Health risk assessment of ochratoxin A for all age-sex strata in a market economy

Abstract

In order to manage risk of ochratoxin A (OTA) in foods, we re-evaluated the tolerable daily intake (TDI), derived the negligible cancer risk intake (NCRI), and conducted a probabilistic risk assessment. A new approach was developed to derive ‘usual’ probabilistic exposure in the presence of highly variable occurrence data, such as encountered with low levels of OTA. Canadian occurrence data were used for various raw food commodities or finished foods and were combined with US Department of Agriculture (USDA) food consumption data, which included data on infants and young children. Both variability and uncertainty in input data were considered in the resulting exposure estimates for various age/sex strata. Most people were exposed to OTA on a daily basis. Mean adjusted exposures for all age-sex groups were generally below the NCRI of 4ng OTA kg bw−1, except for 1–4-year-olds as a result of their lower body weight. For children, the major contributors of OTA were wheat-based foods followed by oats, rice, and raisins. Beer, coffee, and wine also contributed to total OTA exposure in older individuals. Predicted exposure to OTA decreased when European Commission maximum limits were applied to the occurrence data. The impact on risk for regular eaters of specific commodities was also examined.

Glutathione Conjugates of Ochratoxin a as Biomarkers of Exposure / Glutationski Konjugati Okratoksina A Kao Biomarkeri Izloženosti

“…Ochratoxin A (OTA, Figure 1) is a mycotoxin produced by several fungi of Aspergillus and Penicillium species (1)(2)(3)(4)(5). It consists of a chlorophenolic group containing a dihydroisocoumarin moiety that is amide-linked to phenylalanine.…”

“…Health Canada has proposed a TDI of 4 ng kg -1 b.w. per day that considers tumour formation by OTA (5). These differences in TDI stem from a lack of consensus concerning the mechanism of action (MOA) for OTA.…”

“…However, Hibi et al (12) have recently demonstrated the in vivo mutagenicity of OTA in male rat kidney, suggesting involvement of a direct genotoxic mechanism in OTA-mediated renal carcinogenesis. The more stringent TDI proposed for OTA by Health Canada is more in line with carcinogens whose MOA involves direct genotoxicity (5).…”

Mycotoxins that affect the North American agri-food sector: state of the art and directions for the future

“…OTA risk assessment was a key topic of interest stemming from a publication by Kuiper-Goodman et al (2010), in which the tolerable daily intake for OTA was re-evaluated based on consideration of the MOA for OTA (as it was understood in 2010) and on a probabilistic exposure assessment. Data were presented describing kidney gene and protein expression, respectively, in cancer-prone p53 heterozygous mice exposed to OTA in diet for 26 weeks.…”

Mycotoxins-Induced Oxidative Stress and Disease

“…Two subtypes of ER exist, ER-and ER that are differently distributed in the body. Binding of ZEA and its derivatives initiate a sequence of events known to follow estrogen stimulation of target organs [127,128]. So, the effect of ZEA and its metabolites depends upon the reproductive status (prepubertal, cycling or pregnant) of the affect animals [123].…”