Advances in Automation of Food-related Analysis and Screening

Importance of the Topic

Worldwide incidents of food contamination and product recalls have underscored the critical need for rapid, sensitive, and reliable analytical methods in food safety and quality control. Automated sample preparation techniques that reduce manual labor, speed up workflows, and minimize matrix-related interferences are essential to meet regulatory limits and ensure consumer protection.

Objectives and Study Overview

This review examines the application of turbulent flow chromatography (TFC) coupled with liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to automate sample cleanup and screening of contaminants in various food matrices. It highlights key case studies targeting veterinary drugs, antibiotics, and pesticides.

Methodology and Instrumentation

Turbulent flow chromatography uses narrow-bore columns packed with large particles to generate high linear velocities. Large matrix components pass directly to waste, while small analytes are retained and transferred online to the analytical column. This workflow eliminates offline solid-phase extraction and reduces preparation time from hours to minutes.

• System: Thermo Scientific Transcend TLX with TurboFlow technology.
• Columns: 0.5–1.0 mm ID, large-particle TFC phases.
• Detection: Triple quadrupole LC-MS/MS (e.g., TSQ Quantum Access).

Main Results and Discussion

• Veterinary Drugs: Malachite green, leucomalachite green, ciprofloxacin, and tetracycline in fish, shrimp, and pig liver were analyzed. Total manual prep time was reduced to 30–40 minutes. TFC-LC-MS/MS removed proteins and lipids effectively, lowered ion suppression, and improved detection at parts-per-trillion levels.
• Antibiotics in Honey: Ten antibiotics across sulfonamides, tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, and macrolides were screened after simple dilution. The LC-MS/MS run time was under 18 minutes, with quantitation limits around 1 µg/kg and negligible matrix effects.
• Pesticides in Green Tea: A comparison of TFC with SPE and QuEChERS for 30 pesticide residues showed TFC processed 100 samples in under 3 hours versus days for traditional methods. Analysis of clomazone demonstrated a 3–4-fold increase in signal-to-noise and over 50% higher peak areas due to minimized matrix suppression.

Benefits and Practical Applications

• Automates and shortens sample preparation, eliminating labor-intensive offline SPE.
• Enhances throughput via online cleanup and potential instrument multiplexing.
• Improves method sensitivity, reproducibility, and robustness against complex matrices.
• Applies broadly across veterinary drugs, antibiotic residues, and pesticide screening in diverse food products.

Future Trends and Applications

Advancements may include integration with high-resolution mass spectrometry, expansion of target compound libraries, development of miniaturized and multiplexed TFC modules, and incorporation into fully connected smart laboratory workflows to further streamline food safety testing.

Conclusion

Turbulent flow chromatography coupled with LC-MS/MS provides an automated, high-throughput, and highly selective approach for screening contaminants in food matrices. By eliminating extensive offline preparation and reducing matrix interferences, this technology significantly enhances laboratory productivity, sensitivity, and data quality.

References

1. Soler C., Manes J., Pico Y. The role of liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry in pesticide residue determination in food. Critical Reviews in Analytical Chemistry, 2008;38(2):93–117.
2. Yang C., Ghosh D. LC-MS/MS analysis of malachite green, leucomalachite green, ciprofloxacin, and tetracycline in food samples using a TurboFlow method. Thermo Fisher Scientific Application Note 442;2009.
3. Lafontaine C., Shi Y., Espourteille F.A. Multi-class antibiotic screening of honey using online extraction with LC-MS/MS. Thermo Scientific Application Note 464;2009.
4. Hammel Y., Schoutsen F., Martins C.P.B. Analysis of (fluoro)quinolones in honey with online sample extraction and LC-MS/MS. Thermo Fisher Scientific Application Note 465;2009.
5. Shi Y., Lafontaine C., Ye F., Jiang Z., Ma L., Liu T., Wang H. Screening method for 30 pesticides in green tea extract using automated online sample preparation with LC-MS/MS. Thermo Fisher Scientific Application Note 514;2010.