Application of Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry in Food Quality and Food Safety

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Analytical Methods".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 24 March 2025 | Viewed by 3919

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA)-Research Centre for Food and Nutrition, Via Ardeatina 546, 00178 Rome, Italy
Interests: food science; food chemistry; analytical method development and validation; gas chromatography; liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past few decades, there has been significant advancement in chromatography and mass spectrometry technologies, and their global prevalence extends across various domains within analytical chemistry. The combined analytical prowess of these techniques has propelled their application into the realm of food science. Within this field, chromatography and mass spectrometry find extensive use in diverse areas. Key parameters and indicators of food quality undergo thorough examination through these methods, encompassing the analysis of volatile and non-volatile flavor compounds, essential nutrients and micronutrients, bioactive molecules, and nutraceuticals.

Moreover, chromatography and mass spectrometry play a pivotal role in food safety studies. These techniques are instrumental in the analysis of endo- and xenobiotics, including endogenous toxins and antinutrients, residues from the food production chain, metabolites from microorganisms, and various contaminants. Crucially, their application is of paramount importance in ensuring the safety of the food supply.

Lastly, the adoption of a metabolomic approach in food science, primarily leveraging advanced chromatography and exact mass techniques, has witnessed substantial progress. This has significantly enhanced analytical capabilities and deepened our understanding in both the domains of food quality and food safety.

Dr. Josè Sanchez del Pulgar
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • flavor compounds
  • off-flavors
  • nutrients
  • nutraceuticals
  • vitamins
  • bioactives
  • foodomics
  • metabolomics
  • contaminants
  • residues
  • mycotoxins
  • alkaloids
  • self-life

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 741 KiB  
Article
A Comparative Study of LC-MS and FIA-(ESI)MS for Quantitation of S-Allyl-L-Cysteine in Aged Garlic Supplements
by Ignacio Jiménez-Amezcua, Marina Díez-Municio, Ana Isabel Ruiz-Matute and Ana Cristina Soria
Foods 2024, 13(17), 2645; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13172645 - 23 Aug 2024
Viewed by 405
Abstract
The increasing consumption of food supplements demands the development of improved analytical methodologies to ensure their quality and authenticity. In this paper, two new approaches, liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and flow injection analysis-(electrospray ionization) mass spectrometry (FIA-(ESI)MS), were optimized and [...] Read more.
The increasing consumption of food supplements demands the development of improved analytical methodologies to ensure their quality and authenticity. In this paper, two new approaches, liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and flow injection analysis-(electrospray ionization) mass spectrometry (FIA-(ESI)MS), were optimized and validated for their application in the quantitative analysis of bioactive S-allyl-L-cysteine (SAC) in commercial aged garlic supplements (AGS). Although both methodologies were found to be useful for the sensitive and precise quantitation of SAC, the LC-MS approach allowed the differential determination of SAC and its bioactive diastereoisomer, S-1-propenyl-L-cysteine (S1PC), together with the identification of a number of organosulfur compounds typical of garlic. Mass fingerprints by FIA-(ESI)MS were proposed as an advantageous alternative to LC-MS analysis when the fast (4 min/sample) screening of AGS for their SAC content is intended, as in applications aimed at high-throughput quality control or standardization. Finally, the results gathered by the application of these two methodologies evidenced the highly variable composition of commercial AGS, as well as the identification of a number of potential composition frauds affecting their genuineness and benefits on health. Full article
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17 pages, 2409 KiB  
Article
Combination of Standard Addition and Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry for the Accurate Determination of Melamine and Cyanuric Acid in Infant Formula
by Vasilisa Pedan, Rudolf Koehling, Lukas Drexel, Kathrin Breitruck, Alexander Rueck, Sascha Rohn, Olaf Rienitz, Axel Pramann, Tim Seidel, Eric Allenspach and Markus Obkircher
Foods 2024, 13(15), 2377; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13152377 - 27 Jul 2024
Viewed by 491
Abstract
In the melamine scandals of the early 2000s, different companies of the dairy industry cheated their products by applying chemical substances to feign a higher content of nitrogen. However, this had a severe toxic impact on the kidney health of consumers. As a [...] Read more.
In the melamine scandals of the early 2000s, different companies of the dairy industry cheated their products by applying chemical substances to feign a higher content of nitrogen. However, this had a severe toxic impact on the kidney health of consumers. As a result, tremendous effort was put into the prevention of further harm to the public. In the present study, a fast–screening method for the determination of melamine and cyanuric acid in infant formula was developed. While a 1D–LC approach is faster and easier to set up, a 2D–LC approach allows for a more accurate result with better selectivity and sensitivity. For both instrumental approaches, the signal ratio of the isotopologues was crucial and had a dominant effect on the results and the measurement uncertainty. For this reason, the different contributions to the measurement uncertainty were determined experimentally using Matched Standard Addition–IDMS and compared to the Exact Matching Double IDMS. Full article
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11 pages, 3878 KiB  
Article
Mass Spectrometric Study of the Most Common Potential Migrants Extractible from the Inner Coatings of Metallic Beverage Cans
by Monika Beszterda-Buszczak, Małgorzata Kasperkowiak, Artur Teżyk, Natalia Augustynowicz and Rafał Frański
Foods 2024, 13(13), 2025; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13132025 - 26 Jun 2024
Viewed by 2096
Abstract
Population exposure to endocrine disrupting chemical- bisphenols, which are used commonly in food containers and drinking water pipes in Europe, is above acceptable health and safety levels, according to updated research data. In order to evaluate the most abundant potential migrants in canned [...] Read more.
Population exposure to endocrine disrupting chemical- bisphenols, which are used commonly in food containers and drinking water pipes in Europe, is above acceptable health and safety levels, according to updated research data. In order to evaluate the most abundant potential migrants in canned sweetened beverages marketed in Poland, we performed the HPLC-MS screening test of the migrants present in the can coating material. The analyzed samples represented the three top-ranked companies of the global soft drink market; it is reasonable to assume that the obtained data are of global validity. The tested can coatings and beverages contained bisphenols conjugates such as five butoxyethanol (BuOEtOH) adducts with bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE), one butoxyethanol adduct with bisphenol A monoglycidyl ether (BAMGE), and cyclo-di-BADGE. The performed HPLC-MS/MS analysis in the MRM mode enabled evaluation of the concentrations of the detected conjugates in canned beverages which were found to be very low, namely at the level of 1 µg/L. On the other hand, the high consumption of canned beverages may yield a risk associated with the presence of these compounds in the diet. The subsequent HPLC-QTOF-MS/MS experiments allowed, for the first time, a detailed determination of the fragmentation pathways of the detected migrants as well as detection of the isomers of the two migrants, namely BADGE + BuOEtOH and BADGE + BuOEtOH + HCl. Full article
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