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Updated: Jul 7, 2026

Using Capillary Electrophoresis to Quantify Organic Acids from Plant Tissue: A Test Case Examining Coffea arabica Seeds
Published on: November 12, 2016
Determination of ochratoxin A in green coffee beans by solid-phase microextraction and liquid chromatography with
Rosa Vatinno1, Antonella Aresta, Carlo G Zambonin
1Dipartimento di Chimica, Università degli Studi di Bari, Via E. Orabona, 4, I-70126 Bari, Italy.
Abstract:
A new method for the determination of Ochratoxin A (OTA) in green coffee beans by solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled to liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (LC-FD) is described for the first time. Coffee samples were extracted by a 5% NaHCO(3) solution, followed by a clean-up step of the extract by chloroform partition. The aqueous extract was then acidified and finally subjected to SPME-LC-FD analysis. The investigated linear range in coffee was 2-32 ng/g. Within-day RSD% in coffee spiked at 2 and 32 ng/g levels were 3.3 and 2.7, respectively, whereas the between-days RSD% were 4.1 and 3.8, respectively. The limits of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ), calculated at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3 and 10 (noise calculated peak to peak on a blank chromatogram at the OTA retention time), were 0.3 and 2 ng/g, respectively.
