Cadmium oral bioavailability is affected by calcium and phytate contents in food: Evidence from leafy vegetables in mice

Meng-Yu Wang; Meng-Ya Li; Han Ning; Rong-Yue Xue; Jia-Hui Liang; Ning Wang; Xiao-San Luo; Gang Li; Albert L Juhasz; Lena Q Ma; Hong-Bo Li

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127373

Cadmium oral bioavailability is affected by calcium and phytate contents in food: Evidence from leafy vegetables in mice

J Hazard Mater. 2022 Feb 15;424(Pt A):127373. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127373. Epub 2021 Sep 28.

Authors

Meng-Yu Wang¹, Meng-Ya Li¹, Han Ning¹, Rong-Yue Xue¹, Jia-Hui Liang¹, Ning Wang², Xiao-San Luo³, Gang Li⁴, Albert L Juhasz⁵, Lena Q Ma⁶, Hong-Bo Li⁷

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Vehicle Emissions Control, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, People's Republic of China.
² Key Laboratory of Agro-Environment in Downstream of Yangtze Plain, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People's Republic of China, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014, People's Republic of China.
³ Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Agricultural Meteorology, International Center for Ecology, Meteorology, and Environment, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, Nanjing 210044, People's Republic of China.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, People's Republic of China.
⁵ Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, South Australia 5095, Australia.
⁶ Institute of Soil and Water Resources and Environmental Science, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, People's Republic of China.
⁷ State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Vehicle Emissions Control, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: hongboli@nju.edu.cn.

PMID: 34879567
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127373

Abstract

To test high cadmium (Cd) concentration may not be high in health risk when considering Cd bioavailability, we assessed variation of Cd relative bioavailability (RBA, relative to CdCl₂) using a mouse assay for 14 vegetables of water spinach, amaranth, and pakchoi. Cadmium concentration varied from 0.13 ± 0.01-0.37 ± 0.00 μg g^-1 fw. Cadmium-RBA also varied significantly from 22.9 ± 2.12-77.2 ± 4.46%, however, the variation was overall opposite to that of Cd concentration, as indicated by a strong negative correlation between Cd-RBA and Cd concentration (R² = 0.43). Based on both Cd concentration and bioavailability, the identified high-Cd pakchoi variety resulted in significantly lower Cd intake than the high-Cd varieties of water spinach and amaranth (4.74 ± 0.05 vs. 10.1 ± 0.54 and 8.03 ± 0.04 μg kg^-1 bw week^-1) due to significantly lower Cd-RBA (22.9 ± 2.12 vs. 77.2 ± 4.46 and 51.3 ± 2.93%). The lower Cd-RBA in pakchoi was due to its significantly higher Ca and lower phytate concentrations, which facilitated the role of Ca in inhibiting intestinal Cd absorption. This was ascertained by observation of decreased Cd-RBA (90.5 ± 12.0% to 63.5 ± 5.53%) for a water spinach when elevating its Ca concentration by 30% with foliar Ca application. Our results suggest that to assess food Cd risk, both total Cd and Cd bioavailability should be considered.

Keywords: Bioavailability; Cadmium; Calcium; Leafy vegetables; Phytate.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Biological Availability
Cadmium* / analysis
Cadmium* / toxicity
Calcium
Phytic Acid
Soil Pollutants* / analysis
Vegetables

Substances

Soil Pollutants
Cadmium
Phytic Acid
Calcium