transportation) was also tested. Also presented is the newly designed procedure for evaluating the uncertainty of the certified value for the characterization scheme used in this study.

Bias reduction in the quantitative analysis of a target analyte present in a limited quantity in human plasma using dual-mode heart-cutting two-dimensional liquid chromatography coupled with isotope dilution mass spectrometry

Dual-mode heart-cutting two-dimensional liquid chromatography (DMHC 2D-LC) was applied to isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) to reduce the bias in the quantitative analysis of a target analyte present in a limited quantity in human plasma. Based on a Waters I-Class LC system, the DMHC 2D-LC system was operated in one- and two-dimensional modes to facilitate the determination of heart-cutting time and the efficient trapping of the target LC eluate. Experiments to determine the feasibility of coupling with IDMS were performed with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry using folic acid standards and/or ¹³C₅-folic acid. To validate the performance of the DMHC 2D-LC/IDMS system on a complex sample, human plasma was analyzed for folic acid and the result was compared with that obtained using conventional single-column LC. The total run time of the DMHC 2D-LC system was 20 min, the same as that of the single-column LC system. The peak profile of the spiked ¹³C₅-folic acid obtained with single-column LC/MS was affected by matrix effects, but resolved with DMHC 2D-LC/MS, thus improving the accuracy of the analysis. The DMHC 2D-LC/IDMS system showed reliable performance in analyzing the target analyte in human plasma, eliminating matrix effects and saving analysis time.     

Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance detection of multiphoton ionization spectroscopy

Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) detection was tested for resonanceenhanced multiphoton ionization (REMPI) spectroscopy. The (2+1) REMPI spectra of acetaldehyde were obtained in the wavelength range 364–354 nm via a two-photon resonant 3s ← n Rydberg transition. The space-charge effects on the REMPI spectra were examined in the vicinity of the 0 ₀ ⁰ transition. The trapping efficiency measurement shows that all the ions produced from REMPI dissociation processes are arrested in the ion cyclotron resonance cell even in the presence of space-charge interactions. Axial kinetic energy release distributions of ions were extracted from the trapping efficiency data obtained under a new space-charge-free condition. FT-ICR peak heights were measured as a function of pressure at different laser powers, magnetic field strengths, and ion excitation methods to test for the detection linearity. The FT-ICR detection responds linearly to the number of ions in a low pressure limit. The product branching ratio was measured by using various ion excitation methods and was compared with the previous quadrupole mass spectrometric study. FT-ICR detection yields the mass-selected REMPI spectra and the product branching ratio in the absence of kinetic shifts.