Overview
This study measured total mercury in Suillus luteus caps, stems, and underlying soil substratum from several European regions. Caps had higher mercury than stems, and soil mercury was generally low. The source is direct wild-mushroom mercury occurrence evidence on a dry-weight basis.
Key numbers
All values are dry-weight total Hg unless stated otherwise.
- Suillus luteus caps: 0.13 +/- 0.05 to 0.33 +/- 0.13 mg/kg dry matter.
- Suillus luteus stems: 0.038 +/- 0.014 to 0.095 +/- 0.038 mg/kg dry matter.
- Underlying soil substratum, 0-10 cm layer: 0.0030 to 0.15 mg/kg dry matter; mean values by site varied from 0.0078 +/- 0.0035 to 0.053 +/- 0.025 mg/kg dry matter.
- Cap-to-stem Hg ratio: 1.8 +/- 0.4 to 5.3 +/- 2.6.
- Bioconcentration factor values: 3.6 +/- 1.3 to 42 +/- 18.
The authors state that consuming up to 300 g/week fresh S. luteus from the studied background areas would not exceed the PTWI comparator they cite, assuming no Hg intake from other foods.
Methods (brief)
The paper measured Hg by cold-vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy in caps, stems, and soil substratum. Concentrations are reported on a dry-matter basis. The source reports total Hg only and does not speciate methylmercury.
Implications
Certification: This source contributes wild mushroom total-Hg context for European foraged mushrooms. It is not methylmercury evidence and should not be routed as MeHg.
Courses: Useful example of cap/stem partitioning and bioconcentration from low-Hg soils.
App: Supports a wild Suillus/luteus context note where foraged mushrooms can concentrate Hg relative to soil.
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Verification notes
- The DOI and publication metadata are printed in the PDF.
- The source reports total Hg only; this page does not infer methylmercury.
Update history
The five most recent substantive edits to this page, classified major (evidence or structure moved), correction (a published value or statement was wrong and has been fixed), or minor (narrative rewritten without changing the underlying evidence). Each description is derived from what the edit did to this page; the linked commit is the authoritative record, routine regeneration passes are excluded, and the full version history lives in git. When DOI minting comes online (see schema docs), each entry below will also link to a version-pinned DataCite DOI.