Pyrrolizidine Alkaloid Production of Jacobaea aquatica under Different Cutting Regimes

Abstract

Jacobaea aquatica (Asteraceae) growing in wet grasslands with low management intensity is regarded as a noxious weed with pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), which cause health problems to livestock. The influence of different management practices on the production of PAs and on the proportion of J. aquatica in the fodder was studied. Five cutting regimes were applied during 4 years on permanent plots in lower Austria. The toxicity of the fodder was assessed by recording dry weight and alkaloid content of J. aquatica and total aboveground biomass. Different cutting regimes had significant effects on the PA content of J. aquatica and on its proportion in the fodder. The content of J. aquatica was lowest in fodder of June and October cuts and highest in second cuts in July and August. Total alkaloid contents exceeding 100 mg/kg were found in fodder harvested in July and August. After cutting, the toxic plants regenerated quickly and produced new flowering stalks within 4-5 weeks. Six macrocylic PAs were evaluated, with Z-erucifoline as the most abundant compound. The alkaloid levels were highest in plants cut during summer when flowering plants were present. Consequently, this fodder should not be fed to livestock over a long period of time.

Pyrrolizidine alkaloid production of Jacobaea aquatica and contamination of forage in meadows of Northern Austria

“…The total PA concentration in the plants ranged between 600 and 1,400 mg kg −1 DM in most cases. A previous study from the same Waldviertel region (Chizzola, Bassler, Kriechbaum et al., ), which monitored the same six alkaloids, found total alkaloid concentrations between 213 and 1,929 mg/kg DM. Also in the same region, Winter et al.…”

“…Recently, a study in the Austrian Waldviertel region compared the growth and population dynamics of J. aquatica from meadow plots that underwent five different mowing regimes (Bassler, Karrer, & Kriechbaum, 2016). The alkaloid production was also evaluated and a high variability in alkaloid contents occurred (Chizzola, Bassler, Kriechbaum, & Karrer, 2015). Such information is valuable to formulate management guidelines for such meadows in order to minimize the risk of poisoning when the forage is used as cattle feed.…”

Stability of pyrrolizidine alkaloids from Senecio vernalis in grass silage under different ensilage conditions

“…In the present study, the total PA concentration in the silages was considerably higher than in commonly found samples in northwestern Europe 6,14 and rather represents extensive management conditions. 25 It must also be considered that plant species and the vegetation stage strongly affect the PA content. In the present study the most abundant PA was senkirkine, an otonecine-type PA, which was stable during the entire ensilage period.…”

Development of UPLC-Q-TOF-MS Coupled with Cation-exchange Solid-phase Extraction Method for the Determination of Ten Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids in Herbal Medicines

“…Due to the intoxication of PAs, many researchers have reported the detection of PAs in honey, 14 tea, 10 milk, 21 salad, 22 cereal 23 and other food stuffs by using spectrophotometry, 24 high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), 8 micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC), 25 liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), 26 gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), 27 etc. However, only few papers have reported the determination of PAs in herbal plants.…”

“…As an alternative to mass spectrometry instruments (MS), time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) shows high potential of high mass accuracy and mass resolution, which can complement other methods. 27 It can generate high specificity, even though detecting lots of target compounds simultaneously. Compared with ESI-MS, TOF-MS possess the merits of more accurate mass determination in each scan, and a higher mass resolving power, which provide a greater degree of reduction in chemical noise, and thus the selectivity is also enhanced.…”