The consumption of medicinal food to maintain good health has increased, resulting to extend the markets for functional foods. Especially, ginseng(Panax ginseng, ginseng radix) and red ginseng; a processed ginseng product in South Korea, are commonly ...
The consumption of medicinal food to maintain good health has increased, resulting to extend the markets for functional foods. Especially, ginseng(Panax ginseng, ginseng radix) and red ginseng; a processed ginseng product in South Korea, are commonly used as foods in general and healthy functional food in particular from thousands of years ago. Due to high market demands, inexpensive morphologically similar materials may be intentionally mixed into ginseng or red ginseng products to derive benefits. It is very important to know whether the ginseng or red ginseng products are adulterated or not. The genetic analysis cannot be applied to processed red ginseng products, as they involve high temperature and pressure processing and genes may be destroyed. Therefore, this study was designed to find out some physicochemical indicators that would not be changed in various processing processes. Several possible substances such as Codonopsis lanceolata, Platycodon grandiflorum, and Pueraria lobata were tested as adulterants and investigated in the study.
To approached with multi-taret profiling method in subject samples and report a suitable method, the inorganic components were analyzed by using inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry(ICP/MS) and inductively coupled plasma/optical emission spectrometry(ICP/OES), volatile organic components were analyzed by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS), phytochemical screening via qualitative and quantitative analyses were done using standard reference methods and analysis of nonvolatile organic components were determined using high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) and LC-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry(MS/MS).
Six macro elements(Na, Mg, Ca, K, Fe, and Al) in individual dried and steamed dried samples were analyzed through ICP-OES and 19 trace elements(Ba, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Rb, Sr, Zn, Ga, Se, Tl, Be, Co, V, Li, Cs, Bi, Pb, Cd) in the samples were analyzed using ICP-MS. No significant difference due to processing was shown between raw samples and steamed samples and it was difficult to discriminate among the samples based on the analyzed contents of inorganic components. Among the statistical analyses, the Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) of the inorganic profile enabled discrimination among the individual samples. The raw samples and steamed samples were clearly distinguished from each other on the graph. Thus discrimination among the samples using inorganic elements was possible by LDA statistics.
The volatile organic components were extracted using the Solid phase micro extraction(SPME) method, and analyzed using GC-MS. From the results, (E)-2-hexen-1-ol and barbatene were identified in the raw samples of C. lanceolata and P. gradiflorum, but not in the raw samples of the P. ginseng and P. lobata. Furaneol was detected only from the steamed sample of P. gradiflorum. There were difficulties in the analysis of volatile organic components because the reproducibility was poor and the expected quantities of indicators were very small. Therefore, it was judged that applying volatile organic components as a method to identify the similar materials mixed into processed ginseng or red ginseng products would be difficult.
In phytochemical screening tests, terpenoids, phytosterols, phenolic compounds, coumarins, flavonoids, and alkaloids were screened and changes in colors were observed. Since high reactions of flavonoid and phenolic components were identified in the methanol extract of P. lobata, it was mixed into red ginseng extract at ratios of 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50% and screening tests were conducted. The intensity of the colors changed according to the mixing ratio, so it was easy to check whether or not the P. lobata were mixed.
Analyses were conducted using HPLC, to explore indicators that do not exist in ginseng but are detected from C. lanceolata, P. grandiflorum and P. lobata. In the results, peak 1, which was detected in C. lanceolate and P. grandiflorum in the same time zone, and peak 2, which was detected only in P. lobata but not in other samples, were identified. Expected indicators were verified by measuring their accurate masses through LC-MS/MS analyses, and as components not detected in ginseng, the same indicator of lobetyolin was identified in C. lanceolate, P. grandiflorum and an indicator ononin was identified in P. lobata. Therefore, it was concluded that the HPLC method developed in this study can identify whether or not C. lanceolate, P. grandiflorum, or P. lobata has been mixed into ginseng or red ginseng.
A total of 61 general and health functional foods made of ginseng or red ginseng distributed in the market were monitored and there were no C. lanceolate, P. grandiflorum or P. lobata mixed into the foods. When samples of processed products of C. lanceolate and P. grandiflorum, which are similar materials, were analyzed respectively, the common indicator lobetyolin was identified. Also when samples of processed P. lobata products were analyzed, ononin was detected. The method developed from this research can be used not only for ginseng processing food but also for the quality examination of bonnet, balloon flower roots, and arrochards.
In nutshell the indicator of similar materials, basic physicochemical components, macro inorganic and trace inorganic elements, and volatile organic components, were examined. Although it was difficult to set them as a method for clear discrimination, the examination was meaningful for the collection of basic data. Through this study, a method to identify whether or not similar materials were mixed into ginseng or red ginseng products using the HPLC analysis method was established. The identification method using HPLC was developed in this study and can be applied for development of methods to identify other adulterated foods.