Identification of fenfluramine adulteration in slimming foods using a highly sensitive immunoassay

Fenfluramine, an appetite suppressant used for weight loss, can cause significant harm if overdosed. The unauthorized addition of fenfluramine to slimming foods has raised concerns. Currently, no rapid screening method is available for the quick detection of fenfluramine in the field. This study proposes six new haptens with varying spacer arm lengths and hydrophobicity, promising to elicit antibodies capable of being highly specific and strongly binding to fenfluramine. The study found that highly hydrophobic haptens with long spacer arms favored the generation of highly sensitive antibodies. Key interaction forces for antibody recognition of fenfluramine were revealed by intrinsic molecular mechanisms. Based on the above results, monoclonal antibody for fenfluramine was prepared and an ultrasensitive icELISA method with heterologous coating strategies was developed in slimming foods. The IC50 of the method was 6.25 ng/mL, the linear detection range was 0.47–83.51 ng/mL and the detection limit was 0.10 ng/mL. Recovery rates in tea bags, tablets, capsules, coffee, and beverages ranged from 96.56 % to 108.90 %. The method was successfully applied to blind samples, showing strong correlation with HPLC-MS/MS results. Thus, the developed method is suitable for identifying fenfluramine adulteration in slimming foods. [Display omitted] •Six novel fenfluramine haptens were designed by modulating the hydrophobicity of the haptens by space rarm length.•Formal arm rationalisation by molecular simulation and molecular docking before and after antibody production.•For the first time, an antibody to fenfluramine was obtained with high sensitivity and specificity.•A sensitive icELISA was fabricated to detect fenfluramine in slimming foods.