title: Acrylamide in Caribbean foods - residual levels and their relation to reducing sugar and asparagine content.
abstract: The acrylamide levels in commercial and homemade Caribbean foods were determined by pre-derivatisation of acrylamide to 2-bromopropenamide and analysed by gas chromatography with mass spectrometric (GC/MS) detection. Over 100 Caribbean food samples were analysed for the presence of acrylamide. These samples include: biscuits, breakfast cereals, banana chips and home-prepared foods: breadfruit; Artocarpus altilis, banana fritters, and dumplings. The limit of detection (LOD) for the GC/MS method was found to be dependent on the type of column used for the GC/MS analysis. The DB-1701 and the DB-VRX columns gave LODs of 20 and 4 μg/kg, respectively. Acrylamide has not been found in raw foods or foods which have been cooked by boiling. Its content in all other foods had concentrations in the range, 65-3,640 μg/kg. The relationship between acrylamide levels and precursor concentration as well as the health implications of our findings are discussed.
authors: Department of Chemistry, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies. Electronic address: grace-anne.bent@sta.uwi.edu.
authors: Grace-Anne
authors: GA
authors: Bent
authors: Department of Chemistry, University of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies. Electronic address: pmaragh16@yahoo.com.
authors: Paul
authors: P
authors: Maragh
authors: Department of Chemistry, University of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies. Electronic address: tara.dasgupta@gmail.com.
authors: Tara
authors: T
authors: Dasgupta
mesh_terms: D020106:Acrylamide / Q000032:analysis*; D001216:Asparagine / Q000737:chemistry*; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000737:chemistry*; D017691:Caribbean Region; D005502:Food; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D057230:Limit of Detection
chemical_list: D002241:Carbohydrates; D020106:Acrylamide; D001216:Asparagine
keywords: Acrylamide; Asparagine; Caribbean; GC/MS; Reducing sugars