Alyasiri 2024 — Heavy metals and aflatoxin M1 in specialty infant formula in Iraq

Alyasiri analysed five specialty metabolic-disorder infant milk formula types sold in Iraqi markets (phenylketonuria, lactose-free, maple syrup urine disease, organic acidurias, and tyrosinemia formulas) for lead, cadmium, total arsenic, seven trace elements (Mg, Ca, Zn, Se, Fe, K, Mn), and aflatoxin M1. Heavy metals were assayed by flame and flameless atomic absorption spectrometry; aflatoxin M1 was assayed by immunoaffinity-clean-up HPLC with ESI-MS detection. The sample design was three replicates of each of the five formula types (n = 15 samples total).

Key numbers

• Product frame: five specialty metabolic-disorder infant milk formula brands (PKU, lactose-free, MSUD, OAc, tyrosinemia) sold in Iraqi markets; three replicates per type; 15 samples total. The paper states these are the only formula types available in Iraq for these disorders.
• Pb, Cd, and total As: not detected in any of the 15 samples. The paper reports this as a categorical non-detect (“no quantities of hazardous elements like lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), or arsenic (As) were found”; “absence of hazardous metals in all samples of this research”). No analyte-specific LODs are reported for Pb/Cd/As.
• Aflatoxin M1 (µg/kg, mean ± SE): PKU 0.001 ≈ Nil; lactose-free 0.001 ≈ Nil; MSUD 0.08 ± 0.087; OAc 0.01 ± 0.09; tyrosinemia 0.011 ± 0.34. The paper compares to the European Commission maximum allowable level of 0.05 µg/kg AFM1 in milk and milk products; only MSUD exceeded the limit. AFM1 LOD reported as 0.001–0.1 µg/kg and LOQ as 0.01–0.085 µg/kg.
• Trace elements (mg/100g, Mean ± SE) showed product-label deviations: K was significantly higher than the label value (474.00) in four of five formulas; Zn and Fe were significantly lower than label values (5.30 and 6.00 respectively) in all formulas; Se was significantly higher than label value (0.015) in all formulas. PKU formula was significantly higher than label for Mg (70.66 vs 63.00) and Mn (0.523 vs 0.399). The paper attributes label-versus-measured drift to vitamin/mineral “overages” added at manufacture.

Methods (brief)

Sample preparation followed acid digestion: 3 g formula plus 3 mL concentrated perchloric acid, heated on a hot plate to dryness; 3 mL concentrated nitric acid added, evaporated to dryness; 5 mL of 1:1 hydrochloric acid:distilled water added; filtered through 0.45 µm Millipore. Three replicates per formula type. Heavy metal and trace element absorbance determined by flame and flameless atomic absorption spectrometry. Total arsenic was measured without inorganic/organic speciation, so the analyte is recorded here as tAs.

Aflatoxin M1 analysis used HPLC with ESI-MS detection. 25 g of sample was sonicated for 40 minutes in 100 mL of 70:30 v/v methanol:water, centrifuged, and 5 mL of supernatant diluted with 20 mL water before passage through an immunoaffinity column at 3 mL/min. Analysis was conducted at the Department of Environment and Water, Iraqi Ministry of Science and Technology. Statistical analysis used SAS with LSD ANOVA.

Implications

Certification: Useable as an Iraq-market non-detect occurrence point for Pb, Cd, and tAs in specialty metabolic-disorder infant formula powder. The non-detect itself is a usable occurrence finding for pooling, with the caveat that the paper does not publish analyte-specific LODs for Pb/Cd/As, so the non-detect’s stringency is bounded by AAS sensitivity at the digestion dilution used.

Courses: Useful for teaching combined chemical-and-mycotoxin contaminant screening in specialty formula, and for illustrating product-label versus measured trace-element drift in powdered formulas.

App: Aflatoxin M1 finding (MSUD formula exceeded the EU 0.05 µg/kg ceiling) is a documented occurrence event but is outside the heavy-metals app scope.

Wiki pages this source may touch

• Infant Formula Powder
• Infant Formula Powder
• Lead
• Cadmium
• Arsenic, Total

Verification notes

ingredients: left empty: the paper studies finished specialty metabolic-disorder formula products rather than naming a specific milk-derived ingredient with measured values, and no taxonomy ingredient slug captures “specialty metabolic-disorder formula” without overspecifying. The routing layer will fan products/infant-formula-powder out to non-soy and soy-based powder siblings; the paper does not specify the soy/non-soy composition of these specialty disorder-specific formulas, so leaving the broader scope is appropriate.

Page history

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