Multiclass and multiresidue screening of veterinary drugs and pesticides in infant formula using Quadrupole-Orbitrap MS with PRM scan mode.

A multiclass and multiresidue method for screening veterinary drugs and pesticides in infant formula was developed and validated using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled to Quadrupole-Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). A total of 49 veterinary drugs and pesticides investigated belong to 11 classes including antivirals, anticoccidials, macrolides, pyrethroids, insecticides, sulfonamides, beta-agonists, sedatives, thyreostats, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and other pharmacologically active substances. A generic sample preparation and highly selective acquisition mode of parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) were deliberately incorporated to perform efficient screening analysis. As a result, the screening target concentrations of the analytes varied from 1 to 500 μg/kg with ≤5% of false compliant rate as specified in Decision 2002/657/EC for screening analysis. The average recoveries ranged from 40.7 to 124.9% as well as the relative standard deviations from 4.2 to 26.6%, respectively. The matrix effects and interferences were effectively controlled by integrated application of dispersive solid phase extraction, PRM scan mode, and matrix-matched standard calibration. The proposed method will be helpful to provide applicable strategy for screening residues in infant formula with surveillance purpose.