Determination of Flubendazole and Metabolites in Eggs and Poultry Meat with Lc-ms/ms

Flubendazole (FLUB) is a broad-spectrum benzimidazole anthelmintic, effective against endoparasites such as gastro-intestinal roundworms, gapeworms and tapeworms (2). This drug is widely used in the veterinary medicine of poultry. An administration of flubendazole can result in the presence of residues of the parent compound FLUB and its hydrolysed metabolite (HMET) and/or its reduced metabolite (RMET) in eggs and meat. Some chromatographic methods have been published to determine flubendazole in eggs and/or muscle (1, 8, 9, 11). Only a few residue depletion data in eggs of laying hens are available in the literature (1, 8). By EEC Council Regulation No 2377/90 and updates (3), the EU sets the MRLs for FLUB in eggs at 400 μg kg and for FLUB + HMET in poultry muscle at 50 μg kg. This poster shows the optimization, the validation and the application of a quantitative and sensitive LCMS/MS analytical method for the determination of FLUB, HMET and RMET in eggs and poultry muscle. In this study, the excretion of flubendazole and its metabolites in turkey muscle and liver after oral administration of flubendazole at two concentration levels was examinated.