Evaluation and Dietary Exposure Assessment of Selected Toxic Trace Elements in Durum Wheat (Triticum durum) Imported into the Italian Market: Six Years of Official Controls

Durum wheat grains, which are mostly used for the production of pasta and several baked goods, represent a main source of vegetable proteins and calories. Concurrently, many contaminants, including toxic trace elements, may accumulate in them, posing a potential severe hazard to human health. In this context, for official control and food safety purposes, 346 samples of whole durum wheat imported into the Italian market from six countries (Australia, Canada, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, and the United States) during the period 2015–2020 were analysed for cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and mercury (Hg) content using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). All the analysed samples were compliant with Food Agriculture Organization–World Health Organization and European Union regulations. The mean values were 0.0322 and 0.0162 mg kg−1, respectively, for Cd and Pb, while all samples showed levels below the limit of detection (0.004 mg kg−1) for Hg. The results were construed in terms of seasonality, year, and country of production, and compared with reference tolerance values. Confirming previous exposure studies, the obtained data and the dietary intake assessment showed that durum wheat-based products may have a significant impact on exposure to Pb and Cd (20–50%) in the overall population, particularly in more sensitive and/or exposed subgroups (infants, toddlers, and females)

Characterization and Quantification of Arsenic Species in Foodstuffs of Plant Origin by HPLC/ICP-MS

Arsenic is a well-known carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic element and occurs in the environment both as inorganic arsenic (iAs) and organoarsenical compounds (oAsCs). Since the toxicity of arsenic compounds depends on their chemical form, the identification and determination of arsenic species are essential. Recently, the European Food Safety Authority, following the European Commission request, published a report on chronic dietary exposure to iAs and recommended the development and validation of analytical methods with adequate sensitivity and refined extraction procedures for this determination. Moreover, the authority called upon new arsenic speciation data for complex food matrices such as seaweeds, grains and grain-based products. Looking at this context, an optimized, sensitive and fast analytical method using high performance liquid chromatography followed by inductively coupled plasma—mass spectrometry (HPLC/ICP-MS) was developed for the determination of iAs (sum of arsenite—AsIII and arsenate—AsV) and the most relevant oAsCs, arsenobetaine, dimethylarsinic acid and monomethylarsonic acid. The method was validated with satisfactory results in terms of linearity, sensitivity, selectivity, precision, recovery, uncertainty, ruggedness and matrix effect, and then successfully applied for the analysis of several matrices, i.e., processed and unprocessed cereal and cereal products, fruits, vegetables, legumes, seaweeds, nuts and seeds. The results obtained indicate that not only seaweed and rice matrices but also many cereals, legumes and plant-based foods for infants and young children contain significant concentrations of iAs and oAsCs. These findings contribute to the data collection necessary to assess the role of these matrices in the total arsenic exposure and if specific maximum limits have to be established

Selenium fern application and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi soil inoculation enhance Se content and antioxidant properties of green asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) spears

Asparagus can be considered as target crops for Se biofortification for producing spears with enhanced Se content and antioxidant proprieties. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation may affect selenium uptake from soil and the level of antioxidant compounds in vegetable crops. However, for this species the response to selenium fertilization is scarcely known as well as the role of AMF in the biofortification process. Two-year experimental trials on Se fertilization of cultivar Grande were performed on two farms a) to assess the effect of 0 (Se 0 ), 25 (Se 25 ), 75 (Se 75 ) and 125 (Se 125 ) g ha −1 of Se as selenate sprayed onto ferns on crop productivity, spear quality, and Se enrichment; b) to consider the potential synergic effect between Se fern fertilization and AMF inoculation (+AMF and –AMF). The cvs. Atlas and ‘Italo’ were also tested against ‘Grande’ to measure their genotype-specific responses using a medium rate of Se application (Se 75 ). Neither fern injury nor changes in spear yield, quality (commercial and organoleptic) or essential/non-essential element contents were observed in Se-treated asparagus plants, whereas an increase in Ca 2+ level was detected. Averaged over all the trials, Se content in Se 0 spears was close to 150 μg kg −1 DW. It always rose linearly with increasing Se rate, to a much greater extent when Se application was associated with the AMF inoculation, reaching with the highest Se rate values of 1893 and 844 μg kg −1 DW with and without AMF inoculation, respectively. However, AMF inoculation was not effective in enhancing the uptake of Se from soil. Variability in Se spear fortification was observed between farms, probably depending on the crop management affecting the growth of the green biomass. The highest Se dose (Se 125 ) also resulted in an improved content of sucrose in spears and in crowns one year after the Se application. In all trials, total phenols (TP) and carotenoid content, as well as antioxidant capacity (AC) in spears linearly enhanced with the rising of Se dose. A significant correlation between TP and AC in spears of not AMF-inoculated crop was highlighted, while AC in +AMF spears seems to be affected by other antioxidant compounds besides TP. Among the cultivars tested, ‘Atlas’ seems more prone than ‘Grande’ and ‘Italo’ to Se enrichment and, irrespectively to the Se treatment, it had the highest antioxidant capacity. The annual application of Se on asparagus fern is a promising technique for obtaining stable Se enrichment of the asparagus spears over both years and it can be usefully associated with AMF inoculation

Evaluation of Seasonal Variability of Toxic and Essential Elements in Urine Analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Human exposure to elements is a process difficult to control and monitor. Studies on this topic usually rely on single spot urine sample to assess exposure, with the risk of ignoring variability over a longer period. In this work, we measured the urinary excretion of toxic and essential elements during 1 year with the overall goal of exploring the variability caused by seasonality on their concentration. Seven participants were recruited, and first morning urines were collected three times for each season, during November, January, April and July. Participants followed the same balanced diet during the week of collection. We then monitored nineteen essential and toxic elements in urines by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Unsupervised multivariate statistical analysis separated samples collected during summer from the ones collected during other seasons. Twelve elements had a significant seasonal variation (ANOVA test, p < 0.05) and their levels resulted increased during summer. These elements were both contaminants, such as Ni, Hg, Cd and Tl, and essential elements such as Se and Cu. However, none of these elements was detected at toxic concentration. In this study, we point out for the first time the variability of urine element concentration due to seasonality and we propose that the season of collection should be considered when providing urinary reference values of elements

Distinctive Pattern of Serum Elements During the Progression of Alzheimer's Disease

Element profiling is an interesting approach for understanding neurodegenerative processes, considering that compelling evidences show that element toxicity might play a crucial role in the onset and progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Aim of this study was to profile 22 serum elements in subjects with or at risk of AD. Thirtyfour patients with probable AD, 20 with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 24 with subjective memory complaint (SMC) and 40 healthy subjects (HS) were included in the study. Manganese, iron, copper, zinc, selenium, thallium, antimony, mercury, vanadium and molybdenum changed significantly among the 4 groups. Several essential elements, such as manganese, selenium, zinc and iron tended to increase in SMC and then progressively to decrease in MCI and AD. Toxic elements show a variable behavior, since some elements tended to increase, while others tended to decrease in AD. A multivariate model, built using a panel of six essential elements (manganese, iron, copper, zinc, selenium and calcium) and their ratios, discriminated AD patients from HS with over 90% accuracy. These findings suggest that essential and toxic elements contribute to generate a distinctive signature during the progression of AD, and their monitoring in elderly might help to detect preclinical stages of AD

Characterization, chemometric evaluation, and human health-related aspects of essential and toxic elements in Italian honey samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Concentration values of 24 elements (Al, As, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ge, Hg, Mn, Mo, Pb, Sb, Se, Sn, Sr, Ti, Tl, U, V, and Zn) were determined in 72 honey samples produced in Italy by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Considering the recommended established heavy metal daily intakes for humans, in this perspective, an equilibrated and ordinary honey consumption should not be considered matter of concerns for human health, even if particular attention should be addressed if honey is consumed by children, due to different maximum daily heavy metal intakes. Chemometric analysis of the results obtained highlights heavy metal content differences in honey samples obtained from notoriously polluted zones, confirming then that honey can be considered a bio-indicator of environmental pollution. Finally, Pearson coefficients highlighted correlations among element contents in honey samples