Sensitive immunoenzyme assay for the detection of antibiotic flumequine in honey

Abstract

Fluoroquinolone antibiotics are used to cure and protect bees and apiaries from infections. Consequently, they may contaminate honey and other products of beekeeping. In this study, a highly sensitive immunoenzyme assay (EIA) was for the first time developed for the determination of a fluoroquinolone flumequine (FLU) in honey. The EIA was carried out in an indirect competitive format with colorimetric detection. The analysis was characterized by a low limit of detection of 30 pg mL⁻¹. The polyclonal antibodies used showed no cross-reactivity with 24 other (fluoro)quinolones; the assay was highly specific only toward FLU. Different coating FLU–protein conjugates were tested to achieve the most sensitive competitive immunodetection. A highly simplified and rapid (3–5 min) sample preparation was proposed based on the 100–300 times dilution of honey by a buffer. The developed EIA has been tested to detect FLU in honey of different origins, namely acacia, flower, buckwheat, chestnut, and linden honey. It has been demonstrated that 76.2–115.9% of FLU could be determined by the assay. The versatility, simplicity, and rapidity of the EIA enable us to propose this method as an effective tool to control the contamination of honey.