Analysis of the origin of nicotine detected in tea

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26292010
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Crop production science
• Research Institution: Shizuoka University
• Principal Investigator: Morita Akio 静岡大学, 農学部, 教授 (20324337)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 一家 崇志 静岡大学, 農学部, 助教 (90580647) ; 荻野 暁子 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, その他部局等, 研究員 (70370567) ; 古川 一実 沼津工業高等専門学校, その他部局等, 准教授 (90353151) ; 谷口 郁也 国立研究開発法人農業・食品産業技術総合研究機構, その他部局等, 研究員 (20370570)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 工芸作物 / ニコチン / チャ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Nicotine levels in food crops are monitored using the default maximum residue level (MRL) of 0.01 ppm in Japan, but nicotine levels in tea were found to exceed the MRL. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the origin of this nicotine. We measured nicotine in various tea samples using LC-MS/MS. We measured nicotine in tea leaves used for drinking, analyzing 118 tea samples. All samples contained nicotine above the MRL. Then, we measured the nicotine concentrations in the leaves of two Japanese tea cultivars after they were prepared as green, oolong, and black teas. The nicotine levels in the processed tea leaves were unchanged. Furthermore, we quantified the nicotine levels above MRL from hydroponic tea roots and cultured cells from aseptic conditions that virtually guaranteed the complete exclusion of nicotine contamination from exogenous sources. These results suggest that endogenous nicotine is present in tea, and that the plant synthesizes the nicotine.

Free Research Field

植物栄養学