Search

Background: For nutritional purposes, the measurement of vitamin D3 (defined as the sum of vitamin D3 and previtamin D3) is required to obtain an accurate and reliable estimate of its content in foods. An often neglected aspect in the development of methods for the analysis of vitamin D3 is accounting for any potential analytical bias in the results associated with differential thermal isomerization between previtamin D and vitamin D., Conclusions: For LC-UV methods using a vitamin D2 internal standard, cold saponification, or direct lipid extraction techniques should be avoided, unless chromatographic separation of vitamin D2, vitamin D3, and their previtamin forms is achieved so that UV absorbance corrections can be made. For both LC-UV and LC-MS methods using calciferol internal standards, the simplest solution to avoid analytical bias due to the presence of previtamin D is to utilize heating conditions (typically during saponification) such that previtamin D and vitamin D in the sample and the internal standard reach an equivalent equilibrium state prior to instrumental analysis. Only under such circumstances is the integration of previtamin D unnecessary to obtain accurate results for vitamin D3., Highlights: A detailed discussion of the quantitation of vitamin D3 in food with concise recommendations for avoiding measurement bias as a consequence of differential thermal isomerization., (© AOAC INTERNATIONAL 2020. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

A method for the determination of vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 in fortified milk powders and infant and adult nutritional formulas is described. Samples are saponified at high temperature and lipid-soluble components are extracted into isooctane. A portion of the isooctane layer is transferred and washed, and an aliquot of 4-phenyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione is added to derivatize the vitamin D to form a high-molecular-mass, easily ionizable adduct. The vitamin D adduct is then re-extracted into a small volume of acetonitrile and analyzed by RPLC. Detection is by tandem MS, using multiple reaction monitoring. Stable isotope-labeled vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 internal standards are used for quantitation to correct for losses in extraction and any variation in derivatization and ionization efficiencies. A single-laboratory validation of the method using AOAC Stakeholder Panel on Infant Formula and Adult Nutritionals (SPIFAN) kit samples was performed and compared with parameters defined according to the vitamin D Standard Method Performance Requirements (SMPR(®)). Linearity was demonstrated over the range specified in the SMPR, with the LOD being estimated at below that required. Method spike recovery (vitamin D2, 97.0-99.2%; and vitamin D3, 96.0-101.0%) and RSDr (vitamin D3, 1.5-5.2%) were evaluated and compared favorably with limits in the vitamin D SMPR. Acceptable bias for vitamin D3 was demonstrated against both the certified value for National Institute of Standards and Technology 1849a Standard Reference material (P(α = 0.05) = 0.25) and AOAC INTERNATIONAL reference method 2002.05 (P(α = 0.05) = 0.09). The method was demonstrated to meet the requirements of the vitamin D SMPR as defined by SPIFAN, and was recently approved for Official First Action status by the AOAC Expert Review Panel on SPIFAN Nutrient Methods.

This paper proposes a mechanism to explain the trace levels of natural semicarbazide occasionally observed in foods. The analytical derivative of semicarbazide, 2-nitrobenzaldehyde semicarbazone, is often measured as a metabolite marker to detect the widely banned antibiotic nitrofurazone. However, this marker is not specific as semicarbazide may be present in foods for several reasons other than exposure to nitrofurazone. In some cases, an entirely natural origin of semicarbazide is suspected, although up until now there was no explanation about how semicarbazide could occur naturally. In this work, semicarbazide is proposed as being generated from natural food compounds via an azine intermediate. Hydrazine, in the form of azines or hydrazones, may be generated in dilute aqueous solution from the natural food compounds ammonia, hydrogen peroxide and acetone, following known oxidation chemistry. When this mixture was prepared in the presence of ureas such as allantoin, urea, biuret or hydroxyurea, and then analysed by the standard method for the determination of semicarbazide, 2-nitrobenzaldehyde semicarbazone was detected. 2-Nitrobenzaldehyde aldazine was also found, and it may be a general marker for azines in foods. This proposal, that azine formation is central to semicarbazide development, provides a convergence of the published mechanisms for semicarbazide. The reaction starts with hydrogen peroxide, peracetic acid, atmospheric oxygen or hypochlorite; generates hydrazine either by an oxaziridine intermediate or via the chlorination of ammonia; and then either route may converge on azine formation, followed by reaction with a urea compound. Additionally, carbamate ion may speculatively generate semicarbazide by reaction with hydrazine, which might be a significant route in the case of the hypochlorite treatment of foods or food contact surfaces. Significantly, detection of 2-nitrobenzaldehyde semicarbazone may be somewhat artefactual because semicarbazide can form during the acid conditions of analysis, which can free hydrazine in the presence of urea compounds.

A method for analysing vitamin D(3) (VD3, cholecalciferol) has been established and validated. This method is rapid and cost effective and is intended for use in quality control in the manufacture of fortified infant formulae and milk powders. Milk or reconstituted milk powder was solubilised in methanol and extracted in one step into isooctane, which was separated by centrifugation. A portion of the isooctane layer was then transferred, and an aliquot of 4-phenyl-1,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione was added to derivatise VD3. The analyte was then re-extracted into a small volume of acetonitrile and analysed by reverse-phase chromatography. Detection was by triple quadrupole mass spectrometer using a selective transition, m/z 560 → 298. An internal standard, deuterium-labelled VD3, was used to correct for losses in extraction and any variation in derivatisation and ionisation efficiencies. The method has been subjected to a single-laboratory validation and has been found to be linear, highly selective and accurate with respect to National Institute of Standards and Technology Standard Reference Material 1849, analyte spiking experiments and comparison with an LC-UV-based method. The repeatability standard deviation was 4.23 %. Significantly for routine laboratories, the method returns results within 2 h, generates minimal waste and minimises health and safety concerns to the analyst.