Survey of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in teas and herbal teas on the Swiss market using HPLC-MS/MS

Mathon, Caroline; Edder, Patrick; Bieri, Stefan; Christen, Philippe

doi:10.1007/s00216-014-8142-8

Cited by 51 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 29 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In recent years, several studies have demonstrated that a real danger is posed by Pyz alks extracted from herbs in teas and infusions . In line with previous studies, our study confirmed the migration of Pyz alks from herbs to water infusions, albeit at a lower rate compared to the potential content. Moreover, this work investigated the possible migration of other alk groups such as Gst and Str in hot water.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Alkaloid profiling of herbal drugs using high resolution mass spectrometry

Nardin

Piasentier

Barnaba

et al. 2017

Drug Testing and Analysis

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Herbal infusions are consumed worldwide thanks to their "natural" beneficial effects, also due to the presence of alkaloids, although these compounds can have poisonous effects. A method combining online solid-phase purification with high resolution mass spectrometry was used to define the alkaloid profiles of 117 herbs and 7 commercial blends. Forty-one alkaloids were quantified in reference to analytical standards, while the presence of a further 116 was confirmed based on accurate mass, retention time, and fragmentation profile. The targeted study showed that 52% of herbs and 42% of commercial blends contained at least one alkaloid. Pyrrolizidines were the most commonly present (26% of samples), with concentrations generally ranging from the quantification limit to roughly 100 μg kg . Moreover, a homemade infusion was studied, finding on average 45% and 6% lower extraction for pyrrolizidine and steroidal alkaloids, respectively. Nevertheless, the migration of pyrrolizidines was confirmed. The study confirmed the frequent presence, natural or accidental, of alkaloids in commercial infusion herbs, highlighting the urgent need for routine and accurate controls.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Alkaloid profiling of herbal drugs using high resolution mass spectrometry

Nardin

Piasentier

Barnaba

et al. 2017

Drug Testing and Analysis

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Recent studies revealed also that tea can be highly contaminated: total PA concentrations up to 5647 μg kg −1 have been detected in samples from the German retail market (Bodi et al 2014), as well as in other countries (Griffin et al 2015, Mathon et al 2014, Shimsoni et al 2015b. Comparable amounts were also detected in German-licensed herbal medicinal teas (Schulz et al 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Occurrence of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in animal- and plant-derived food: results of a survey across Europe

Mulder

López

Castellari

et al. 2017

Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A

108

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are secondary metabolites of plant families such as Asteraceae or Boraginaceae and are suspected to be genotoxic carcinogens. Recent investigations revealed their frequent occurrence in honey and particularly in tea. To obtain a comprehensive overview of the PA content in animal-and plant-derived food from the European market, and to provide a basis for future risk analysis, a total of 1105 samples were collected in 2014 and 2015. These comprised milk and milk products, eggs, meat and meat products, (herbal) teas, and (herbal) food supplements collected in supermarkets, retail shops, and via the internet. PAs were detected in a large proportion of plant-derived foods: 91% of the (herbal) teas and 60% of the food supplements contained at least one individual PA. All types of (herbal) teas investigated were found to contain PAs, with a mean concentration of 460 µg kg −1 dry tea (corresponding to 6.13 µg L −1 in [herbal] tea infusion). The highest mean concentrations were found in rooibos tea (599 µg kg −1 dry tea, 7.99 µg L −1 tea infusion) and the lowest in camomile tea (274 µg kg −1 dry tea, 3.65 µg L −1 tea infusion). Occurrence of PAs in food supplements was found to be highly variable, but in comparable ranges as for (herbal) tea. The highest concentrations were present in supplements containing plant material from known PA-producing plants. In contrast, only 2% of the animalderived products, in particular 6% of milk samples and 1% of egg samples, contained PAs. Determined levels in milk were relatively low, ranged between 0.05 and 0.17 µg L −1 and only trace amounts of 0.10-0.12 µg kg −1 were found in eggs. No PAs were detected in the other animal-derived products.ARTICLE HISTORY

show abstract

“…Since the start of this project some data on the occurrence of PAs in (herbal) teas and supplements have been published elsewhere (Bodi et al, 2014;Griffin et al, 2014;Mathon et al, 2014;Schulz et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%