Determination of six groups of mycotoxins in Chinese dark tea and the associated risk assessment

Development of a Novel UPLC-MS/MS Method for the Simultaneous Determination of 16 Mycotoxins in Different Tea Categories

“…Some fungi are important contributors to tea manufacture, promoting the formation of active ingredients and the unique aroma of tea during the pile fermentation period. However, there are concerns that some fungal species might be mycotoxin producers and cause mycotoxin accumulation under suitable environmental conditions [ 13 , 14 ]. Currently, mycotoxins in foodstuffs are receiving increasing attention for their toxicity, carcinogenicity, teratogenicity, mutagenicity, genotoxicity, and immunotoxicity to humans and other animals.…”

“…Currently, mycotoxins in foodstuffs are receiving increasing attention for their toxicity, carcinogenicity, teratogenicity, mutagenicity, genotoxicity, and immunotoxicity to humans and other animals. Some studies have focused on the occurrence of mycotoxin pollutants in tea, containing zearalenone (ZEN), aflatoxins (AFs), and ochratoxin A (OTA) in dark tea [ 14 , 15 ] and AFs, deoxynivalenol (DON) in black, green, and other teas [ 16 , 17 ]. However, there are no international maximum regulation limits (MRLs) for mycotoxins in tea due to the limited contamination data and exposure assessments in different types of tea, especially for the new toxicities of common mycotoxins or emerging mycotoxins.…”

“…Concerning the presence of multiple mycotoxins in a single tea, several studies have focused on the quantitative determination of multiple mycotoxins in a few kinds of tea through high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) [ 14 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. Tea samples, complex matrices containing abundant caffeine and polyphenols, are considered to be analytically challenging in trace pollutant residue detection methods [ 20 , 21 ].…”

“…Tea samples, complex matrices containing abundant caffeine and polyphenols, are considered to be analytically challenging in trace pollutant residue detection methods [ 20 , 21 ]. The sample pretreatment processes of existing quantitative methods for mycotoxins in complex tea matrices are complicated and expensive, such as dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (DLLME), which is based on isotopes [ 18 ]; solid phase extraction (SPE), which is based on salting out; dispersive solid-phase extraction (D-SPE) during extraction [ 22 ]; and the successive use of NH 2 -SPE and C 18 -SPE [ 19 ], multiple immunoaffinity columns (IACs) [ 17 ], and MFCs (multifunctional columns) integrated with IACs [ 14 ] in the clean-up stage. It is still a challenge to establish simple pretreatment processes to eliminate matrix effects (MEs) with broad applicability to monitor the potential multiple mycotoxins in various tea matrices.…”

Molecular Aspects of Mycotoxins—A Serious Problem for Human Health

“…Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites synthesized by a variety of fungi (moulds) species such as Fusarium, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Alternaria, and Claviceps. They constitute a structurally diverse group of toxic and low molecular weight compound, which is generally less than 1000 Da [1][2][3]. Approximately 400 potentially toxic mycotoxins produced by more than 100 fungi species have been identified and it is considered that the most toxigenic to agriculture, animal husbandry, and public health are trichothecenes, ochratoxins, aflatoxins, zearalenone, fumonisins, patulin, and citrinin.…”