A simple and rapid method is reported for the routine determination 1-phenylazo-2-naphthol (Sudan I) in chilli powder and in chilli-containing food products. The method involved Soxtec extraction from the products followed by high-pressure gel permeation chromatographic clean-up collecting the appropriate fraction. Analysis of this fraction was by HPLC with UV/VIS detection. The limit of detection was 7 microg kg(-1) and the limit of quantification was 13 microg kg(-1). The identity of Sudan I in food products was established by electrospray LC/MS with MS/MS confirmation. From a small survey of 30 retail samples, 11 samples of crushed chilli, Italian pasta, chilli-snack and vegetable sauce contained levels of Sudan I ranging from 24 to 5591 microg kg(-1).

A wild strain of Agrobacterium rhizogenes was used to regenerate twelve in vitro plant lines from different hairy roots of H. perforatum (St. John's Wort). The production of the main bioactive constituents was observed even though their yields varied in the different plant lines. Two lines were selected for the hyperoside production (4.9-4.6 mg/gdw) while nine were characterized by significant yields of chlorogenic acid (ranged from 0.47 to 1.09 mg/gdw). Furthermore, one out of twelve lines showed a 10-fold higher hypericin content (0.25 mg/gdw) than that reported for the in vitro shoots in the literature. Morphological and phytochemical features were determined in order to select H. perforatum genotypes enriched in valuable bioactive compounds.

The flower and leaf oil of Hypericum triquetrifolium Turra (Guttiferae, Hypericoideae) from Calabria (Italy) were studied by GC and GC-MS. The major components identified in each oil were n-nonane (8%, 15%), β-pinene (8%, 4%), α-pinene (13%, 10%), myrcene (16%, 5%), β-caryophyllene (5%, 11%), germacrene-D (10%, 13%), sabinene (13%, 3%) and caryophyllene oxide (5%, 12%) in the leaf and flower oils, respectively. The aerial parts of the same plant were also analysed by SPME. The SPME analysis showed higher yields of undecane (14%, 10%) and β-caryophyllene (14%, 10%) in comparison with the corresponding hydrodistillation oils, in addition to α-pinene, β-pinene, sabinene and myrcene, amounting to (9%, 6%), (7%, 4%), (1%, 9%), (1%, 10%) for the leaves and flowers, respectively.