Pesticides, fruit/vegetables

Keywords multi-residue method pesticides fruits vegetables SPE cleanup single quadrupole MS. 

Sheridan RS, Meola JR. 1999. Analysis of pesticide residues in fruits, vegetables, and milk by gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. J AOAC Int 82(4) 982-990. 

S.L. Reynolds, R. Fussel, M. Caldow, R. James, S. Nawaz, C. Ebden, D. Pendhngton, T. Stijve, and H. Desirens, Intercomparison Study of Two Multi-residue Methods for the Enforcement of EU MRLs for Pesticides in Fruit, Vegetables and Grain, European Commission, BCR Information, Chemical Analysis Contract No. SMT4-CT-95-2030 Reports EUR 17870EN (1997), EUR 18639 EN (1998), EUR 19306 EN (2000) and EUR 19443 EN, European Commission, Brussels (2001). 

Only a small proportion of natural pesticides have been tested for carcinogenicity, but 38 of the 72 tested are rodent carcinogens. As shown in Table 2, naturally occurring pesticides that are rodent carcinogens are ubiquitous in common fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. The widespread distribution of such chemicals means that no diet can be free of natural chemicals that are rodent carcinogens. 

The agricultural use of pesticides such as insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides has clearly reduced crop losses due to insects, weeds, and plant diseases in the US and throughout the world. The benefits from agricultural pesticides include improved crop yields, greater availability of fruits, vegetables, and grains, and lower consumer costs (Ecobichon, 1996). 

Toxaphene has been in use since 1949. It is a complex mixture that consists of at least 670 chlorinated terpenes (Jansson Wideqvist, 1983). It was used as a nonsystemic stomach and contact insecticide. As it is nontoxic to plants (except to cucurbius), it was used to control many insects that inhabited cotton, corn, fruit, vegetables and small grains, and to control the Cussia obtusifola soybean pest. Toxaphene solutions were usually mixed with other pesticides because it can help to solubilise other insecticides with lower water solubility (e.g. DDT, lindane, etc.) (ATSDR, 1996b). 

Insecticides are the pesticides most commonly known by the public. Insects are not only a nuisance in everyday life they pose a real danger to man, animals, crops, and the environment in general. In agriculture, insecticides are used widely to control insects in fruits, vegetables, rice, and other cereals. Other application areas are on farm animals, animal housing, and to control insects that are vectors of diseases. Mosquitoes (for malaria) and tsetse flies (for sleeping sickness) are just two examples. Control of these insects is a never-ending task, especially in hot and humid countries. 

Eat organic as much as possible. Fruit, vegetables, grains, and other foods tend to be heavily sprayed. By choosing organic food, you ll reduce your exposure to acid-forming and toxic pesticide residues. 

With chronic or sustained exposure to pesticides, the populations at risk are those who receive repetitive exposures during the manufacture, formulation, mixing, application, or disposal of pesticides. Another type of chronic exposure is persistent residue contact by workers in the field during the harvesting and thinning of fruits, vegetables and other agricultural commodities. The outcome of these repetitive exposures can result in a number of different diseases. 

Very little is known about the natural occurrence of 1,3,5-triazine compounds. Cyanuric acid has been detected in soil humus,68-70 and although melamine71,72 and ammeline73 have been reported as components of certain carbonaceous meteorites, a more recent reinvestigation74 showed that only very small traces of 1,3,5-triazines are present. 1,3,5-Triazines have been identified in soil, crops (fruits, vegetables) and rivers due to the persistence or only partial degradation of 1,3,5-triazine pesticides.469... 

MAE applications in the literature include for example extraction of capsaicinoids from capsicum fruit (59), PBDEs from marine biological tissues (60), pesticides from vegetables (61) and pigments from paprika powder (62). 

Sandra, P., Tienpont, B., and David, F., Multi-residue screening of pesticides in vegetables, fruits and baby food by stir bar sorptive extraction-thermal desorption-capiUary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, J. Chromatogr. A, 1000, 299-309, 2003. 

Mol, H. G. J., Van Dam, R. C. J., and Steijger, O. M., Determination of polar organophosphorus pesticides in vegetables and fruits using liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry selection of extraction solvent, J. Chromatogr. A, 1015, 119-127, 2003. 

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