Studying the contamination of tea and herbal infusions with myсotoxins (message 2)

The occurrence of wide spectrum of mycotoxins has been studied in C. sinensis and herbal tea available in the Russian Federation by ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometer (UHPLC-MS/MS). The batch of 77 samples consisted of 54 samples of bulk loose (prepacked) and packed C. sinensis tea and 23 individual and mixed herbal teas. The list of determined analytes included 29 mycotoxins: regulated in food (aflatoxins, ochratoxin A, deoxinivalenol, fumonisins, T-2 toxin and zaeralenone), their derivatives and structural analogues (A- and B-trichothecenes, mycotoxins of zearalenone group) and emerging mycotoxins (sterigmatocystin, mycophenolic acid, enniatins, beauvericin, Alternaria toxins). Samples of green and black C. sinensis tea were almost negative or contaminated at about LOD levels. Herbal teas, especially multi component, proved to be the most contaminated. Co-occurrence of several analytes (over five), including regulated and emerging mycotoxins, has been detected...