SENSITIVE ELISA TEST FOR DETERMINATION OF OCHRATOXIN-A

A direct, competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with m onoclonal antibody has been developed for quantitative determination o f ochratoxin A (OA) in different cereals. A dichloromethane/citric aci d mixture was used for extraction of cereals. This cleanup procedure p roved to be as effective for ochratoxin A extraction as protocols usin g strong acids. The mean within-assay and interassay coefficients of v ariation for the standard curve was <10%. The range of this test is 1- 10 ng/g, with a detection limit of 0.5 ng/g OA. The toxin recovery fro m cereals infected with 5-100 ng/mL OA varied between 90 and 130%.