PRESENCE OF NITRATE AND NITRITE IN VEGETABLES GROWN
FOR SELF-CONSUMPTION
MIRCEA DUMITRU CROITORU1, IBOLYA FÜLÖP1*, AMALIA MIKLOS1, BARNABÁS HOSSZÚ1, VICTORIA-LAURA TĂTAR1, DANIELA-LUCIA MUNTEAN2
Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Târgu Mureş, 38 Gh. Marinescu Street, 540138, Târgu
Mureş, Romania
1Department of Toxicology and Biopharmacy
2Analytical chemistry and analysis of medicines
*corresponding author: fulop.ibolya@umftgm.ro
Download Full Article

Abstract:
The presence of nitrate in vegetables has been described in a large number of scientific papers. Our paper focused on the
presence of nitrate and nitrite anions in vegetables grown for self-consumption. Measurement of nitrite and nitrate content
was made using an HPLC-UV/VIS method (UV detection for nitrate and VIS detection for nitrite after derivatization with
sulphanilic acid and 1-naphthylamine). Very low concentrations of nitrate were found in most of the samples we tested, with
very few exceptions. The lowest concentrations found in nitrate rich vegetables were: < 0.6 mg/kg, 5.50 mg/kg, 2.17 mg/kg,
< 0.6 mg/kg and 202.14 mg/kg for lettuce leaves (Lactuca sativa), beetroot root (Beta vulgaris), carrot root (Daucus carota
subsp. sativus), parsley root (Petroselinum crispum) and radish root (Raphanus sativus), respectively. Even lettuce proved to
contain in many cases unquantifiable concentrations of nitrate (LOQ = 0.6 mg/kg). The results show that EU regulations
regarding the nitrate concentrations of vegetables are very permissive. Nitrite was quantifiable in most samples (LOQ = 6
μg/kg). No correlation was observed between nitrate and nitrite content of the vegetables.

Top