title: Heavy metals and essential elements in Italian cereals.
abstract: Crops intended for human nutrition and food production containing different essential trace elements, such as copper and zinc, could be contaminated by toxic metals like cadmium and lead. The interrelationship between micronutrients and contaminant trace elements in different cereals was investigated in North-western Italy, where both agricultural and industrial activities are present. Elemental concentrations in sampled cereals were assessed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Rice, oats and barley reached the highest median levels for Al, Cd and Pb content, while corn samples were less contaminated by toxic metals. Regarding essential elements highest median values of Cu and Zn were both found in barley, while Ni median content was higher in oats. Rice had the lowest median levels of essential elements. The correlation study between toxic and essential elements seemed to demonstrate fixed trends in analysed samples, corroborating the importance of a different diet to limit potential adverse effects caused by toxic elements.
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brizio
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Benedetto
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Squadrone
authors.affiliation: b Servizio Veterinario del Dipartimento di Prevenzione dell'ASL BI , Biella , Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Curcio
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pellegrino
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferrero
authors.affiliation: a Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Piemonte , Liguria e Valle d'Aosta , Torino , Italy.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Abete
mesh_terms: D000535:Aluminum / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D053000:Analytic Sample Preparation Methods; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000254:growth & development; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000208:ethnology; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000254:growth & development; D005506:Food Contamination; D005513:Food Inspection; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D057230:Limit of Detection; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D009753:Nutritive Value; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012639:Seeds / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000254:growth & development; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014131:Trace Elements; D000535:Aluminum
keywords: Heavy metals; ICP-MS; Italy; cereals; essential elements