Mycotoxins are a class of exogenous metabolites that are major contributors to foodborne diseases and pose a potential threat to human health. However, little attention has been paid to trace mycotoxin co-exposure situations in vivo. To address this, we devised a novel analytical strategy, both highly sensitive and comprehensive, for quantifying 67 mycotoxins in human plasma samples. This method employs isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) for approximately 40% of the analytes and utilizes internal standard quantification for the rest. The mycotoxins were classified into three categories according to their physicochemical properties, facilitating the optimization of extraction and detection parameters to improve analytical performance. The lowest limits of detection and quantitation were 0.001–0.5 μg/L and 0.002–1 μg/L, respectively, the intra-day precision ranged from 1.8% to 11.9% RSD, and the intra-day trueness ranged from 82.7–116.6% for all mycotoxins except Ecl, DH-LYS, PCA, and EnA (66.4–129.8%), showing good analytical performance of the method for biomonitoring. A total of 40 mycotoxins (including 24 emerging mycotoxins) were detected in 184 plasma samples (89 from infertile males and 95 from healthy males) using the proposed method, emphasizing the widespread exposure of humans to both traditional and emerging mycotoxins. The most frequently detected mycotoxins were ochratoxin A, ochratoxin B, enniatin B, and citrinin. The incidence of exposure to multiple mycotoxins was significantly higher in infertile males than in healthy subjects, particularly levels of ochratoxin A, ochratoxin B, and citrinin, which were significantly increased. It is necessary to carry out more extensive biological monitoring to provide data support for further study of the relationship between mycotoxins and male infertility.

Naturally occurring substances and their derivatives function as vital resources for pesticides that can be used in fields, such as insecticide production and fungicide development. As a botanical entity displaying multifaceted biological functions, wormwood has received thorough scrutiny across multiple sectors. The insect repellency potency combined with antibacterial and antifungal activities of wormwood position it as a potential candidate for prospective development into eco-friendly chemical pesticides. In this research, Wormwood essential oil was procured via ethanol water under ultrasonic scenarios and subsequently diluted with PEG 400 to formulate green chemical pesticides. The defensive efficacy of this green pesticide on plants was validated through 2 weeks of clustered plant growth experiments. Active constituents that exerted their effects were scrutinized by GC-MS. Furthermore, this green pesticide also displays efficacious effects on the prevention and management of aphids, exhibiting a dose-dependent relationship. 4-terpenol, eucalyptol, carvacrol, and L-borneol were identified by GC-MS as the predominant active constituents in this green chemical pesticide. Wormwood can be leveraged to develop green chemical pesticides, which can protect plants without contaminating the environment.

The aim of individuals consuming health supplements is to attain a robust state through nutritional regulation. However, some unscrupulous manufacturers, motivated by profit, fraudulently incorporate drugs or unauthorized components with therapeutic effects into the product for instant product performance enhancement. The long-term use of these products may inadvertently inflict harm on human health and fail to promote nutritive healthcare. The illegal inclusion of these substances is prevalent in kidney-tonifying and sexuality-enhancing products. Developing effective analytical methods to identify these products and screen for illegal added ingredients can effectively prevent such products from reaching and remaining on the market. A target screening method for the detection and quantification of 90 phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE-5is) in 5 kinds of health products was developed and validated. The type of dietary supplements varied from tablets, capsules, and protein powder to wine and beverages. Sample preparation was completed with a one-step liquid phase extraction. The screening process of 90 PDE-5is was done efficiently within 25 min by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) using the dynamic multiple reaction monitoring (dMRM) technique. The LODs of 90 PDE-5is were detected at levels ranging from 25 to 85 ng/g or ng/mL. This novel targeting methodology was effective and can be applied to routine market supervision. Among 286 batches of samples, 8 batches were found to be positive. Three kinds of PDE-5is were first detected in healthy products. The screening method demonstrated herein will be a promising and powerful tool for rapid screening of PDE-5is.

(1) Background: The adulteration of cosmetics has become increasingly common, which seriously harms ordinary consumers. The counterfeit cosmetics pointed out in this study mainly refer to imitating genuine products in terms of ingredients and packaging. Ordinary consumers cannot distinguish their authenticity solely based on appearance and daily use. If there is a convenient and low-cost detection method that can expose this phenomenon of adulteration, it will be able to expose adulteration and protect the interests of consumers quickly and conveniently. (2) Methods: MALDI-TOF, GC-MS, and mid-IR were used to develop low-cost and fast methods for identifying the authenticity of cosmetics. Five types of liquid and five types of emulsion cosmetics purchased from container and wholesale markets were analyzed using the three instruments mentioned above, and their spectra and acquired data were carefully compared to determine their authenticity. MALDI-TOF and GC-MS directly tested cosmetic samples, and mid-IR spectroscopy tested the ink on the outer packaging of cosmetics. (3) Results: The data procured by MALDI-TOF can provide a representation of its product attributes; two liquid samples and one paste sample demonstrated inconsistent test outcomes with the corresponding reference samples, suggesting contamination. The results of GC-MS can illustrate the substance count within cosmetic samples; the comparison outcomes of the total ion chromatogram indicate that one paste sample was a counterfeit. The results attained from mid-IR were consonant with those acquired from the MALDI-TOF analysis and GC-MS. (4) Conclusions: These three newly developed techniques can all be effectively utilized for the task of detecting cosmetic adulteration and quality control in the manufacturing process. With regard to user-friendliness and rapidity, both MALDI-TOF and mid-IR outperform GC-MS, demonstrating consistently superior levels of detection. Conversely, GC-MS has unique advantages in identifying emulsion cosmetics containing a high amount of weak polarity and volatile substances. Consequently, these corresponding methods could serve as efficient and cost-effective ways to detect authenticity issues in real-world cosmetic products.

With increasing health awareness and the accelerating pace of life, whole-grain prepared foods have gained popularity due to their health benefits and convenience. However, the potential risk of type B trichothecene toxins has also increased, and these mycotoxins in such foods are rarely regulated. In this study, a quantitative method combining a single-valve dual-column automatic online solid-phase extraction system with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–MS/MS) was developed for the first time using restricted-access media columns. This method can simultaneously determine trace residues of seven type B trichothecenes within 15 min. The method is convenient, sensitive (limit of detection and quantification of 0.05–0.6 μg/kg and 0.15–2 μg/kg, respectively), accurate (recovery rates of 90.3%–106.6%, relative standard deviation < 4.3%), and robust (>1000 times). The established method was applied to 160 prepared food samples of eight categories sold in China. At least one toxin was detected in 70% of the samples. Whole-wheat dumpling wrappers had the highest contamination rate (95%) and the highest total content of type B trichothecenes in a single sample (2077.3 μg/kg). Exposure risk assessment indicated that the contamination of whole-grain prepared foods has been underestimated. The total health risk index of whole-wheat dumpling wrappers, which are susceptible to deoxynivalenol, reached 136.41%, posing a significant threat to human health. Effective measures urgently need to be taken to control this risk.

The preparation and treatment of the sample has become an important part of the determination process, which directly affects the accuracy of detection. The preparation of the sample for final detection is actually a process of separation and transfer of the target to be tested from the sample matrix. The phase-transfer process of analysis and detection is the process of transferring the target substance to be measured from a complex multiphase system to a simple homogeneous system. This study shows a new phase-transfer process for food sample pretreatment in the determination of carbamate pesticides. Edible gum, xanthan gum, carrageenan, and gelatin were selected for purification testing from the perspective of eco-friendliness and safety. Phase-transfer purification process research was carried out on spinach and other foods. Compared with the commonly used QuEChERS method, the LC/MS results indicate that the straightforward carrageenan treatment process can significantly diminish the detection matrix effect and yield similarly superior detection parameters. The phase-transfer purification method with carrageenan has similar sensitivity and systematic error. The limits of detection and limits of quantitation of each pesticide compound in six plant sample substrates were 0.02–0.36 μg/kg and 0.06–1.9 μg/kg, respectively, which were lower than the residue limits here and abroad. Supplemental recoveries in six blank samples at 5, 20, and 100 μg/kg with the phase-transfer process method were better than those for the QuEChERS method. Positive determination results of actual samples using carrageenan phase-transfer purification proved that this method can be used for related detection from a practical point of view.