Magnetic γ-cyclodextrin polymer with compatible cavity promote the magnetic solid-phase extraction of microcystins in water samples

Microcystins (MCs), which are produced by eruptive cyanobacteria , seriously threaten the health of humans for their poisonousness. Herein, a facile strategy was introduced to synthesize the magnetic γ-cyclodextrin polymer (Fe 3 O 4 @PDA@γ-CDP) composite and set it as a novel adsorbent with excellent properties for the magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) of MCs. The prepared Fe 3 O 4 @PDA@γ-CDP microspheres exhibit good aqueous dispersibility and highly affinity for MCs, thus contribute to an excellent extraction performance for trace MCs in water samples. Combined with HPLC–MS/MS, a handy, sensitive and efficient method was developed for detection of MCs in water samples, which shows good linearity (R 2  ≥ 0.9992) in the range of 1.0–1000 pg mL −1 , low limits of detection (0.8–2.0 pg mL −1 , S/N = 3), satisfactory repeatability with the relative standard deviations (RSDs) lower than 6.2% (n = 5). At last, the proposed method was successfully applied for the extraction and detection of MCs in fresh water and sea water samples, which provides great potential of trace-level MCs determination in lake and sea water.