comparison of enzyme linked immunoassay and high performance liquid chromatography for determination of fumonisin in dried figs

The occurrence of fumonisin in dried figs was investigated by Enzyme Linked Immunoassay (ELISA) and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Total fumonisins (FB1, FB2, FB3) in dried figs were determined using ELISA, whereas only fumonisin B1 (FB1) was determined by HPLC. In the period 2003-2004, one hundred and fifty five dried fig samples were taken during their drying in 7 different districts in the Aegean Region. Among a total of 115 samples, the incidence of total fumonisin in the dried figs was 82% within the range of 0.16 - 108.34 mg/g when determined by ELISA. In comparison, FB1 was detected in 86 samples (74.8%) within the range between 0.046 and 3.649 mg/g by HPLC. Correlation between ELISA and HPLC methods was observed for all samples. However, no correlation between methods was recorded for the samples with less than 1 mg/g Fumonisin B1 level (obtained by HPLC). Although there was a correlation between methods for all the samples, fumonisin levels obtained by ELISA were much higher than those obtained by HPLC. False positive results were obtained by ELISA in 11 out of 115 dried fig samples. The results indicated that ELISA can be used as a screening method for determining the occurence of fumonisin in dried figs.