Use of Elisa for Preliminary Screening of 19 Nortestosterone Anabolic Steroid in Cattle Meat in Republic of Macedonia

In recent years, hormones and hormone like substances have been recently used in livestock production to obtain a high yield performance in a shorter period of time. These anabolic agents are used to increase the weight gain, to improve the food efficiency, storing protein and to decrease fatness. However, depending on the use of anabolic agent in animal feed, anabolic residues that may occur in meat and meat products present risks to human health. The aim of this study was to detect the levels of 19 nortestosterone residues in the market cattle meat in R. Macedonia. In this study, a total of 86 samples were obtained from different markets and used as a test material. 19 nortestosterone residues were analyzed with ELISA method. The average experimental level of 19 nortestosterone in cattle meat was 375.20 ppt. The recovery was between 79.54% and 114.39%, a working range between 50 to 3.000 ppt. The regression equation of the final inhibition curve was: y = 0.1453 x +1.4057, R2 = 0.9972. The levels of 19 nortestosterone residues were below the international allowable levels set by the Macedonian Residue Control Plan and the European Union. According to the results of our study on this anabolic steroid, the obtained 86 cattle meat samples are safe for human consumption. However, it is still necessary to monitor this chemical as a food quality control measure.