Determination of 57 pesticide residues in fishery products by GC tandem mass spectrometry combined with QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) extraction

Abstract

An analytical method using GC–MS/MS combined with quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe extraction was developed to determine 57 pesticides in fishery products. The limits of detection and quantification (LOD and LOQ, respectively) of the analytical method ranged between 0.91 and 2.12 ng/g wet mass and 3 and 7 ng/g wet mass, respectively. Moreover, the linearity of the calibration curves was acceptable (R² > 0.99). The relative pesticide recoveries ranged between 53.87 and 127.2%, and reproducibility ranged between 0.25 and 10.87%. The pesticide residues in brown seaweed, eel, flatfish, shrimp, and abalone samples were analyzed using the developed analytical method, and the results indicate that most samples were not contaminated by the 57 target pesticides, except low levels (< 10 ng/g) of 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)ethene, alachlor, ametryn, isoprothiolane, and prometryn in several samples.