A Simple, Sensitive Method for Detection of Vomitoxin (Deoxynivalenol) Using Reversed Phase, High Performance Liquid Chromatography

Vomitoxin, a trichothecene mycotoxin produced by Fusarium graminearum, can be measured at levels as low as 5-10 ppb in contaminated corn by reversed phase, high performance liquid chromatography on Partisil 10 ODS-2 eluted with acetonitrile-water and detection at 214 nm. Corn extracts were initially purified by preparative thin layer chromatography on silica gel. Optimal separations of vomitoxin from other components in a sample of contaminated corn were achieved with 25% or less acetonitrile in water in which vomitoxin elutes with k′ > 1.06. Using 25% acetonitrile in water, the minimum detectable amount was 1.5 ng and the relationship between peak height and amount of vomitoxin was linear over the range 1-30 ng. Although resolution was greater when less acetonitrile was present in the eluant, sensitivity was somewhat lower.