RESUMEN
Two yellow dyes, together with tartrazine (Y4), were found in cucumbers pickled in soy sauce, for which the use of tartrazine is permitted, by TLC, LC-DAD, and LC-MS. The retention times on LC chromatograms and the maximum absorbance wavelengths measured by LC-DAD of the two dyes were different from those of tartrazine. Mass spectra of the dyes indicated that these dyes lacked one sulfonyl group of tartrazine. The presence of two less sulfonated dyes in tartrazine has been reported. Hence, the two less sulfonated dyes were synthesized. The two dyes found in cucumbers were compared with the synthesized dyes by LC-DAD and LC-MS. Since the retention times of the dyes in cucumbers on the LC chromatograms, as well as their LC-DAD spectra and mass spectra, were found to be identical with those of the synthesized dyes, we concluded these dyes are the less sulfonated subsidiary dyes of tartrazine.