Health risk assessment of heavy metals in basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) grown in artificially contaminated substrates | Ocena zdravstvenega tveganja s težkimi kovinami pri navadni baziliki (Ocimum basilicum L.) rastoči v umetno kontaminiranih substratih

anglais. This study aimed to determine the levels of Cd, Cr and Pb in basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) cultivated on artificially contaminated substrates and to assess their potential harmful effects on human health via the calculation of the target hazard quotients (THQ). A pot experiment was performed in a completely randomized design for each tested heavy metal. It included four contamination treatments (0, 20, 50 and 100 mg kg-1 for Cd, and 0, 100, 250 and 500 mg kg-1 for Cr and Pb). Concentrations of Cd, Cr and Pb in plants samples were  determined by atomic absorbtion spectroscopy. The results of this study showed that the concentrations of Cd, Cr and Pb were several times higher in roots than in the aboveground parts  of basil plants regardless of contamination levels. These are desirable results because only aboveground parts of basil  are used for medicinal purposes or consumption. The THQ values for Cd, Cr and Pb observed in this study were lower than 1 regardless of contamination levels, indicating that the consumption of basil from the study site (up to 10 g per day) does not pose a risk to human health from the point of view of heavy metal investigated.

slovène. Namen raziskave je bil določiti vsebnosti Cd, Cr, in Pb v navadni baziliki (Ocimum basilicum L.) rastoči na namensko oneznaženih tleh in in oceniti njihove potencialno škodljive učinke na zdravje ljudi preko izračuna potencialnega koeficienta tveganja (THQ). Za testiranje posameznih kovin je bil izveden lončni poskus s popolno naključno zasnovo. Poskus je obsegal štiri obravavanja kontaminacije (0, 20, 50, in 100 mg kg-1 za Cd, in 0, 100, 250, in 500 mg kg-1 za Pb in Cr). Koncentracije Cd, Cr in Pb v rastlinah so bile določene z atomsko obsorpcijsko spektroskopijo. Rezultati raziskave so pokazali, da so bile koncentracije Cd, Cr, in Pb večje v koreninah kot v nadzemnih delih bazilike, ne glede na stopnjo kontaminacije. Ti izsledki so zaželjeni, kajti za medicinske in prehrambene namene se uporabljajo le nadzemni deli bazilike. Vrednosti indeksa toksičnosti (THQ) za Cd, Cr, in Pb, pridobljeni v tej raziskavi, so bile manjše od 1, ne glede na stopnjo kontaminacijer, kar nakazuje, da je uživanje bazilike v dnevnem odmerku do 10 g na dan ne predstavlja rizika za zdravje ljudi glede na preučevane težke kovine.