Evaluation of biomarkers of exposure to mycotoxins in infants in the region of Ribeirão Preto/SP

Abstract

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by naturally occurring fungi in foods that are capable of causing a wide variety of toxic effects in vertebrates, including humans. The risk assessment of chemical substances such as mycotoxins should be based on the determination of the degree of human exposure through diet. Lactating women constitute an important risk group considering not only the potential toxic effects of mycotoxins but also the possibility of excretion of mycotoxin residues in breast milk. Several mycotoxins can be excreted in milk in their original or biotransformed form, but aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is the main compound that can be found in breast milk due to the consumption of food contaminated with aflatoxin B1, leading, therefore, to the exposure of infants through breastfeeding. Available data on toxicokinetics of various mycotoxins in animal models indicate that exposure to mycotoxins can be measured by biomarkers in human urine. In recent years, liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) based on the multi-analyte approach has been successfully introduced in the field of mycotoxin analysis, including evaluation of appropriate biomarkers for human exposure to mycotoxins. The aim of this project is to use LC-MS/MS analytical methods to evaluate the exposure of infants to aflatoxins (AFB1, AFB2, AFG1 and AFG2), fumonisins (FB1 and FB2), ochratoxin A (OTA), zearalenone (ZEA) and (AFM1, AFP1, AFQ1, FB1, OTA, DON, DOM-1, ZEA, ±- e ²-ZOL) in the urine and breast milk of volunteers from the Ribeirão Preto region, State of São Paulo. Therefore, the project will provide unpublished data on the simultaneous human exposure of infants to the main mycotoxins that occur in Brazil, evaluated through biomarkers in urine and milk, as well as their relation with the estimated mycotoxin intake in food. (AU)