Determination of aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2 by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection

A new approach to the determination of afiatoxins B₁, B₂, G₁ and G₂ is given; the method involves high-performance liquid chromatography with amperometric detection in the differential-pulse mode at the dropping mercury electrode with 1-s drop time. These aflatoxins can be determined simultaneously with good resolution but with some compromise in sensitivity. The detection limit of underivatized aflatoxin standards is around 5 ng. Average recoveries of aflatoxins from peanut butter by the Beebe method were G₂ 81%, G₁ 87%, B₂ 77% and B₁ 76%.