Plants containing Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids - Toxicity and Problems

Helmut Wiedenfeld (1)

1 Pharmazeutisches Institut

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA) are toxic for human and lifestock. The PA undergo a metabolic toxication process in the liver which is the first target organ for PA poisoning. World-wide many episodes of human PA intoxications are well reported. In many cases the reason for these intoxications have been PA-contamination in food. The main tools for analyzing food and fodder on PA content is GC and HPLC. Actual incidents with toxic PA are the "Jacobaea vulgaris (syn. Senecio jacobaea)-problem" in Europe and the "Ageratum conyzoides-problem" in Ethiopia.

Mots clés: Life Sciences

Helmut Wiedenfeld. Plants containing Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids - Toxicity and Problems. Food Additives and Contaminants, 2011, 28 (03), pp.282-292. ⟨10.1080/19440049.2010.541288⟩. ⟨hal-00673672⟩