Mineral element fingerprints of Guizhou Hylocereus undatus

This study employed ICP-OES and ICP-MS techniques to determine the concentrations of 21 mineral elements in Hylocereus undatus from three major production areas in the karst region of Guizhou Province. A multidimensional data analysis was conducted to establish a model for distinguishing production origins. The results showed that 17 elements were detected, among which 14 (K, Na, Mg, Ca, P, S, Fe, Cu, Mn, Zn, Ni, Cd, Co, B) exhibited significant regional differences ( P < 0.05). Correlation analysis indicated that K, Na, Mg, S, B, and Co were predominantly positively correlated, while Fe and Cu were predominantly negatively correlated. Cluster analysis, PCA, and OPLS-DA effectively distinguished between production areas, with the OPLS-DA model achieving a Q²cum of 0.951. Zn, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cd, and Na were identified as characteristic discriminative elements. The study demonstrates that mineral element fingerprinting technology can effectively trace the origin of Hylocereus undatus in karst regions, providing a new method for the geographical indication protection of Luodian Hylocereus undatus and the construction of a traceability system for agricultural product quality and safety in similar geological areas. • ICP-OES and ICP-MS analyzed 21 target element concentrations in Hylocereus undatus from three major producing areas. • Mineral element fingerprinting enables Guizhou karst Hylocereus undatus origin tracing, supporting Luodian Hylocereus undatus GI protection. • OPLS-DA model’s Q²cum = 0.951; Zn, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cd, Na (screened as characteristic elements) enable reliable origin discrimination.