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Environmental problems - Chemical approaches
RESEARCH ARTICLE

A simple method for the analysis of neonicotinoids and their metabolites in human urine

Masato Honda A B , Morgan Robinson A and Kurunthachalam Kannan https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1926-7456 A C D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12201-0509, USA.

B The Botanical Garden, Institute of Nature and Environmental Technology, Kanazawa University, Kakuma, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, 920-1192, Japan.

C Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, State University of New York at Albany, NY 12201-0509, USA.

D Corresponding author. Email: kurunthachalam.kannan@health.ny.gov

Environmental Chemistry 16(3) 171-178 https://doi.org/10.1071/EN18240
Submitted: 14 November 2018  Accepted: 16 February 2019   Published: 21 March 2019

Environmental context. The agricultural usage of neonicotinoid insecticides is a matter of environmental and human health concern, requiring assessment of human exposure. The implementation of a human exposure assessment is dependent on analytical methods to quantitatively determine neonicotinoids in human urine. We describe a simple and sensitive method suitable for monitoring human exposure to neonicotinoids and their metabolites.

Abstract. An analytical method for measuring seven neonicotinoid insecticides and four of their metabolites in human urine was developed based on solid phase extraction and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The accuracy and precision of the method at three fortification levels (0.25, 2.50 and 10.0 ng mL−1) of the target analytes in 500 µL of urine were 83.7–119 % and 2.0–11.3 %, respectively. The average inter-batch precision (fortification level: 2.50 ng mL−1) was 5.5–11.9 %, and the limits of quantification ranged from 0.01 to 0.05 ng mL−1 depending on the neonicotinoid. The method was applied to 20 spot urine samples collected from healthy adults in Albany, New York, United States. At least two of the neonicotinoids or their metabolites were found in each urine sample (median concentration: nd–0.43 ng mL−1). The method is simple, sensitive and precise, and is well suited for measuring neonicotinoids in human urine for future exposure assessment studies.

Additional keywords: biomonitoring, colony collapse disorder, exposure, pesticide.


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