Determination of 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol and 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol glucuronide in edible fillet tissue of rainbow trout and channel catfish by solid-phase extraction and liquid chromatography.

3-Trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM) is a pesticide used for the selective control of sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) in stream and river tributaries of the Great Lakes. To determine concentrations of TFM and TFM glucuronide in the edible fillet tissue of fish during sea lamprey control treatments, an analytical method was developed to determine the concentrations of these residues in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss; RBT) and channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatis; CCF). Homogenized fillets were extracted with methanol-water (80 + 20). TFM and TFM glucuronide were isolated from coextractives by C18 solid-phase extraction. TFM glucuronide was hydrolyzed to TFM by the addition of beta-glucuronidase to the TFM glucuronide extract. The extracts were analyzed separately by liquid chromatography with UV-visible detection. Recoveries from TFM-fortified CCF and RBT tissues were 84.1 and 96.1%, respectively. The method detection limits (MDLs) are 2.4 ng/g for TFM-fortified tissues of CCF and 3 ng/g for those of RBT. Recoveries were 78.8 and 77% from TFM glucuronide-fortified CCF and RBT tissues, respectively. The MDLs for TFM glucuronide-fortified tissues are 3.5 and 6.9 ng/g for CCF and RBT, respectively.