Development of a simple and rapid method for determination of trans, trans-Muconic Acid in human urine using PDLLME preconcentration and HPLC-UV detection

Benzene is a known human carcinogen and monitoring its exposure is very important. trans, trans-Muconic Acid (tt-MA) is an open-ring metabolite product proposed by related regulatory bodies as the best biomarker of benzene exposure. In this study, a new, simple and rapid method was developed for determination of tt-MA in a urine sample using partitioned dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction technique coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography-UV detection. Under the optimal condition, 2000 mu L of tetrahydrofuran and 200 mu L chloroform were used as disperser and extraction solvent, respectively, for 5mL sample containing the target analyte. The method was linear in the range of 0.001-10mgL(-1). Method LOD, LOQ, relative standard deviation (RSD) for 3days and under three concentrations and relative recovery were obtained0.11 mu gL(-1), 0.83 mu gL(-1), 2.02-3.96% and 86-102%, respectively. Therefore, the proposed method with high recovery and easy application is recommended to be used to detect tt-MA in human urine samples.