Immunoaffinity column clean-up prior to thin-layer chromatography for the determination of aflatoxins in various food matrices

A one-dimensional TLC method to determine aflatoxins (B-1, B-2, G(1), G(2)) in various food matrices was elaborated which abstains fully on the use of chlorinated solvents. It implements an immunoaffinity clean-up step after extraction with methanol. The aflatoxins were quantified by densitometry. T he method has shown to be rapid and efficient. In-house performance charact eristics were established. The limit of quantification was found to be sign ificantly lower than current regulatory limits for aflatoxin control outsid e and within the European Community. The obtained recovery and precision da ta gave a strong indication, that the method is likely to give satisfactory performance if tested in a future collaborative trial. (C) 2000 Elsevier S cience B.V. All rights reserved.