A new solid‐phase extraction and HPLC method for determination of patulin in apple products and hawthorn juice in C hina

A new solid‐phase extraction ( SPE ) pretreatment method using a home‐made polyvinylpolypyrrolidone‐florisil ( PVPP ‐ F ) column was developed for the analysis of patulin in apple and hawthorn products in C hina. Fifty samples (25 apple juices, 12 apple jams, and 13 hawthorn juices) were prepared using the new method and then analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection ( HPLC ‐ DAD ) on an A gela V enusil MP C 18 reversed‐phase column (4.6 mm × 250 mm, 5 μm). The cleanup results for all samples using home‐made PVPP ‐ F column were compared with those obtained using a M yco S ep®228 A fla P at column. The correlation coefficient R (0.9998) fulfilled the requirement of linearity for patulin in the concentration range of 2.5–250 μg/kg. The limits of detection ( LOD s) and quantification ( LOQ s) of patulin were 3.99 and 9.64 μg/kg for PVPP ‐ F column, and 3.56 and 8.07 μg/kg for M yco S ep®228 A fla P at column, respectively. Samples were spiked with patulin at levels ranging from 25 to 250 μg/kg, and recoveries using PVPP ‐ F and M yco S ep®228 A fla P at columns were in the range of 81.9–100.9% and 86.4–103.9%, respectively. Naturally occurring patulin was found in 2 of 25 apple juice samples (8.0%) and 1 of 13 hawthorn juice samples (7.7%) at concentrations ranging from 12.26 to 36.81 μg/kg. The positive results were further confirmed by liquid chromatography electrospray ionization mass spectrometry ( LC ‐ ESI ‐ MS ).