Table 20.

Summary of reports on outbreaks and cases of intoxications in humans and on volunteer studies relevant for the identification of the reference point for acute toxicity

Affected subjects	Potato type/preparation	Concentration of solanine or TGAs in the potatoes or potato preparation, respectivelya	Intake per person	Estimated single dose of solanine or potato TGA/kg bwb	Taste, symptoms and outcome	Reference
3 adult volunteers (two males and one female)	potato varieties high in GAs	180–300 mg ‘TGA’ mg/kg potatoes	for 1 week daily 200–300 g of cooked unpeeled potatoes	1 mg ‘TGA’/kg bwc	bitter taste, no signs of acute toxicity	Harvey et al. (1985)
6 out of 7 male adult volunteers	preparation of mashed peeled potatoes with milk	200 mg TGAs (82 mg α‐solanine and 118 mg α‐chaconine)/kg potato preparation	adjusted to bw resulting in a dose of 1 mg TGAs/kg bwd	1 mg TGAs/kg bwd	unpleasant off‐taste;nausea, which in one case was combined with diarrhoea; all recovered within 4 h	Hellenäs et al. (1992)
6 male adult volunteers	baked potatoes, consumed unpeeled	320 mg TGAs/kg	n.r.	1.75–2.58 mg TGAs/kg bwd	nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, all recovered within 8–10 h	Bushway (1987, personal communication, as cited in Van Gelder, 1989)
1 out of 2 adult volunteers	mashed potatoes	199 mg TGA/kg fw (51% α‐solanine, 49% α‐chaconine)	adjusted to bw resulting in a dose of 1.25 mg TGAs/kg bwd	1.25 mg TGAs/kg bwd	nausea, vomiting	Mensinga et al. (2005)
4 adults	baked potatoes (flesh and skin eaten)	500 mg ‘solanine’/kg potatoes	1–3 potatoes	1.25–3.25 mg ‘solanine’/kg bwc	sickness, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, general malaise; all recovered within 24 h	Wilson (1959)
78 school‐boys (11–15 years old)	old potatoes, ‘unfit’ for consumption	250–300 mg ‘solanine’/kg peeled boiled potatoes	two small potatoes	1.4–1.6 mg ‘solanine’/kg bwc	diarrhoea, vomiting, abdominal pain, 17 boys hospitalised due to severe symptoms including 15 subjects with fever and 3 being comatose or stuporose; all recovered	McMillan and Thompson (1979)
61 out of 109 school children and staff members	baked potatoes with a ‘slight green tinge’	494 mg ‘solanine’/kg potatoes	n.r.	2.5 mg ‘solanine’/kg bwc	bitter or unusual taste (44%), burning sensation in the throat (18%);nausea (69%), abdominal cramps (43%), headache (33%), vomiting (25%), fever (11%), diarrhoea (8%); all recovered in about 3 h	Canada Diseases Weekly Report (1984)

^aConcentrations are given as ‘potato TGAs’, ‘solanine’, ‘α‐solanine’ or ‘α‐chaconine’ depending on the subject of analysis as described in the referenced publication.

^bDoses are given as ‘TGAs’, or ‘solanine’, depending on the subject of analysis as described in the referenced publication.

^cAs estimated in JECFA (1993).

^dAs estimated by the authors.