Determination of B-N-oxalyl-L-a, B-diaminopropionic acid and homoarginine in Lathyrus sativus and Lathyrus cicera by capillary zone electrophoresis

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Lathyrus species as legumes represent an alternative protein source for human and animal nutrition. Heavy consumption of these species can lead to lathyrism, caused by the non-protein amino acid B-N-oxalyl-L-a, B-diaminopropionic acid (B-ODAP). Currently, there is no well-defined level below which B-ODAP is considered non-toxic. In this work, the B-ODAP content was determined in L. sativus and L. cicera samples to assess their potential toxicity. Homoarginine is another non-protein amino acid found in Lathyrus spp. with interesting implications for human and animal nutrition. RESULTS: The level of B-ODAP found in these two species ranged from 0.79 to 5.05 mg g−1. The homoarginine content of the samples ranged from 7.49 to 12.44 mg g−1. CONCLUSION: This paper describes an accurate, fast and sensitive method of simultaneous detection and quantification of B-ODAP and homoarginine by capillary zone electrophoresis in L. cicera and L. sativus seeds. Moreover, several methods of extraction were compared to determine the highest performance.