Chemical Compositions and Some Heavy Metal Contents of Five Lathyrus Species (Fabaceae) from Türkiye

Background: In today’s modern world, heavy metal accumulation, one of the consequences of rapid and excessive environmental pollution, is a serious threat to the health of organisms. Many diseases and disorders are linked to the excessive accumulation of heavy metals, defined as metals with a specific gravity greater than 5 g/cm3. This study aims to investigate the elemental composition of Lathyrus annuus, L. hierosolymitanus, L. hirsutus, L. undulatus and L. tuberosus species, which have potential for human consumption as food and to determine the concentrations of Na, Mg, K, Ca, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cr, Ni, Cd and Cu, the last seven of which are classified heavy metals. Methods: Plant materials were obtained from their natural distribution areas and identified according to the Flora of Türkiye. In the chemical analyses, sample preparation was carried out using the wet digestion method in accordance with EPA Method 3015A and ICP-OES measurements were performed according to EPA Method 6010. Result: The highest concentrations of Ca, Mn, Cd, Zn and Cu were found in L. hirsutus, while Na and Fe were most abundant in L. hierosolymitanus, K in L. tuberosus and Mg in L. annuus. In all species, Cr and Ni amounts were found to be lower than 0.008 and 0.006 ppm, respectively. Cd and Cu levels were less than 0.005 and 0.003 ppm, respectively, in all species except L. hirsutus. Compared to other species examined in the current study and to literature data, it was found that the aerial parts of L. hirsutus contain very high amounts of Mn and Cd.