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Updated: May 12, 2025
A Strategy for Sensitive, Large Scale Quantitative Metabolomics
Published on: May 27, 2014
Routine LC-MS/MS method for quantifying Alternaria toxins in tomatoes at harvest stage and during processing
Léna Dole1, Noël Durand1,2, Charlie Poss1,2
1Qualisud, Univ Montpellier, CIRAD, Avignon Université, Institut Agro, IRD, Univ de La Réunion, Montpellier, France.
A new method quantifies harmful Alternaria toxins in tomatoes. Tenuazonic acid, a predominant toxin, is heat-stable and concentrates in tomato processing residues.
Area of Science:
- Food safety and toxicology
- Analytical chemistry
- Mycotoxicology
Background:
- Alternaria species contaminate tomatoes, producing mycotoxins that pose health risks.
- Understanding the prevalence and fate of these toxins during food processing is crucial for consumer safety.
- Existing analytical methods can be complex and costly for routine monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a cost-effective, high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) method for quantifying key Alternaria toxins.
- To assess the toxin production profiles of different Alternaria strains from tomatoes.
- To investigate the impact of food processing on the accumulation and stability of naturally occurring Alternaria toxins in tomatoes.
Main Methods:
- Development and validation of an HPLC-MS/MS method for quantifying alternariol, alternariol monomethyl ether, tenuazonic acid, altenuene, altertoxin I, and tentoxin.
- Analysis of toxin profiles from various Alternaria strains isolated from tomatoes.
- Pilot-scale evaluation of processing operations on naturally contaminated tomatoes.
Main Results:
- The developed HPLC-MS/MS method achieved low limits of quantification (LOQ) below EU recommendations, with good recovery (85-103%) and repeatability (<15%).
- Tenuazonic acid was identified as the predominant mycotoxin produced by Alternaria strains and found in contaminated tomatoes.
- Processing operations did not reduce tenuazonic acid levels, indicating its thermostability. Tomato skin and seed residues showed significantly higher contamination (2.6x) than pulp.
Conclusions:
- The validated HPLC-MS/MS method is suitable for routine analysis of Alternaria toxins in tomatoes, offering reduced cost and complexity.
- Tenuazonic acid is a major concern in tomato contamination due to its prevalence and heat stability during processing.
- Tomato processing by-products (skin, seeds) accumulate higher levels of toxins, requiring careful consideration for their reuse.
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