Quantity determination and toxicological evaluation of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in supplementary foods and herbal TEA

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA) are the most common toxic secondary plant metabolites found in more than 6000 plant species worldwide. These compounds especially those with 1,2 unsaturated bonds, pose a threat to human health with their genotoxic and carcinogenic properties. There is concern and growing awareness among regulators about the risks associated with consuming PA-contaminated products. For this purpose a method based on quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry-liquid chromatography (LC-MS-QTOF) was validated to determine the amount of PA in herbal supplements and teas. 28 PA were analyzed. Quantification of products such as green tea and green tea supplements, form teas and chamomile teas, mixed herbal teas, and products containing PA alkaloids such as comfrey and coltsfoot were performed .In our study, 11 different PAs, mostly intermidine and N-oxide, were found in 34 different products. At least one PA was detected in 44% (14) of 31 samples, excluding PA-containing samples. The highest total PA amounts belong to Sympytum officinale samples, as expected. In the analyzed samples, varying amounts of PAs were found in the range of 2.70 ng/g-9.37 µg/g in 17 of them. It was concluded that some of the amounts detected in the samples were above the allowable limit values. The first data on different types of samples found in our country were obtained.