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Worldwide, medicinal plants and herbal medicines are widely consumed. The aim of this study was to determine macro- (Ca, K, Mg, Na, and P) and microelements (Al, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Si, Sn, Sr, V, and Zn) in medicinal plants and herbal medicines: “globe artichoke” - Cynara scolymus L., “devil’s claw” - Harpagophytum procumbens D.C., and “espinheira santa” - Maytenus ilifolia (Mart) ex Reiss. Concentrations of 24 (essential and toxic potentially) elements in samples from Brazil were determined using a sequential optical emission spectrometer with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES) after acid digestion, assisted by microwave radiation. Principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were used to carry out an exploratory analysis of samples. The elements were quantified (in μg/g): Al (20.24–1261.64), Ba (18.90–63.18), Ca (2877.6–19,957.40), Cr (0.28–1.38), Cu (4.16–21.99), Fe (8.54–627.49), K (1786.12–32,297.19), Mg (505.82–6174.52), Mn (0.40–205.64), Na (1717.23–18,596.45), Ni (< LoQ–0.99), P (35.12–2899.91), Se (1.52–3.71), Sn (1.53–12.43), Sr (52.33–84.31), V (< LoQ–0.24), and Zn (2.60–30.56). As, Cd, Co, Mo, Pb, and Sb, in all the investigated samples, were found to be below the limit of detection (LoD) and quantification (LoQ) values of ICP OES. These medicinal plants and herbal medicines can be sources of Ca, K, Mg, Na, P, Cu, Fe, Mn, Se, and Zn. All samples showed considerable levels of Al. PCA and HCA showed that the samples separated into two large groups.

In this work, a procedure is proposed for the direct analysis of powdered refreshments by fast sequential flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FS-F AAS), after a simple treatment of the sample. A full 23 factorial design was applied, and the variables chosen were as follows: acid concentration, acid type, and sonication time. Optimization provided the best conditions considering a mass of powdered refreshment of about 0.18 g diluted to a final volume of 15 mL with 0.5 mol L−1 HCl. The matrix effect was investigated, and external calibration was feasible for the determination of Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn. The limit of quantification (LoQ) obtained was between 0.6 (Cd) and 25 mg kg−1 (Pb). The analyte addition and recovery test were applied to evaluate the accuracy, and recovery percentage values ranging from 83.9 to 109.7% were obtained, which is considered adequate for quantitative analysis. Precision was expressed as relative standard deviation (% RSD); it was less than or equal to 5.0% (n = 7) for all analytes. The procedure was applied to 21 samples of powdered refreshment commercialized in Salvador (Brazil) and Buenos Aires (Argentina). The concentration range and average of the analytes in the samples (in mg kg−1) commercialized in Brazil (BZ) and Argentina (AG) were as follows: Co (BZ

The objective of this study was to determine the total content and estimate the bioaccessible fraction of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn in chia seeds (Salvia hispanica L.) by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). For the evaluation of the total content, a method of acid digestion was developed, using a complete factorial design 23, in a digester block with reflux system using cold finger, and the variables chosen were as follows: volume of nitric acid, sulfuric acid, and hydrogen peroxide. Optimization provided the best conditions considering 5.0 mL of HNO3 65% m m−1, 0.5 mL of H2SO4 98% m m−1, and 3.0 mL of H2O2 30% m m−1. The detection limits, in μg g−1, were 0.18 (Cu), 0.22 (Fe), 0.28 (Mn), and 0.37 (Zn). The analyte addition and recovery test were applied to evaluate the accuracy and recovery percentage values ranging from 84 to 114% were obtained, which is considered adequate for quantitative analysis. Precision was expressed as relative standard deviation (% RSD). It was less than or equal to 7.6% (n = 10) for all analytes. The procedure was applied to 10 samples of chia seed commercialized in Salvador (Brazil). The following concentration ranges, in μg g−1, were found: Cu (12–24.2), Fe (53.2–108), Mn (29.8–84.2), and Zn (45.8–77.4). Bioaccessibility was assessed using an in vitro method that takes into account the entire gastrointestinal tract. The following bioaccessible fractions were obtained in percent: Cu (3.6–14), Fe (5.2–5.5), Mn (5.8–29.1), and Zn (

An acid digestion procedure of the forage palm (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill and Nopalea cochenilifera) employing a closed digestor block applied full 24 factorial design was optimized. The optimal conditions were HNO3 5.0 mol L−1, 2.0 mL of H2O2 30% m m−1, 120 min of digestion, and heating temperature of 180 °C. The certified reference materials of apple leaves (NIST 1515) and tomato leaves (Agro C1003a) were used to evaluate the accuracy of the analytical method. The concentrations of the macroelements were (in % m m−1) Ca (1.32–3.71), K (0.88–5.29), Mg (0.70–1.78), and P (0.03–0.32). For the microelements, the concentrations (in μg g−1) obtained were As (

Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides is a species of stingless bee popularly known in Brazil as "mandacaia". Products derived from bees for food and therapeutic uses, have stimulated the evaluation of the chemical composition of geopropolis. Concentrations of 24 essential and potentially toxic elements were determined in geopropolis samples, using a sequential optical emission spectrometer with inductively coupled plasma (ICP OES) after microwave-assisted acid digestion. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were used to carry out an exploratory analysis of the samples. The following elements were quantified (in mg Kg-1): Al (320,414.40-36,911.1), As (

Given the importance of knowing the real nutritional value of food, the main objective of this study was to evaluate the total elements concentrations and bioaccessibility of Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, P and Zn in linseed and sesame samples. A full 24 factorial design was applied to optimize the microwave assisted acid digestion of the samples. Total elements concentrations were obtained by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). Extraction procedures were performed using the Unified Bioaccessibility Method (UBM) to evaluate the bioaccessibility. The highest total content, in μg g− 1, were observed for K (4526–9768), P (3418–7014) and Mg (2527–4633), whereas Mo (

The objective of this study was to analyze the effect of heat treatment on the bioaccessibility of major (K, Ca, Mg, P) and trace elements (As, Ba, Cu, Fe, Mn, Cd, Cr, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Se, Sb, Sn, and Zn) in three different pulse species: Vigna unguiculata L. Walp (cowpea beans), Cajanus cajan L. (pigeon pea) and Lablab purpureus L. Sweet (mangalo). Analyte concentrations were determined in the samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The results showed that thermal processing can affect the concentrations of the elements investigated in pulse samples. The influence of the heat treatment can range between legume species and chemical elements, as well as with the type of heat treatment, dry, wet, conductive heating and using microwaves.

In this work, the evaluation of the mineral profile and estimation of the bioaccessibility of essential and potentially toxic elements in honey samples was proposed. The experimental design and multivariate data analysis were applied as tool chemometrics. The acidic honey decomposition procedure using a cold finger digester block was proposed for analysis by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES). The analytical method presented good precision (

In this work, experimental design methodologies for the optimisation of analytical methods for the determination of inorganic constituents in tobacco products (cigar, shredded and rope) employing inductively coupled plasm optical emission spectrometry. Box-Behnken design was applied to optimise the digestion procedure of tobacco product samples using a closed digester block. The sample preparation was used dilute nitric acid, suitable for the concept of Green Chemistry. The operating conditions of spectrometer were optimised applying Doehlert design. The limits of quantification (LoQ) varied between 0.09 μg g−1 (Ba and Ti) and 116 μg g−1 (Na). The accuracy was confirmed by analysis of the certified reference materials (CRM) of oriental tobacco leaves (CTA-OTL-1), apple leaves (NIST 1515) and tomato leaves (CRM-Agro C1003a). The analytical method was applied for the determination of nineteen elements (Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, P, S, Sr, Ti, V and Zn) in tobacco products samples (cigar, shredded and rope). The results showed that the mean concentrations of macroelements were higher in cigar samples, the exception being Na concentration, which was higher for rope tobacco. For all samples, K concentration was the highest observed, since it is the nutrient most readily absorbed by the plant. Regarding the microelements and trace elements, cigar samples had higher contents of the six metals (Zn > Ba > Ti > Ni > Co > Cd) than did shredded or rope tobacco. The shredded tobacco samples presented higher concentration of Fe and for rope tobacco, the higher concentrations were for Al > Mn > Cu. In addition, principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were applied to discriminate the different tobacco products thought elemental composition, being cigar tobacco showed differences in relation to shredded and rope tobacco samples.

The atemoya is a hybrid fruit obtained by crossing of cherimoya (Annona cherimola Mill.) with sweet sop (Annona squamosa L.). The information about chemical composition of atemoya is scarce. The mineral composition was evaluated employing Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP OES) and the centesimal composition and the physico-chemical parameters were assessed employing procedures described in the AOAC methods. The total phenolic compounds (TPC) and total flavonoids (TF) were determined using spectroanalytical methods. Considering the Reference Daily Intake (RDI), the concentrations of K, Cu and Vitamin C found in atemoya were the highest, representing about 32, 23 and 37% of the RDI, respectively. The total carbohydrates were 32 g 100g-1 and the soluble solids was equivalent to (32.50 ± 0.03) °Brix. The result for TPC was 540.47 ± 2.32 mgGAE 100 g-1 and the TF was 11.56 ± 1.36 mgQE 100 g-1. The exploratory evaluation of 42 atemoya samples was performed through Principal Component Analysis (PCA), which discriminated green and ripe fruits according to their mineral composition. The elements that contributed most for the variability between green and ripe fruits were: Ba, Ca, Cu, K, Mg and P.