Detection and quantification of Amatoxin in wild mushrooms from North-East India using HPLC-PDA method for food safety purposes

Misidentification and ingestion of poisonous mushrooms pose significant threats to food safety, particularly in Mizoram, India, where over ten fatalities due to mushroom poisoning have been reported in the past decade (2013–2023). This study aimed to address this critical issue by identifying and quantifying the cause of death due to consumption of wild mushroom from Champhai district, Mizoram, India and to test the reliability of HPLC-PDA for detection and quantification of amatoxins. HPLC-PDA confirmed the presence of α-amanitin in Amanita virosa and Amanita bisporigera in the samples. α-amanitin is a water-soluble, heat-stable, and highly toxic cyclic octapeptide present in the genus Amanita, which includes Amanita phalloides, Amanita verna, and Amanita virosa. Amanitin cytotoxicity arises from the inhibition of RNA polymerases, namely RNA polymerase II, which obstructs mRNA production in kidney and liver cells. Validation of the method demonstrated good precision and accuracy, with LOD and LOQ values of 88 ng g⁻¹ and 210 ng g⁻¹, respectively. The method was successfully applied to quantify α-amanitin in ten wild mushroom samples, revealing its presence only in Amanita virosa (1.17 mg g⁻¹) and Amanita bisporigera (1.91 mg g⁻¹) species. These findings underscore the importance of accurate α-amanitin detection methods in ensuring food safety and public health, particularly in regions prone to mushroom poisoning incidents. It is noteworthy that this study marks the initial exploration for detection and quantification of α-amanitin from poisonous mushrooms found in the wild regions of Champhai district in Mizoram, representing the first report of such in the area.