Pesticides Residue Contamination in Commercial Maize (zymase) and Cowpea (vigna Unguiculata L. Walp) Crops From Mubi North Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Nigeria

Pesticides especially organochlorines and organophosphates are known primarily as neurotoxins. However, reactive oxygen species (ROS) caused by organochlorines and organophosphates may be involved in the toxicity of various pesticides. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the contamination levels of selected POPs (organochlorines, organophosphorus, and synthetic pyrethroids) in commercially sold maize and cowpea crops within the metropolis of Mubi North Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Nigeria. For this purpose three experiments were carried out to determine organochlorines, Organophosphorus and synthetic pyrethroids using Gas chromatography –mass spectrometry (Agilent GC-MS 7890A coupled with MSD 5975C) for the analysis from 10 randomly obtained samples of each sample. Limits of detection and quantification (LOD and LOQ) where both determined and the result shows both to be below the maximum residue limit of each pesticide. The results for organochlorines in cowpea and maize indicates the presence of Aldrin, Dieldrin, Endrin and Heptachlor in concentrations of 0.073±0.002mg/kg and 0.023±0.003mg/kg for Aldrin, 0.098±0.005mg/kg and 0.05±0.004mg/kg for Dieldrin and 0.05±0.001mg/kg for Endrin in cowpea only with traces of Heptachlor in the sample. For Organophosphorus, chlorpyrifos was higher in both cowpea and maize (0.072±0.04mg/kg and 0.063±0.03mg/kg) and malathion was 0.056±0.03mg/kg and 0.032±0.07mg/kg respectively. Cypermethrin shows the highest concentration in all the samples with 0.913±0.001mg/kg in cowpea. Indicators are high that maize and cowpea crops may be highly contaminated with pesticides with concentrations mostly close or above the maximum residue limits.