Simultaneous Analysis of Cannabinoid and Synthetic Cannabinoids in Dietary Supplements Using UPLC with UV and...

The primary purpose of this study was to develop and validate a method based on UPLC with UV and UPLC-MS-MS for the simultaneous analysis of different cannabinoids and synthetic cannabinoids in food as well as in herbal and dietary supplements. The limits of detection and quantitation of the method ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 and 0.3 to 0.9 μg/mL by UPLC with UV, respectively. The coefficient of determination was >0.999; the intra- and interday precision of the method were 0.1-3.7 and 0.9-4.1%, respectively. The intra- and interday accuracy were 94.8-103.1 and 98.3-100.9%, respectively. The mean recoveries of nine cannabinoids obtained from tablet samples ranged from 81.1 to 105.4%. The mean extraction recoveries of nine target cannabinoids obtained from various types of samples (tablets, capsules, powders, liquids, cookies and candies) ranged from 82.26 to 112.40%. The relative standard deviation (RSD) of the stability of the prepared sample solutions was <1.80%. Identification and quantification of the nine cannabinoids were accomplished by ion spray UPLC-MS-MS using multiple reaction monitoring. The UPLC-MS-MS method was validated for linearity (R(2) > 0.99); the precision was 0.1-4.0% (intraday) and 0.1-2.8% (interday), and the accuracy was 98.0-103.5% (intraday) and 97.1-103.2% (interday). The mean extraction recoveries of six types of samples were 82.2-114.5% and the RSD of stability was <6.54%, complying with the established international guidelines. The results indicated that the method can be used for rapid and accurate screening of cannabinoids present in food.