Rapid Determination of Indoleacetic Acid in Meat by Single-Step, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe (SinChERS) Purification Coupled with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

A method for the determination of indoleacetic acid in meat was established using a single-step, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (SinChERS) purification and rapid derivatization followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). After adding water and adjusting pH to 3 by formic acid, the samples were extracted with acetonitrile, purified on a SinChERS column, and blown to dryness under nitrogen. The residue was derivatized with concentrated sulfuric acid and methanol for 1 min prior to GC-MS analysis. Quantitative was performed using the matrix external standard method. The results showed that the linear relationship of indoleacetic acid concentration and its response value was good in the range of 0.01-5.0 μg/mL, with a correlation coefficient (r²) greater than 0.999. The limit of detection was 0.003 mg/kg and the limit of quantification was 0.01 mg/kg. The average recoveries of pork, beef, and mutton samples spiked at 0.01, 0.05, and 0.10 mg/kg were 92.1% to 102.1%, with relative standard deviations (n = 6) of 2.6% to 5.7%. The method is characterized by high sensitivity and short pretreatment time, and can be used for the determination of indoleacetic acid in meat.