Reliable enzyme immunoassay detection for chlorothalonil: fundamental evaluation for residue analysis and validation with gas chromatography.

This work describes the analytical performance of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the fungicide chlorothalonil to effectively exploit as a simple and rapid detection system for pesticide residue on the scenes of the agricultural production and distribution. This ELISA represents the satisfactory analytical characteristics (I50 value, 0.34 ng/g; limit of detection, 0.052 ng/g) to detect chlorothalonil at the regulatory values or thereabout in a sample. Noticeable cross-reactivities were shown with two fungicides, fthalide (58.8%) and pentachloronitrobenzene (quintozene) (20.0%), and some non-agrochemicals such as tetrachloroterephthalonitrile (96.8%) and tetrachlorophthalonitrile (68.3%). The influence of three organic solvents (methanol, acetone, and acetonitrile) used as extractants for chlorothalonil residue was evaluated, with the result that methanol was the most suitable solvent for the ELISA, and the final concentration in the well could be up to 5% (v/v) without any negative influence on the ELISA. It has been possible to directly analyze chlorothalonil residue only by giving dilution of each sample extract with water prior to the ELISA analysis. The average recovery values from the spiked samples by the ELISA were between 101.7 and 113.6% with the average coefficients of variation between 2.6 and 5.9%. Although the results obtained from the ELISA correlated well with those from the reference GC/MS methods for all agricultural samples (r>0.98), the linear function inclined to the ELISA results because of loss during complex sample preparations for GC/MS analysis. Nevertheless, the results demonstrated that the proposed ELISA is a reliable, cost-effective, and rapid quantitative method for chlorothalonil residue.

Evaluation of performance of a commercial monoclonal antibody-based fenitrothion immunoassay and application to residual analysis in fruit samples.

The performance of a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit containing highly sensitive monoclonal antibodies against fenitrothion was assessed. The experimentally estimated dynamic range (0.087 to 2 ng/g) agreed with that established by the kit manufacturer (0.075 to 1 ng/g). The linearity of the standard curve produced for the kit-assembled standard solutions (slope = -0.3829) agreed with that of the curve produced for the self-made standard solutions (slope = -0.3619). The sensitivity (I50 value) and the limit of detection for the kit were 0.23 and 0.033 ng/g, respectively. Selectivity of the ELISA indicates that the monoclonal antibody can readily distinguish the target pesticide from other structurally related analogs and some metabolites (oxon forms), with the exception of ethyl O-(p-nitrophenyl) phenyl phosphonothionate (EPN), parathion-methyl, and parathion. Methanol was the best organic solvent for the kit, with optimal sensitivity observed at a final concentration in the well of 10% (vol/vol) or less. Matrix interferences were minimized by direct dilution with water (60-fold) of the methanolic extracts fromapple and peach samples. To extract fenitrothion from these two agricultural products as simply and rapidly as possible, three extraction methods were used. The extraction method that involved shaking by hand for 3 min was the best among the three methods. High recovery percentages (116.6% for apple and 110.8% for peach) were obtained. Validation of the ELISA method was carried out using the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method, resulting in high recovery and close correlation of results (r > 0.95). These findings strongly suggest that the ELISA kit may be routinely employed for on-site fenitrothion screening of fruit samples.

Evaluation of a commercial immunoassay for the detection of chlorfenapyr in agricultural samples by comparison with gas chromatography and mass spectrometric detection.

A commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit with a high affinity monoclonal antibody was applied to residual analysis of insecticide chlorfenapyr in agricultural samples, and drawn a parallel between the ELISA and gas chromatography (GC) with mass spectrometry (MS). For standards prepared in water containing 5% (v/v) methanol, the sensitivity (I50 value), the dynamic range, and the limit of detection of the ELISA kit were 2.3, 1 - 10, and 0.1 ng/g, respectively. The used monoclonal antibody in the ELISA kit had a high selectivity. The ELISA kit was applied to the determination of chlorfenapyr in two kinds of fruits (apple and peach). The examination of the influence of these matrices on the reliability of the assay performance indicated that the ELISA could determine it in these samples near the regulation values in Japan simply by diluting the methanolic extract or by concentrating it, without any clean-up procedures. Recovery and precision of the proposed ELISA method were assessed by fortifying fruit samples with chlorfenapyr ranging from 0.05 to 1.5 microg/g. Mean recoveries were 94.2 and 90.3% for apple and peach, and coefficients of variation were below 16% in most cases. The results obtained from the proposed ELISA method correlate well the reference GC/MS method for both fruit samples (r > 0.98). These considerations make the ELISA kit very useful analytical tool for monitoring and regulatory programs, without the need of complex and expensive instrumentation.

Synthesis of haptens for development of antibodies to alkylphenols and evaluation and optimization of a selected antibody for ELISA development.

The development of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on polyclonal antibodies for a class of endocrine disrupting compounds, 4-nonylphenol, is described. The parent molecule was derivatized at the ortho position of the free phenolic hydroxyl group to obtain the hapten, NP1, and it was conjugated with keyhole limpet hemocyanin, which was used as an immunogen. Four antisera were generated and screened against three coating antigens. The most sensitive ELISA from the screening tests (antiserum NP03As, 1/1000, and coating antigen NP1-BSA, 1 microg/mL) was further optimized and characterized. The influence of various physicochemical factors (organic solvent, pH, ion strength) was investigated. Methanol as the additive organic solvent was found to be the best organic solvent for the ELISA, with optimal sensitivity observed at a concentration of 5%. The ELISA parameters were changed at more acidic or basic pH values, whereas higher ionic strengths strongly suppressed the I(50) value and the maximum absorbance. The most sensitive ELISA for 4-nonylphenol exhibited an I(50) value of 38.6 +/- 5.5 microg/L, with a dynamic range from 12 to 350 microg/L, and the lower limit of detection was 7.7 +/- 1.3 microg/L. The optimized ELISA displayed no significant cross-reaction against the parent compounds, nonylphenol ethoxylates, degradation products, carboxylates, and bisphenol A, except in 4-octylphenol.

Evaluation and validation of a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid in agricultural samples.

The performance of a commercially available microtiter plate ELISA kit for the determination of the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid was evaluated for sensitivity, selectivity, influence of organic solvent used for extraction procedure, matrix interference originated from agricultural sample, accuracy, and method comparison with conventional HPLC analysis. The limit of detection for the kit (0.1 or 0.5 ng/mL) was determined. The working range (1-39 ng/mL) experimentally calculated on the basis of a criterion, which is determined as the range from I(20) to I(80), was comparable to that established by the manufacturer (1-50 ng/mL). The linearity of the standard curve based on the kit-assembled standard solutions agreed with the one based on the self-made standard solutions. Specificity studies indicate that the imidacloprid monoclonal antibody can readily distinguish the target compound from other structurally related neonicotinoid analogues and some metabolites, with the exception of clothianidin, the cross-reactivity of which was approximately 12%. To extract imidacloprid from an agricultural sample (apple) as simply and rapidly as possible, some extraction methods were examined. Consequently, the extraction method with hand-shaking for 5 min was the best among the examined methods. For the analysis of imidacloprid in apple samples, it was extracted directly with methanol and the extracts were diluted 10-fold (100-fold in the well) with water prior to ELISA analysis. No significant matrix interference was observed with the dilution factor. Recoveries of imidacloprid from fortified apple samples ranged from 87.7 to 112.0%. The results obtained with the ELISA kit correlated well with those by the reference method (conventional HPLC analysis) for apple samples (r > 0.998). These findings strongly indicate that the ELISA kit may be employed routinely for an on-site imidacloprid residue analysis of apple samples.

Adsorption and desorption characteristics of several herbicides on sediment.

The objective of this study was to clarify the adsorption and desorption characteristics of several herbicides in sediment. Five herbicides, esprocarb, thiobencarb, dimethametryn, pretilachlor, and simetryn were examined in this study. The adsorption ratio on the sediment increased in the following order: pretilachlor < dimethametryn < simetryn < thiobencarb < esprocarb. On the other hand, the adsorption ratio on the sediment without organic matter increased in the following order: thiobencarb < esprocarb < pretilachlor < dimethametryn < simetryn. Furthermore, the amounts of simetryn, dimethametryn, and pretilachlor adsorbed on the sediment without organic matter increased, while those of esprocarb and thiobencarb decreased in comparison to the original sediment. These results strongly suggested that the mineral surface in the sediment was very important as the adsorption site for the herbicide, especially in the case of simetryn, dimethametryn, and pretilachlor. All the adsorption and desorption data fitted well with the Freundlich equation. The hysteresis in the adsorption-desorption phenomena in the sediment was observed for all the herbicides, and it was affected by the organic matter in sediment, especially in the case of dimethametryn and pretilachlor.

Immunoassay for acetamiprid detection: application to residue analysis and comparison with liquid chromatography.

This work describes the fundamental ability of a commercial ELISA to determine acetamiprid and the application of the ELISA to residue analysis in fruit and vegetable samples. The ELISA exhibited satisfactory sensitivity (I (50) 0.6 ng/g; limit of detection 0.053 ng/g) and a high selectivity for acetamiprid versus other neonicotinoid analogs (thiacloprid amide). Methanol, which influenced the sensitivity of the ELISA the least, was selected as the extractant for the ELISA analysis. Simple dilution of sample extracts with water eliminated matrix interferences. Average recoveries from the acetamiprid-spiked agricultural samples were >95% using a simple extraction method. Analytical results obtained from the ELISA were comparable to those obtained from the reference HPLC method (r>0.99). The ELISA applied to the residue analysis of acetamiprid in agricultural products is a rapid, simple, and cost-effective method, and could be successfully applied to the detection of acetamiprid before the distribution of produce.