Ginseng authenticity testing by measuring carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur stable isotope compositions that differ based on cultivation land and organic fertilizer type

Ill-Min Chung; Taek-Jun Lee; Yong-Taek Oh; Bimal Kumar Ghimire; In-Bae Jang; Seung-Hyun Kim

doi:10.1016/j.jgr.2016.03.004

Ginseng authenticity testing by measuring carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur stable isotope compositions that differ based on cultivation land and organic fertilizer type

J Ginseng Res. 2017 Apr;41(2):195-200. doi: 10.1016/j.jgr.2016.03.004. Epub 2016 Mar 18.

Authors

Ill-Min Chung¹, Taek-Jun Lee¹, Yong-Taek Oh¹, Bimal Kumar Ghimire¹, In-Bae Jang², Seung-Hyun Kim¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Applied Bioscience, College of Life and Environmental Science, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea.
² Department of Herbal Crop Research, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration, Eumseong, Korea.

Abstract

Background: The natural ratios of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and sulfur (S) stable isotopes can be varied in some specific living organisms owing to various isotopic fractionation processes in nature. Therefore, the analysis of C, N, and S stable isotope ratios in ginseng can provide a feasible method for determining ginseng authenticity depending on the cultivation land and type of fertilizer.

Methods: C, N, and S stable isotope composition in 6-yr-old ginseng roots (Jagyeongjong variety) was measured by isotope ratio mass spectrometry.

Results: The type of cultivation land and organic fertilizers affected the C, N, and S stable isotope ratio in ginseng (p < 0.05). The δ¹⁵N_AIR and δ³⁴S_VCDT values in ginseng roots more significantly discriminated the cultivation land and type of organic fertilizers in ginseng cultivation than the δ¹³C_VPDB value. The combination of δ¹³C_VPDB, δ¹⁵N_AIR, or δ³⁴S_VCDT in ginseng, except the combination δ¹³C_VPDB-³⁴S_VCDT, showed a better discrimination depending on soil type or fertilizer type.

Conclusion: This case study provides preliminary results about the variation of C, N, and S isotope composition in ginseng according to the cultivation soil type and organic fertilizer type. Hence, our findings are potentially applicable to evaluate ginseng authenticity depending on cultivation conditions.

Keywords: Panax ginseng; cultivation land; ginseng authenticity; isotope ratio mass spectrometry; organic fertilizer.