Mineral analysis of Pistacia species with inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)

In this study, we analysed the fruits of four Pistacia species using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry to quantify essential minerals. Each Pistacia species contained As (from 18.42 to 22.07 μg/kg), Cd (from 1223.9 to 1371.3 μg/kg), Cr (from 2024.71 to 3571.49 μg/kg), Zn (from 11372.73 to 19587.34) mg/kg, Co (from 138.779 to 142.687 μg/kg), Cu (from 9.08 to 25.167 mg/kg), Pb (from 293.21 to 9742.78 μg/kg), Ni (from 6807.09 to 7355.41 μg/kg), Se (from 926.25 to1362.10 μg/kg), V (from 46.48 to 81.96 μg/kg) and Ag (from 45.97 to 218.79 μg/kg) whereas Tl, Be and U were present in traces. Various multivariate statistical techniques were combined with correlation analysis to investigate the distribution of the measured elements in various Pistacia species and geographic regions. The results indicated that some species accumulated certain minerals at higher rates in fruits and seeds compared to others; however, overall, they were deemed suitable for human consumption.