Solid phase extraction and ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric identification of carcinogenic/mutagenic heterocyclic amines in cooked camel meat

Abstract

In the present study, three kinds of camel (Mjahim, Mgatir and Humor) from Saudi Arabia have been studied for heterocyclic amines (HAs) contents in their cooked meat. The camel meats were cooked using common cooking practices, such as frying, griddling, stewing and barbequing, under controlled temperature. The investigated HAs were IQ, MeIQ, MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx and PhIP. An analytical method based solid-phase extraction and ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used for the analysis of HAs in cooked samples. The level of IQ and MeIQ were found either below the limit of quantification or not detected in all of the analyzed samples. The fried samples produced MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx and PhIP, between 2.13 ng g⁻¹ and 5.89 ng g⁻¹, whereas the griddled and barbequed samples generated MeIQx, 4,8-DiMeIQx and PhIP ranging from 0.93 to 4.34 ng g⁻¹. The stewing method applied to meat samples generated only PhIP at concentrations between 0.4 ng g⁻¹ and 0.65 ng g⁻¹, while MeIQx and 4,8-DiMeIQx were found to be below the limit of quantification. The low levels of HAs in stewing method might be explained from the fact that the samples were not directly in contact with the cooking pot or blaze, which influences the formation of HAs. These outcomes suggest that camel meat is a significant dietary source of HAs and can be used in epidemiological studies to approximate HA exposure from dietary questionnaires.