Simultaneous determination of plant growth regulator and pesticides in bean sprouts by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

A simple and sensitive analytical method based on QuEChERS approach using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry was developed and validated for the determination of 6-benzylaminopurine, carbendazim and thiabendazole in bean sprouts. Sodium chloride and sodium acetate were used for salting-out step and magnesium sulfate for clean-up. The validation of optimized method was satisfactory with recoveries, between 89.5% and 103.2% for the three compounds, and relative standard deviation (RSD) values less than 3.3% at 20 and 40ng/g fortification levels (n=5). Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) was 2.1-3.7ng/g and 6.3-11.1ng/g, respectively. Monitoring of 126 bean sprout samples collected from local markets was performed to verify the adaptability in real samples. No pesticides were detected but 6-benzylaminopurine was found in 3 samples at the level of 15-20ng/g. The optimized method should be applicable for monitoring of 6-benzylaminopurine, carbendazim and thiabendazole in bean sprouts in short time.