Analysis of Tetracyclines (TCs) Residues in Honey with HPLC - UV

Simultaneous determination of oxytetracycline (OTC), tetracycline (TC), chlortetracycline (CTC), and doxycycline (DC) residues in honey was performed using a high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet spectrophotometer ant this method was validated by analysis of precision and accuracy. Honey was digested using perchloric acid of 2% mass concentration. Matrix matched calibration curves showed a linearity exceeding 0.99. The recovery ratios lay between 75.9% and 92.5% and the coefficient variation was lower than 16.6%. Limits of detection and quantitation were below 0.03µg mL-1 and 0.09µg mL-1, respectively, for OTC and TC, and below 0.07µg mL-1 and 0.20µg mL-1, respectively, for CTC and DC. The experiments demonstrated that it is a simple method suitable for detection of residual TCs in honey.