Department of Food Analysis and Nutrition, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCT Prague), Technicka 3, 166 28, Prague 8, Czech Republic.
Anal Bioanal Chem. 2023 Sep;415(23):5723-5734. doi: 10.1007/s00216-023-04853-x. Epub 2023 Aug 17.
Saffron is a unique spice obtained by drying stigmas of saffron flowers (Crocus sativus L.). Due to its high price, economically motivated adulteration occurs relatively often. The presented study aimed to develop an effective strategy for the detection of the following potential botanical adulterants used for a saffron substitution or dilution: safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.), calendula (Calendula officinalis L.), turmeric (Curcuma longa L.), achiote (Bixa orellana L.), red pepper (Capsicum spp.), mountain arnica (Arnica montana L.), beet (Beta vulgaris L.), and pomegranate (Punica granatum L.). A non-target screening strategy based on ultra-high performance reverse-phase liquid chromatography coupled to tandem high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS/MS) was employed for the analysis of an aqueous ethanol plant extract. By using multivariate statistical methods, principal components analysis (PCA), and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), for processing the generated "chemical fingerprints," metabolites unique to the investigated plants could be identified. To enable routine saffron authenticity control by target screening, an internal spectral database was developed; currently, it involves 82 unique markers. In this way, the detection addition as low as 1% (w/w) of all analyzed botanical adulterants in admixture with saffron was possible. The developed method was used to control 7 saffron powder samples from the Czech market, and none of the monitored adulterants were confirmed.
藏红花是一种独特的香料，通过干燥藏红花花（Crocus sativus L.）的柱头获得。由于其价格高昂，因此经济上的动机导致掺假相对频繁。本研究旨在开发一种有效的策略，用于检测以下潜在的植物性掺杂物，这些掺杂物用于藏红花的替代或稀释：红花（Carthamus tinctorius L.）、金盏花（Calendula officinalis L.）、姜黄（Curcuma longa L.）、胭脂树（Bixa orellana L.）、红辣椒（Capsicum spp.）、高山白头翁（Arnica montana L.）、甜菜（Beta vulgaris L.）和石榴（Punica granatum L.）。采用基于超高效反相液相色谱与串联高分辨率质谱联用（UHPLC-HRMS/MS）的非靶向筛选策略，对水乙醇植物提取物进行分析。通过使用多元统计方法、主成分分析（PCA）和偏最小二乘判别分析（PLS-DA）处理生成的“化学指纹图谱”，可以识别出所研究植物特有的代谢物。为了通过靶向筛选实现常规藏红花真实性控制，开发了内部光谱数据库；目前，它涉及 82 个独特的标记物。通过这种方式，可以检测到与藏红花混合的所有分析植物性掺杂物的添加量低至 1%（w/w）。该方法用于控制来自捷克市场的 7 个藏红花粉样品，未确认监测到的掺杂物。
