Evaluation of variability and quality control procedures for a receptor-binding assay for paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins.

The receptor-binding assay (RBA) method for determining saxatoxin (STX) and its numerous analogues, which cause paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) in humans, was evaluated in a single laboratory study. Each step of the assay preparation procedure including the performance of the multi-detector TopCount® instrument was evaluated for its contribution to method variability. The overall inherent RBA variability was determined to be 17%. Variability within the 12 detectors was observed; however, there was no reproducible pattern in detector performance. This observed variability among detectors could be attributed to other factors, such as pipetting errors. In an attempt to reduce the number of plates rejected due to excessive variability in the method's quality control parameters, a statistical approach was evaluated using either Grubbs' test or the Student's t-test for rejecting outliers in the measurement of triplicate wells. This approach improved the ratio of accepted versus rejected plates, saving cost and time for rerunning the assay. However, the potential reduction in accuracy and the lack of improvement in precision suggests caution when using this approach. The current study has recommended an alternate quality control procedure for accepting or rejecting plates in place of the criteria currently used in the published assay, or the alternative of outlier testing. The recommended procedure involves the development of control charts to monitor the critical parameters identified in the published method (QC sample, EC50, slope of calibration curve), with the addition of a fourth critical parameter which is the top value (100% binding) of the calibration curve.

Multiresidue HPLC methods for phenyl urea herbicides in water.

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) methods for the determination of phenyl urea herbicides in water are described. The target compounds include chlortoluron, diuron, fluometuron, isoproturon, linuron, metobromuron, metoxuron, monuron, neburon, and siduron. Water was subjected to solid phase extraction (SPE) using either automated SPE with 47 mm C(18) Empore disks or on-line precolumn concentration. Herbicides were separated on a C(18) reversed phase column with an acetonitile-water gradient and were detected with either a diode array detector (DAD) or a postcolumn photolysis and derivatization (PPD) detector system. Photolysis converted the phenyl ureas to monoalkylamines that were derivatized to fluorescent isoindoles by reaction with o-phthalaldehyde and 2-mercaptoethanol. The DAD monitoring at 245 nm was linear over three decades with instrument detection limits of approximately 0.01 mg/L. SPE efficiency was between 48 and 70% in laboratory reagent water, but use of the internal standard quantitation method improved accuracy. High total dissolved solids and total organic carbon values in surface water improved recoveries relative to laboratory reagent water for all of the phenyl ureas. In Colorado River water spiked at 1 or 50 microg/L, mean recoveries ranged from 74 to 104%. Method detection limits (MDLs) ranged from 4 to 40 ng/L (parts per trillion) with the DAD instrument. PPD detection was highly specific but resulted in a slight loss in chromatographic efficiency and average MDLs approximately 5 times higher using a single set of detection conditions. The study indicates that methods based on SPE followed by HPLC with diode array or PPD detection have practical utility for trace analysis of phenyl ureas in drinking water or surface waters.