Concentrations of Toxic and Nutritional Essential Elements in Meat from Different Beef Breeds Reared under Intensive Production Systems

Abstract

Concentrations of major nutritional and trace elements (Ca, P, Mg, Na, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, Se, Co, Cr, Ni, Sr, and Ba), as well as toxic heavy metals (Cd and Pb), were analyzed in the longissimus muscle of Charolais, Hereford, and Simmental bulls. The elements were determined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The study showed that the breeds differed in the concentrations of K, Mg, Zn, Cu, Fe, and Mn in meat. Meat from Charolais bulls had a significantly higher K (P < 0.01) content and significantly lower Cu, Zn (P < 0.001), and Mn (P < 0.05) contents compared to Hereford and Simmental meats. Meat from Charolais bulls also had a significantly lower Fe (P < 0.05) content in comparison with Hereford meat and a significantly lower Mg (P < 0.05) content compared to Simmental meat. Moreover, meat from Hereford bulls was characterized by a significantly higher Fe (P < 0.05) content and a lower Mg (P < 0.01) content than that from Simmental bulls. The Se and Fe contents in meat from bulls of breeds used in this study were lower than those previously reported. No breed differences were found in Pb and Cd contents. However, the Pb concentration in meat was higher than the recommended standards. In meat from bulls of all breeds, significantly strong positive correlations were observed between the contents of Pb and Ni, Cd and Ni, K and P, as well as Mg and P. Correlations between other elements within each of the breeds separately were also found.

Relationships of a Detailed Mineral Profile of Meat with Animal Performance and Beef Quality

“…Similarly to what we found for beef quality traits, the mineral profile was hardly affected by the animal's breed and sex, as the only significant differences were among breeds for the content of Ca and B, and between young bulls and heifers for the content of K, Zn, Sn, and Pb [23]. Very few of the many studies carried out on the mineral content of beef have compared different cattle breeds [31][32][33][34] or sexes [35][36][37], and most have confirmed the modest effects of these sources of variation. From these results, it seems unnecessary to study the relationships between the mineral profile and beef quality within specific breeds or sexes.…”

Multi-Energy Calibration: A Practical Method for Determination of Macro and Micro Nutrients in Meat by ICP OES

“…Comparing the mass fraction of nutrients obtained in several types of meat with the results reported in the literature, it could be observed the similarity with the obtained results in the current work. 2,4,12,17,19 0.71 ± 0.01 0.88 ± 0.03 0.37 ± 0.06 0.53 ± 0.02 Zn / (mg kg -1 ) 29.85 ± 0.01 77 ± 1 57 ± 4 121 ± 3 LOD: limit of detection (Cu: 3 mg kg -1 ).…”

“…1 The mineral content in meat varies, depending on factors such as diet, environmental conditions, cut and breed of the animal. [2][3][4] Meat is a food rich in minerals such as Ca, Mg, Fe, P, and S, which are found at high levels, whereas other essential minerals, such as Cu, Mo, Se, Zn, and Co are present in trace amounts. 5 In the literature, numerous studies have reported different analytical methods for the quantification of these elements.…”

“…Internal standard calibration is one of the most commonly used strategies since it helps to minimize the matrix effects, reducing possible interferences. 4 Another conventional method is the standard additions that gives precise results, but with an extended time of analysis and higher sample consumption. 13 The multi-energy calibration (MEC), first described by Virgilio et al, 14 consists of measuring different signals of an analyte at various wavelengths.…”

Exploration of the effect of farm, breed, sex and animal on detailed mineral profile of beef and their latent explanatory factors

“…Minerals are essential and/or toxic, and this depends on their functions and on their level of concentration in food matrices (Schmitt et al , ). Minerals composition in beef could be categorised such as macrominerals and essential and environmental microminerals (García‐Vaquero et al , ; Pilarczyk, ). Meat mineral concentrations are affected by several sources of variations which include intrinsic factors, such as muscle type, animal breed, sex and age, and extrinsic factors, such as diet, water, farm management and environmental conditions (Giuffrida‐Mendoza et al , ; Ramos et al , ; Schönfeldt & Hall, ; Domaradzki et al , ).…”