Abstract: Liupao tea has a long history and is characterized as famous agricultural products of Guangxi, but the study of its safety is not enough. In order to verify the safety, the main physicochemical components of Liupao tea from Wuzhou were measured by conventional test method of national standard, then, the acute and subacute toxicities of Liupao tea were systemically studied in accordance with the procedures for toxicological assessment on food safety. The experimental results showed that, the physicochemical indexes of Liupao tea were repeatable, which were followed with Guangxi local standards in the acute toxicity test. Using bliss method, the calculated median lethal dose (LD₅₀) of Liupao tea was 9.38 g·kg^-1 with 95% confidence interval (8.43~10.44 g·kg^-1), which was higher than acute toxicity criteria (5 g·kg^-1). In the subacute study, compared with the control group, no death or clinical signs, or abnormally hematological, biochemical and histopathological changes were found in either groups of rats receiving daily oral gavage of Liupao tea. The three dose treatments were 0.47, 0.94 and 1.88 g·kg^-1·d^-1 for 30 days (P>0.05). Thus, Liupao tea products belong to the actual non-toxic grade and fulfill the requirements of food safety according to the food toxicology standards.

Key words: Liupao tea, acute toxicity, subacute toxicity, median lethal dosage