Simultaneous Quantification of 16 Bisphenol Analogues in Food Matrices

Fiorella Lucarini; Rocco Gasco; Davide Staedler

doi:10.3390/toxics11080665

Simultaneous Quantification of 16 Bisphenol Analogues in Food Matrices

Toxics. 2023 Aug 2;11(8):665. doi: 10.3390/toxics11080665.

Authors

Fiorella Lucarini^{1

2}, Rocco Gasco³, Davide Staedler¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Lausanne, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland.
² School of Engineering and Architecture, Institute of Chemical Technology, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland.
³ Department for Environmental and Aquatic Sciences, University of Geneva, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.

Abstract

Exposure to bisphenol analogues can occur in several ways throughout the food production chain, with their presence at higher concentrations representing a risk to human health. This study aimed to develop effective analytical methods to simultaneously quantify BPA and fifteen bisphenol analogues (i.e., bisphenol AF, bisphenol AP, bisphenol B, bisphenol BP, bisphenol C, bisphenol E, bisphenol F, bisphenol G, bisphenol M, bisphenol P, bisphenol PH, bisphenol S, bisphenol Z, bisphenol TMC, and tetramethyl bisphenol F) present in canned foods and beverages. Samples of foods and beverages available in the Swiss and EU markets (n = 22), including canned pineapples, ravioli, and beer, were prepared and analyzed using QuEChERS GC-MS. The quantification method was compared to a QuEChERS LC-MS/MS analysis. This allowed for the selective and efficient simultaneous quantitative analysis of bisphenol analogues. Quantities of these analogues were present in 20 of the 22 samples tested, with the most frequent analytes at higher concentrations: BPA and BPS were discovered in 78% and 48% of cases, respectively. The study demonstrates the robustness of QuEChERS GC-MS for determining low quantities of bisphenol analogues in canned foods. However, further studies are necessary to achieve full knowledge of the extent of bisphenol contamination in the food production chain and its associated toxicity.

Keywords: GC-MS; LC-MS/MS; QuEChERS; bisphenol analogues; canned foods; endocrine disruptors; food matrices.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Department of Biomedical Sciences. This project was carried out as part of the MSc in analytical chemistry work of Rocco Gasco (University of Turin).