Determination of streptomycin residues in food by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography with post-column derivatization and fluorometric detection

A reliable and sensitive procedure is presented for the analysis of streptomycin (STP) in food of animal origin, like meat, milk and honey. The method is based on a separation by ion-pair liquid chromatography with beta-naphthoquinone-4-sulfonate (NQS) postderivatization and fluorescence detection. The clean-up of the extract is done by solid-phase extraction, firstly with a cation-exchange cartridge and secondly with an octadecyl cartridge. The selectivity is very good and not many interfering peaks are observed for various food matrices. The streptomycin recovery of the total procedure is superior to 80%. The procedure is quantitatively characterized and repeatability, linearity, detection and quantification Limits are very satisfactory. A special focus is given to STP residues in honeys and a survey on 64 commercial honeys is presented. For honey analysis, the HPLC method is compared with an immunoassay test (ELISA), and the possibility of using this test for screening with and without solid-phase extraction clean-up is also discussed. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.