Assessing the mutagens ethylnitrolic acid and 2-methyl-1,4-dinitro-pyrrole in meat products: Sample preparation and simultaneous analysis by LC-MS/MS.

The simultaneous use of nitrite and sorbate as preservatives in meat products may produce mutagenic compounds such as the ethylnitrolic acid and 2-methyl-1,4-dinitro-pyrrole. We developed a sensitive analytical method with high metrological reliability. After assessing several extraction approaches and chromatographic separation modes, a modified Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) approach was chosen for sample preparation, which were analyzed by reversed-phase liquid chromatography (with C as stationary phase) coupled to tandem mass spectrometry.