Extraction of light filth from whole leaves of alfalfa, lemon balm, papaya, and spearmint: collaborative study.
Results are reported for a collaborative study to extend AOAC method 44.A06-44.A08 to extraction of light filth from whole leaves of alfalfa, lemon balm, papaya, and spearmint. A 5 g (spearmint) or 10 g (alfalfa, lemon balm, papaya) test portion is defatted with isopropanol in a simple reflux apparatus. Rat hairs, insect fragments, and whole insects are isolated by wet sieving on a No. 230 sieve, a deaerating boil in 40% isopropanol, and flotation with mineral oil-heptane (85 + 15) from Tween 80-Na4EDTA (1 + 1) and 40% isopropanol in a Wildman trap flask. Each product was spiked at a different level. For rat hairs, recoveries averaged 82.2% from alfalfa, 88.9% from lemon balm, 80.6% from papaya, and 79.6% from spearmint. Recoveries of whole or equivalent insects from these products averaged 66.1, 218.8, 69.4, and 85.4%, respectively; recoveries of insect fragments from these products averaged 89.6, 94.4, 94.1, and 88.1%, respectively. The method has been adopted official first action for extraction of light filth from whole leaves of alfalfa, papaya, and spearmint. The extension of the method to lemon balm was not recommended because of interferences by intrinsic whole insects, which were the same species as the spike material.
Food and Drug Administration, Division of Microbiology, Washington, DC 20204.
M J
MJ
Nakashima
L E
LE
Glaze
D000818:Animals; D003212:Condiments / Q000032:analysis*; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D005638:Fruit / Q000032:analysis*; D006197:Hair / Q000032:analysis; D007313:Insecta; D000455:Medicago sativa / Q000032:analysis*; D051381:Rats