Assessment of Human Exposure to Deoxynivalenol, Ochratoxin A, Zearalenone and Their Metabolites Biomarker in Urine Samples Using LC-ESI-qTOF

Abstract

Human are exposed to a wide range of mycotoxins through dietary food intake, including processed food. Even most of the mycotoxin exposure assessment studies are based on analysis of foodstuffs, and evaluation of dietary intake through food consumption patterns and human biomonitoring methods are rising as a reliable alternative to approach the individual exposures, overcoming the limitations of the indirect dietary assessment. In this study, human urine samples were analyzed, seeking the presence of deoxynivalenol (DON), ochratoxin A (OTA), zearalenone (ZEA), and their metabolites. For this purpose, 40 urine samples from female and male adult residents in the city of Valencia (Spain) were evaluated by liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-qTOF) after salting-out liquid–liquid extraction. Analytical data showed that 72.5% of analyzed samples were contaminated by at least one mycotoxin at variable levels. The most prevalent mycotoxins were de-epoxy DON (DOM-1) (53%), ZEA (40%), and α-zearalenol (αZOL) (43%), while OTA was only detected in one sample. The mean concentrations in positive samples were DON (9.07 ng/mL), DOM-1 (20.28 ng/mL), ZEA (6.70 ng/mL), ZEA-14 glucoside (ZEA-14-Glc) (12.43 ng/mL), αZOL (27.44 ng/mL), αZOL-14 glucoside (αZOL-14-Glc) (12.84 ng/mL), and OTA (11.73 ng/mL). Finally, probable daily intakes (PDIs) were calculated and compared with the established tolerable daily intakes (TDIs) to estimate the potential risk of exposure to the studied mycotoxins. The calculated PDI was below the TDI value established for DON in both female and male adults, reaching a percentage up to 30%; however, this percentage increased up to 92% considering total DON (DON + DOM-1). On the other hand, the PDI obtained for ZEA and its metabolites were higher than the TDI value fixed, but the low urine excretion rate (10%) considered should be highlighted. Finally, the PDI calculated in the detected positive sample for OTA exceeded the TDI value. The findings of the present study confirm the presence of the studied mycotoxins and their metabolites as some of the most prevalent in urine.

Incidence of Mycotoxin in Algerian Workers

“…Nevertheless, DON metabolites, DON-3-G and DOM-1, were found, in this study, in 45.8% and 76.0% of samples, respectively, with average levels of 13.28 µg/L and 47.97 µg/L, ranging from 6.8 to 37.8 µg/L and from 6.9 to 189.1 µg/L. These levels are comparable to those found in Rwanda [28] and Spain [29] and higher than those found in Portugal [13].…”

Algerian Workers’ Exposure to Mycotoxins—A Biomonitoring Study

“…ZEN was found in 89.6% of the samples, with an average concentration of 28.87 µg/L, ranging from 7.6 to 126.8 µg/L. The average level in the present study was higher than in previous studies in Rwanda (average of 1.58 µg/L) [28], South Africa (0.20 µg/L) [32], Portugal (1.30 µg/L) [13], and Spain (6.70 µg/L) [29]. Regarding the α-ZEL metabolite, found in 24.9% of samples, the average was 0.43 µg/L (from 0.3 to 1.0 µg/L).…”

Development and Validation of LC-Q-TOF-MS Methodology to Determine Mycotoxin Biomarkers in Human Urine

“…Indeed, DON and its metabolite DOM-1 have been previously studied to assess exposure in the Chinese population based on diet and urinary biomarkers, with an incidence of 95% for DON and 14.6% for DOM-1 [ 55 ]. DOM-1 was also the most detected mycotoxin in an exposure study carried out in Spain, being detected in 53% of samples, as reported by Carballo et al [ 56 ]. Regarding other DON metabolites, untargeted screening detected a 15ADON incidence of 4%.…”