Cytotoxicity of Cheese and Cheddar Cheese food flavorings on Allim cepa L root meristems

Abstract

Despite their great importance for the food industry, flavorings, in general, raise a number of questions regarding their cytotoxicity, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity, since, in the literature, there are few studies found evaluating the toxicity on the systemic and cellular level, of these chemical compounds. The root meristems of Allium cepa (onion) are widely used for the assessment of toxicity of chemical compounds of interest. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate, in A. cepa meristematic cells, individually and in combination at the cellular level, the toxicity of synthetic Cheese and Cheddar Cheese food flavorings, identical to the natural, at doses of 1.0 and 2.0 mL, at exposure times of 24 and 48 hours. In combination we used 0.5 mL of Cheese flavor associated with 0.5 mL of Cheddar flavor; and 1.0 mL of Cheese flavor associated with 1.0 mL of Cheddar flavor, at exposure times of 24 and 48 hours. For these evaluations, we used groups of five onion bulbs, which were first embedded in distilled water and then transferred to their respective doses. The root tips were collected and fixed in acetic acid (3:1) for 24 hours. The slides were prepared by crushing and were stained with 2% acetic orcein. Cells were analyzed throughout the cell cycle, totaling 5,000 for each control and exposure time. The mitotic indices calculated and cellular aberrations observed were subjected to statistical analysis using the chi-square test (p <0.05). No chromosomal abnormalities nor those of mitotic spindle were observed for the treatments performed. The results, both individually and in combination, showed that the flavorings under study significantly reduced the cell division rate of the test system cells used. Therefore, under the conditions studied, the two flavorings were cytotoxic.Keywords: food additive, toxicity, cell cycle, test-plant system. Citotoxicidade de aromatizantes alimentares de Queijo e Queijo Cheddar sob meristemas de raízes de Allim cepa L ResumoApesar da grande importância para a indústria alimentícia, os aromatizantes, em geral, suscitam uma série de dúvidas quanto a sua citotoxicidade, mutagenicidade e carcinogenicidade, visto que, na literatura, poucos são os trabalhos encontrados avaliando a toxicidade, em nível sistêmico e celular, destes compostos químicos. Os meristemas de raízes de Allium cepa (cebola) são muito utilizados para a avaliação da toxicidade de compostos químicos de interesse. Desta forma, este trabalho teve por objetivo avaliar em células meristemáticas de A. cepa, de forma individual, a toxicidade em nível celular de aromatizantes alimentares sintéticos, idênticos aos naturais, de sabores Queijo e Queijo Cheddar, nas doses de 1,0 e 2,0 mL, nos tempos de exposição de 24 e 48 horas; e de forma associada, onde se utilizou 0,5 mL do aromatizante sabor Queijo associado a 0,5 mL do aromatizante sabor Queijo Cheddar; e 1,0 mL do aromatizante sabor Queijo associado a 1,0 mL do aromatizante sabor Queijo Cheddar, nos tempos de exposição de 24 e 48 horas. Para estas avaliações utilizou-...

Cytotoxic, genotoxic and mutagenic potential of UHT whole milk

“…According to Caritá & Marin-Morales (2008), mitotic index lower than that of the negative control indicates the presence of agents whose toxic action affects the growth and development of exposed organisms. Complementing these authors, Gomes et al (2013), Marques et al (2015), and Moura et al (2016) claim that the inhibition of cell proliferation triggered by cytotoxic compounds in tissue with intense cell proliferation and with normal performance or without cellular changes, such as those used in this study for assessment of UHT milk toxicity, is quite harmful to the organism, since it possesses the property of inhibiting or limiting the replenishment of cells, altering the production of proteins and resulting in malfunction of the organ where it is located (Gomes et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016).…”

“…This test system is internationally accepted by research agencies as an assessment tool with accurate sensitivity for analysis of cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and mutagenicity of the substance of interest, since the results obtained mostly show satisfactory similarity to those obtained via animal testing systems and cell cultures (Herrero et al, 2012;Lacerda et al, 2014;Tabrez et al, 2011;Gomes et al, 2013;Dliveira et al, 2013;Campos-Ventura et al, 2016;Moura et al, 2016;Santana et al, 2016;Bezerra et al, 2016;Nunes et al, 2016).…”

“…However, although it is not attributed to long life milk, flavoring, color and preservative additives -micro ingredients scientifically proven to be toxic at the systemic and cellular levels (Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016; -it is added to these food wetting, stabilizer and antioxidant agents which, among other features, have the function to preserve the texture and homogeneity and ensure no oxidation of milk, especially after opened for consumption (Aguiar et al, 2015;Taffarel et al, 2013). Bodies, such as Codex Alimentarius and the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), point out in their technical regulations the constant need for toxicological studies on the acute effect of food microingredients in general, and especially of foods containing these compounds, since many food additives, such as those with wetting, stabilizing and antioxidant action, have not been evaluated for their cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic potential (Gomes et al, 2013;Dliveira et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016;Nunes et al, 2016).…”

“…Bodies, such as Codex Alimentarius and the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), point out in their technical regulations the constant need for toxicological studies on the acute effect of food microingredients in general, and especially of foods containing these compounds, since many food additives, such as those with wetting, stabilizing and antioxidant action, have not been evaluated for their cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic potential (Gomes et al, 2013;Dliveira et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016;Nunes et al, 2016). Also, they emphasize that the results of toxicological analyses are the basis for preparation or modification of documents that regulate the basic composition and the daily intake rate or consumption of semi-processed and processed foods (Brasil, 2007;Moura et al, 2016;. Nevertheless, in a broad search in the scientific literature, it was found no studies evaluating toxicity of ultra-pasteurized milk beverages.…”

Toxicity of synthetic flavorings, nature identical and artificial, to hematopoietic tissue cells of rodents

“…Globalization and the development of new technologies have caused significant changes in the eating habits of the population, which, in recent decades, has gradually introduced foods rich in chemical additives into the everyday life (Gomes et al, 2013;Moura et al, 2016). Among these substances, also called microingredients, are the flavorings, essential for the food industry for conferring specific sensory properties of taste and smell to processed foods (Xu et al, 2015;Marques et al, 2015).…”