Trace and rare earth elements in monofloral and multifloral honeys from Northwestern Italy; A first attempt of characterization by a multi-elemental profile

Stefania Squadrone; Paola Brizio; Caterina Stella; Sabina Pederiva; Fulvio Brusa; Paola Mogliotti; Annalisa Garrone; Maria Cesarina Abete

doi:10.1016/j.jtemb.2020.126556

Trace and rare earth elements in monofloral and multifloral honeys from Northwestern Italy; A first attempt of characterization by a multi-elemental profile

J Trace Elem Med Biol. 2020 May 20:61:126556. doi: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2020.126556. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Stefania Squadrone¹, Paola Brizio², Caterina Stella², Sabina Pederiva², Fulvio Brusa³, Paola Mogliotti³, Annalisa Garrone³, Maria Cesarina Abete²

Affiliations

¹ Chemistry Department, CReAA,Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy. Electronic address: stefania.squadrone@izsto.it.
² Chemistry Department, CReAA,Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy.
³ Chemistry Department, CReAA,Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Turin, Italy; Regional Reference Centre for Bees, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte, Liguria e Valle d'Aosta, Asti, Italy.

PMID: 32473447
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2020.126556

Abstract

Background: Metals are a minor constituent in honey, but they have been suggested to be a potential tool to characterize honeys according to their botanical or geographical origin.

Methods: A total of 40 metals were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry in monofloral and multifloral honeys from Northwestern Italy. PCA and ANOVA were used to discriminate honeys according to the various floral types.

Results: The highest levels of trace elements and rare earth elements (REEs) were found in chestnut honey, while the lowest concentrations were recorded in acacia and rhododendron honeys. Rubidium and aluminum were the most represented nonessential elements, while manganese, iron, zinc and copper had the highest values of the essential elements. Potentially toxic elements arsenic, cadmium and lead were close to or below the limit of quantification.

Conclusions: The present study showed significant differences in metal concentrations according to honey floral type, reflecting the strong influence of botanical origin on the chemical composition of this particular food.

Keywords: Botanical origin; Honey; ICP-MS; Italy; Lanthanides; Metals.