HPLC determination of pheophorbide a and pyropheophorbide a in dried laver product implicated in food poisoning.
In an outbreak of food poisoning involving a dried purple laver product (called nori), four persons had allergic-like symptoms such as inflammation and red rash on their face, mouth and belly. The causative nori was extracted and smeared on the arm-skin of five volunteers. Three out of five volunteers had a slight allergic reaction after 5 to 30 min when they were exposed to sunlight. The levels of the chlorophyll derivatives, pheophorbide a and pyropheophorbide a, measured by HPLC were 851-906 and 5,460-5,624 microg/g, respectively, in the causative samples. Judging from the high contents of pyropheophorbide a and pheophorbide a and the symptoms of patients and volunteers, the causative agents were concluded to be the photosensitizers pyropheophorbide a and pheophorbide a.
Hwang
Deng-Fwu
DF
Department of Food Science, National Taiwan Ocean University: 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, Taiwan, ROC.
Tsai
Yu-Shia
YS
Chou
Shin-Shoug
SS
Liu
Shiu-Mei
SM
Wu
Jiunn-Tzong
JT
Lin
Shin-Jung
SJ
Tu
Wei-Chun
WC
D000328:Adult; D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000032:analysis* / Q000506:poisoning; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000209:etiology; D005517:Foodborne Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017319:Photosensitizing Agents / Q000032:analysis* / Q000506:poisoning; D012624:Seaweed / Q000737:chemistry*
D017319:Photosensitizing Agents; D002734:Chlorophyll; C040298:pyropheophorbide a; C032623:pheophorbide a