Multiresidue pesticide analysis of botanical dietary supplements using salt-out acetonitrile extraction, solid-phase extraction cleanup column, and gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry.

Dietary supplements form an increasing part of the American diet, yet broadly applicable multiresidue pesticide methods have not been evaluated for many of these supplements. A method for the analysis of 310 pesticides, isomers, and pesticide metabolites in dried botanical dietary supplements has been developed and validated. Sample preparation involved acetonitrile:water added to the botanical along with anhydrous magnesium sulfate and sodium chloride for extraction, followed by cleanup with solid-phase extraction using a tandem cartridge consisting of graphitized carbon black (GCB) and primary–secondary amine sorbent (PSA). Pesticides were measured by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Accuracy and precision were evaluated through fortifications of 24 botanicals at 10, 25, 100, and 500 μg/kg. Mean pesticide recoveries and relative standard deviations (RSDs) for all botanicals were 97%, 91%, 90%, and 90% and 15%, 10%, 8%, and 6% at 10, 25, 100, and 500 μg/kg, respectively. The method was applie...