Determination of Oxytetracycline, Tetracycline, and Chlortetracycline in Milk by Liquid Chromatography with Postcolumn Derivatization and Fluorescence Detection

Abstract

Abstract A multiresidue method for isolation and liquid chromatographic determination of oxytetracycline (OTC), tetracycline (TC), and chlortetracycline (CTC) in milk is presented. The sensitivity of the method is adequate to meet the needs of regulatory agencies. The European Community established 100 μg/kg as the maximum residue limit (MRL) in milk for TC, CTC, and OTC. Recoveries exceeded 80% for all tetracyclines at all levels, with good precision. Correlation coefficients of standards curves for individual tetracyclines isolated from fortified samples ranged from 0.991 for CTC to 0.998 for OTC. Other antibiotics that might interfere with analysis did notinterfere with elution times of OTC, TC, andCTC. The procedure is rapid, precise, and quantitative and requires minimal preparation andminimal use of organic solvents. It can beapplied to routine surveillance programs. We canprepare 10 samples for analysis in about 1.45 h.