Determination of mycotoxins in feedstuffs and ruminant׳s milk using an easy and simple LC–MS/MS multiresidue method

• Selection of analytes from different chemical classes.
• Easy, economic, short and effective sample preparation step using modern and selective techniques (LC–MS/MS).
• The method was validated successfully as to cover the existing EU MLs.
• A number of concentrates and forage samples were analyzed and found positive for the presence of mycotoxins.
• Most samples were found positive for more than 1 mycotoxin with AFB1, AFG2 and T-2 toxin found more frequently.

Mycotoxin contamination is a common problem on feedstuffs, that can be formed on crops in the field, during harvest, storage, processing or feeding. The scope of the current study was to investigate the levels of Aflatoxin B1, Aflatoxin B2, Aflatoxin G1, Aflatoxin G2, Diacetoxyscirpenol, Ochratoxin A, Toxin HT-2, Toxin T-2 and zearalenone in a variety of feedstuffs (maize silage, alfalfa hay, cottonseed cake, corn grain and concentrates) fed to ruminants and the possible contamination of milk though consumption. For this purpose an easy and simple multiresidue LC–MS/MS method without any clean-up step was developed and successfully validated in feed and milk matrices. The LOQ of the method was set at 10 μg/kg for all analytes and 0.05 μg/kg for Aflatoxin M1 and Ochratoxin A in milk. The results showed that 7 cottonseed cake samples, out of 13 were contaminated with Aflatoxin B1 at a level higher than the maximum levels as set by EU Regulations and with Toxin T-2 with values ranging from 8 to 562 μg/kg. Nine maize silages and 6 alfalfa hay samples were contaminated with Aflatoxin G2 at levels higher than the maximum tolerance limit. No mycotoxins or their metabolites were found above the LOQ in any of the analyzed milk samples.

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