Description
Nitrofurantoin is one of the nitrofurans which are synthetic broad-spectrum antibiotics, and often used for their antibacterial properties in food-producing animals. Nitrofurans have been banned on treating animals used for food production, because of the possibility of increased cancer risk if people are exposed to them over a long period of time. The European Union banned the use of nitrofurans in animal food production in 1995 with the United States following suit in 2002. Going beyond the ban on the use of nitrofuran, the EU implemented a stricter food import inspection policy after nitrofuran residues were found in poultry, fish and shrimp. The analysis of residues of nitrofuran drugs needs to be based on the detection of the tissue bond metabolites of the nitrofuran parent drugs. Since the parent drugs are very rapidly metabolized, they are not detectable shortly after treatment. The tissue bound nitrofuran metabolites are detectable for a long time after administration and therefore they are used for the detection of the abuse of nitrofurans. Nitrofuran metabolites are found after administration of Furazolidone (metabolite:3-amino-2-oxazolidinone=AOZ), Furaltadone (metabolite: 3-amino-5-morpholino-methyl-2-oxazolidinone = AMOZ), Nitrofurantoin (metabolite:1-aminohydantoin = AHD) and Nitrofurazone (metabolite: semicarbazide = SEM)