Determination, residue analysis and risk assessment of thiacloprid and spirotetramat in cowpeas under field conditions.

The dissipation and residue levels of thiacloprid, spirotetramat and its four metabolites residues in cowpeas were investigated under field conditions. The QuEChERS technique with high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) was used to detect thiacloprid, spirotetramat and its four metabolites residues content in cowpeas. The recoveries were 81.3-95.1% at a spike level of 0.005-0.5 mg/kg, the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were 2.1-9.5%. The dissipation kinetics data showed that thiacloprid and spirotetramat in cowpeas were degraded with the half-lives of 1.14-1.54 days and 1.25-2.79 days. The terminal residues of thiacloprid and spirotetramat were 0.0255-0.4570 mg kg-1 and 0.0314-0.3070 mg kg-1 after application 2 times with a pre-harvest interval (PHI) of 3 days under the designed dosages. The chronic and acute dietary exposure assessment risk quotient (RQ) values of thiacloprid in cowpeas for different consumers were 2.44-4.41% and 8.72-15.78%, respectively, and those of spirotetramat were 1.03-1.87% and 0.18-0.32%, respectively, all of the RQ values were lower than 100%. The dietary risk of thiacloprid through cowpeas to consumers was higher than spirotetramat. The results from this study are important reference for Chinese governments to develop criteria for the safe and rational use of thiacloprid and spirotetramat, setting maximum residue levels (MRLs), monitoring the quality safety of agricultural products and protecting consumer health.

Hypocalcemia with Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: The Disparity among Various Reports.

Immune-related adverse events affecting parathyroid function are rarely reported with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs). Activating calcium-sensing receptor antibodies causing autoimmune hypoparathyroidism with nivolumab was recently reported. KEYNOTE-189 and CHECKMATE-067 trials reported a 21-29% hypocalcemia event rate, but the etiology of hypocalcemia was not reported. A chart review was performed to study patients receiving ICPI from 2015 to 2018 at multiple sites affiliated with Saint Vincent Hospital. The study population was divided into two groups based on the presence or absence of calcium altering conditions or medications. True hypocalcemia incidence was calculated after correcting calcium for albumin from the initiation of ICPI to their last follow-up. Group 1 (n = 83) includes patients with no calcium altering conditions or medications. Group 2 (n = 98) includes patients on calcium supplements (n = 17), vitamin D (n = 44), bisphosphonates (n = 24), >stage IIIB chronic kidney disease (CKD) (n = 5), and bone metastasis (n = 38). Hypocalcemia events in Group 1 vs. Group 2 were 8.4% and 19.3%, respectively. Our entire study demonstrated 26.8% vs. 1.1% of Grade I vs. II hypocalcemia events. However, after correcting the calcium for albumin, hypocalcemia incidence was 0.56% (n = 1). No further workup was done to investigate the etiology as that patient passed away. Our data suggest that the true hypocalcemia incidence after using albumin-corrected calcium values is very low in patients receiving IPCI, even in the presence of calcium altering factors. The percentage of patients with hypocalcemia is much higher and similar to the KEYNOTE-189 and CHECKMATE-067 trials when serum calcium values without albumin correction are used. Thus, the higher reported incidence of hypocalcemia in these trials is likely due to the reporting of serum calcium without albumin correction.