Elemental analysis and ecological safety assessment of nutritive herb <i>Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam</i>. cultivated and wild growing in the South-Caucasian flora

Background: Today, the use of mathematical modeling is crucial in assessing the ecological safety of nutritive herbs. The aim of our research was to examine the mineral composition and assess the ecological purity of raw materials from Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam., collected across various natural and climatic zones in the South Caucasus region. Objective: To conduct an elemental analysis of the mineral composition and assess the ecological safety of nutritive plant raw materials derived from Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam. Methods: The analysis was performed using an Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) instrument, with results reported in micrograms per gram. A multi-standard approach with various dilutions was employed to investigate the quantities of elemental content. The elemental analysis of the obtained ash mass was conducted utilizing the Agilent 5800 VDV ICP-OES instrument ( USA). Mathematical modeling techniques, including Correlation Analysis, Principal Component Analysis, and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis, were used in the study. Results: Experimental data unequivocally demonstrated that the concentration of heavy metals in all analyzed Z. clinopodioides samples falls within the established limits of maximum permissible concentrations. Notably, no toxic metals such as Lead (Pb), Arsenic (As), or Cadmium (Cd) were detected in any of the samples, affirming the ecological safety of the raw materials. Principal component analysis yielded four predominant components, collectively accounting for 91.934% of the overall variability among 13 variables, as based on the variation in elemental concentrations. Furthermore, hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) enabled the categorization of plant raw material samples into three distinct groups, contingent on the geographical origins of the areas and the methods of cultivation. Conclusions: Chemometric analysis conclusively demonstrates that the variation in elemental composition within the examined samples, as well as the plant's capacity to accumulate biologically active compounds, is contingent not solely upon the altitude of the growth locations above sea level but also by the conditions of cultivation and introduction. Keywords: Ziziphora clinopodioides Lam., nutritive herbs, ash, chemometric approaches, correlation analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis, optical emission spectrum