Rapid Determination of 13 Insecticides and Acaricides in Human Blood Using Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction...

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Forensic Toxicology

Background:

• Pesticide exposure assessment is crucial for public health and forensic investigations.
• Existing methods for pesticide quantification in biological matrices can be time-consuming and require complex sample preparation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a rapid, high-throughput analytical method for simultaneous quantification of multiple insecticides and acaricides in human blood.
• To eliminate the need for chromatographic separation, thereby reducing analysis time and solvent consumption.

Main Methods:

• Coupling of dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) with direct analysis in real-time tandem mass spectrometry (DART-MS/MS).
• Systematic optimization of extraction conditions for efficient analyte enrichment from complex biological matrices.
• Validation of linearity, limits of quantification, recovery, matrix effects, and precision.

Main Results:

• The method demonstrated good linearity (R² = 0.9912-0.9993) and low limits of quantification (LOQ) down to 0.1 ng/mL.
• High recoveries (78.2%-110.7%) and acceptable matrix effects (±25%) were achieved.
• Excellent intraday and interday precision (RSD < 20%) and strong agreement with HPLC-MS/MS confirmed analytical reliability.

Conclusions:

• The developed DLLME-DART-MS/MS method offers a robust, solvent-minimized, and time-efficient approach for pesticide analysis in human blood.
• This method shows significant potential for rapid screening and exposure assessment in time-sensitive forensic casework.