Determination of Antibiotic Residues in Aquaculture Products by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry: Recent Trends and Developments from 2010 to 2020

Abstract

The issue of antibiotic residues in aquaculture products has aroused much concern over the last decade. The residues can remain in food and enter the human body through the food chain, posing great risks to public health. For the safety of foods and products, many countries have issued maximum residue limits and banned lists for antibiotics in aquaculture products. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) has been widely used for the determination of trace antibiotic residues due to its high sensitivity, selectivity and throughput. However, considering its matrix effects during quantitative measurements, it has high requirements for sample pre-treatment, instrument parameters and quantitative method. This review summarized the application of LC/MS/MS in the detection of antibiotic residues in aquaculture products in the past decade (from 2010 to 2020), including sample pre-treatment techniques such as hydrolysis, derivatization, extraction and purification, mass spectrometry techniques such as triple quadrupole mass spectrometry and high-resolution mass spectrometry as well as status of matrix certified reference materials (CRMs) and matrix effect.