210Po and 210Pb in King Bolete (Boletus edulis) and Related Mushroom Species: Estimated Effective Radiation Dose and Geospatial Distribution in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

210Po and 210Pb occur naturally and are the most radiotoxic isotopes of the uranium (U) decay chain. Samples of Boletus edulis and related mushroom species, including B. pinophilus, B. reticulatus, B. luridus and B. impolitus, collected from Poland and Belarus were investigated for the activity concentrations of these isotopes and also for their potential health risk through adult human consumption. The results showed that spatially, the occurrence of 210Po and 210Po was heterogeneous, with activities varying from 0.91 to 4.47 Bq∙kg−1 dry biomass and from 0.82 to 5.82 Bq∙kg−1 db, respectively. Caps and stipes of the fruiting bodies showed similar levels of contamination. Consumption of boletes foraged in Poland could result in exposure to a combined radiation dose of 10 µSv∙kg−1 db from both isotopes. This dose is not significant compared to the total annual effective radiation dose of 210Po and 210Pb (54–471 µSv∙kg−1) from all sources, suggesting that these mushrooms are comparatively safe for human consumption.