GC-MS determination of organochlorine pesticides in medicinal plants harvested in Brazil

Author(s)

Marili V.N. Rodrigues ^[1] ; Felix G. R. Reyes ^[2] ; Pedro M. Magalhães ^[3] ; Susanne Rath ^[4]

Affiliation

^[1] Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Centro Pluridisciplinar de Pesquisas Químicas, Biológicas e Agrícolas - Brasil

^[2] Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos - Brasil

^[3] Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Centro Pluridisciplinar de Pesquisas Químicas, Biológicas e Agrícolas - Brasil

^[4] Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Instituto de Química - Brasil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society; v. 18, n. 1, p. 135-142, 2007-00-00.

Abstract

A method using Gas Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) for the determination of hexachlorobenzene, lindane, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, 4,4'-DDT and 4,4'-DDE in leaves of Mikania laevigata, Maytenus ilicifolia and Cordia verbenacea was developed. Extraction of the pesticides was carried out by solid-liquid extraction (SLE), followed by clean-up in solid phase mixed cartridge (Florisil and silica-gel). Quantification was performed using GC-MS in the selected ion monitoring mode. Mean recovery rates of 70 to 124% were obtained. The inter-assay precision of a sample fortified with 200 ng g-1 of each pesticide was in the range of 1.0 to 7.3%. The quantitation limits ranged from 3.0 to 30 ng g-1 and were below the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) for all the pesticides under study. The method was employed to analyze samples of Mikania laevigata, Maytenus ilicifolia and Cordia verbenacea from an experimental field in Paulínia, SP, Brazil. The samples presented contamination with dieldrin above the MRL established by the European Pharmacopoeia (50 ng g-1). (AU)