Determination of cyclamate in foods by ultraperformance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

A highly sensitive and selective method that requires minimal sample preparation was developed for the confirmation and quantitation of cyclamate in a variety of foods by high-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS). Sample preparation consisted of homogenization followed by extraction and dilution of cyclamate with water. HPLC separation was achieved using a bridged ethyl hybrid C18 high-pressure column with a mobile phase consisting of 0.15% acetic acid and methanol. Under electrospray ionization negative conditions, quantitation was achieved by monitoring the fragment m/z = 79.7 while also collecting parent ion m/z = 177.9. Two food matrixes, diet soda and jelly, were subjected to a validation procedure in order to evaluate the applicability of the method. The cyclamate limit of detection for both matrixes was determined to be 0.050 microg/g with a limit of quantitation of 0.150 microg/g. The correlation coefficient of the calibration curves was >0.9998 from 0.0005 to 0.100 microg/mL. The method has been used for the determination of cyclamate in several foods and the results are presented.