Dear Reader,
Two new publications by the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical
Adulterants Prevention Program (BAPP) became available in the fall of 2019. Published
in September, the saw palmetto (Serenoa repens)
Laboratory Guidance Document evaluated 34 methods for their suitability to
detect adulteration mainly with vegetable oils or blends of vegetable oils with
fatty acids from animal sources. In October, BAPP published the Botanical
Adulterants Prevention Bulletin (BAPB) on oregano (Origanum
vulgare subsp. hirtum, or O. onites) herb and essential oil. This is the 19th in the
series of BAPBs; it documents the substitution or dilution of oregano leaf with
undeclared lower cost fillers such as cistus (Cistus
spp.) leaves, hazelnut (Corylus avellana)
leaves, olive (Olea europaea) leaves, or sumac (Rhus spp.) leaves. In addition, the bulletin covers the
adulteration of oregano essential oil with oils obtained from other Origanum and Thymus species,
Spanish thyme blend, and synthetic
carvacrol and thymol.
The Regulatory Section
draws attention to the importance of appropriate contract language between a
manufacturer and a supplier. This section, co-authored by Tami Wahl, attorney
and policy advisor in Washington, DC, presents a case in which a company sued
its supplier for selling adulterated saw palmetto. The case sheds light on the
impacts of such fraudulent practices, and provides an example where the
proposed BAPP Standard Operating Practice (SOP) for the disposal or destruction
of irreparably defective articles may have protected a company from financial
harm.
The Science
Update section features a series of two papers looking into the origin
of high plasma lead concentrations in pregnant women in rural areas of
Bangladesh, co-authored by scientists from Stanford University (Stanford, CA) and
the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The
first paper linked the elevated lead to ingestion of turmeric (Curcuma longa) colored with lead chromate based on lead
isotope analysis. The second paper looked at the turmeric supply chain in
Bangladesh through interviews with people involved in the production,
consumption, and regulation of turmeric.
The publication by Ichim is
an attempt to estimate the extent of herbal adulteration based on papers
reporting adulteration using DNA barcoding methods. Using the number of
adulterated products (determined based on the definition of adulteration used
by the authors of each paper), Ichim calculated the percentage of adulteration
in each geographic area of the world. Noting a number of challenges using this
approach, he concluded that the estimated extent of adulteration is highest in
Australia, followed by South America, and Europe.
The summaries of the remaining three papers in the Science Section describe methods of chemical analysis to
detect adulteration. Huang et al. used matrix-assisted
laser desorption/ionization–time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry to
distinguish between astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus)
and hedysarum (Hedysarum polybotrys). Hurkova
et al. presented an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–mass
spectrometry (UHPLC–MS) method to distinguish between cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) and lingonberry (V. vitis-idaea)
fruit. Using the UHPLC–MS chromatograms, the two ingredients could be separated
into distinct clusters using chemometric tools. Peonidin glycosides were found
to be useful as marker compounds since these anthocyanins are abundant in
cranberry, but absent in lingonberry. UHPLC–MS, in addition to high-performance
thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC), was also used by Kiss et al. to characterize
European ash (Fraxinus excelsior) leaves, and
to analyze five commercial products from European markets labeled to contain
ash leaves. One of the products was found to contain a different ash species
based on the presence of aesculetin glycosides.
We trust that the information included in this issue of
the Botanical Adulterants Monitor will be of
interest to you. It is our goal that the content will increase the awareness of
botanical ingredient adulteration, showcase new techniques to detect
adulteration, and ultimately help to avoid adulterated ingredients finding
their way into the herbal dietary supplement, natural cosmetic, personal care,
and other finished botanical products supply chain. Please do not hesitate to
share the contents of this newsletter with your colleagues.
Stefan Gafner, PhD
Chief Science Officer
American Botanical Council
Technical Director, ABC-AHP-NCNPR
Botanical Adulterants Program
