Personal care products (PCPs) are often adulterated with antimicrobial agents, such as quinolones, which pose risks to consumer safety and challenge regulatory oversight. Current detection methods rely on standard reference substances and are limited in identifying novel quinolone isomers and structural derivatives. In this study, we present the first use of MixONat, an advanced dereplication tool, combined with 13C NMR spectroscopy to detect illegal quinolone additives in PCPs. Key advancements include the establishment of an in-house quinolone database, innovative sample pretreatment methods, and the integration of these elements to improve the detection of new illegal additives in PCPs. Standard addition experiments in both blank matrices and commercial cosmetics successfully identified new quinolones not included in the database, with effective differentiation of stereoisomers such as ofloxacin and levofloxacin. The proposed approach significantly improves detection efficiency and accuracy, bolstering PCP safety regulations and contributing to public health protection.
Keywords: Illegal additives; MixONat; NMR dereplication; Personal care products; Public health protection; Quinolone additives.
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