Heavy metals in spices commonly consumed in Republic of Korea.

Levels of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), and mercury (Hg) were evaluated in 359 samples of commonly consumed spices (cinnamon, parsley, basil, oregano, coriander seed, nutmeg, cumin, bay leaf, fenugreek, rosemary, thyme, fennel, sage, clove, marjoram, tarragon, caraway, dill seed, pepper, and turmeric) from the market in the Republic of Korea. The content of Pb, Cd, and As was assessed by acid wet digestion using a microwave oven and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The content of Hg was analysed using a direct mercury analyzer (DMA).

Rapid determination of cholesterol in milk containing emulsified foods.

In this study, a rapid and easy sample preparation method that involved no-heating saponification and dSPE (dispersive solid phase extraction) clean-up was developed to determine the level of cholesterol in milk containing emulsified foods (infant formula, baby food, cheese). The developed method utilised high performance liquid chromatography with an ultraviolet detector (HPLC-UVD) as a separation instrument. The optimum extraction conditions were determined as 10 mL isopropyl alcohol with 8.

A novel sample preparation method using rapid nonheated saponification method for the determination of cholesterol in emulsified foods.

Unlabelled: In this study, nonheated saponification was employed as a novel, rapid, and easy sample preparation method for the determination of cholesterol in emulsified foods. Cholesterol content was analyzed using gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). The cholesterol extraction method was optimized for maximum recovery from baby food and infant formula.