Advanced Determination and Nutritional Assessment of Trace Elements in Food: Beneficial and Harmful Trace Elements

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Analytical Methods".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 November 2025 | Viewed by 1781

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute of Food Technology (ITAL), P.O. Box 139, Campinas 13070-178, SP, Brazil
Interests: trace elements; inorganic contaminants; nutrients; speciation; in vitro digestion; bioaccessibility; atomic emission spectroscopy; inorganic mass spectroscopy

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Food Technology (ITAL), P.O. Box 139, Campinas 13070-178, SP, Brazil
Interests: food chemistry; micronutrients; inorganic contaminants; bioaccessibility; atomic emission spectroscopy; inorganic mass spectroscopy; risk assessment; chemometric analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In food, elements found in low concentrations (mg kg−1) are commonly defined as trace elements, and they are essential for human nutrition. These elements include copper, iron, manganese, selenium and zinc. Nonetheless, some trace elements do not have an established role and are classified as non-essential or inorganic contaminants. Low levels of inorganic contaminants, such as arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury, have toxic effects on human health and are regulated by health agencies. Furthermore, food components undergo biotransformation processes after consumption, and bioaccessibility and bioavailability studies are currently being conducted in food analysis to enhance the accuracy of potential risk assessment.

This Special Issue, entitled “Advanced Determination and Nutritional Assessment of Trace Elements in Food: Beneficial and Harmful Trace Elements”, welcomes original research articles and systematic reviews related to the determination and nutritional assessment of trace elements in food, such as the optimization of analytical methods, novel methods based on the Green Chemistry principles, and bioaccessibility and bioavailability studies for trace elements in foodstuffs. Original research articles and reviews on the risk assessment of trace elements in novel foods, such as plant-based and alternative proteins foods, are also welcome in this Special Issue.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Raquel Fernanda Milani
Dr. Marcelo Antônio Morgano
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • bioaccessibility
  • bioavailability
  • food analysis
  • food safety
  • inorganic contaminants
  • micronutrients
  • novel methods
  • risk assessment
  • spectroscopic techniques
  • trace elements

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

18 pages, 2832 KB  
Article
Elemental Analysis and Chemometric Assessment of Edible Part and Peel of Mango Fruits (Mangifera indica L.)
by Michaela Zeiner, Ema Mihalić, Iva Juranović Cindrić, Ivan Nemet and Heidelore Fiedler
Foods 2025, 14(17), 3096; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14173096 - 3 Sep 2025
Viewed by 706
Abstract
Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is a very popular tropical drupe that can be consumed fresh or dried. It is rich in essential nutrients such as vitamins, dietary fibre, and minerals, as well as biologically active substances, with a positive effect on health. [...] Read more.
Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is a very popular tropical drupe that can be consumed fresh or dried. It is rich in essential nutrients such as vitamins, dietary fibre, and minerals, as well as biologically active substances, with a positive effect on health. However, it can also contain potentially toxic elements, which justifies the need of properly investigating this food product. Commercially available samples of dried mango, as well as the mesocarp and peel of fresh mango, were analysed. Prior to the multi-element analysis by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the microwave-assisted sample digestion method using various reagents and reagent mixtures was optimised, showing that a mixture of nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide gave the best recoveries. The results obtained were processed by chemometric methods. The content of elements in the peel was higher than in the mesocarp. The macroelements Ca, K, Mg, and Na were found in the largest proportion, and the micronutrients present in significant quantities were Cu, Zn, and Mn (>3 mg/kg), while toxic elements, which according to the guidelines of The European Food Safety Authority) would represent a danger to human health, were not found in mass fractions above the permissible values. Full article
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