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. 2020 Sep 12;12(9):591.
doi: 10.3390/toxins12090591.

Biomonitoring of Aflatoxin B1 and Deoxynivalenol in a Rural Pakistan Population Using Ultra-Sensitive LC-MS/MS Method

Lei Xia  1 , Michael N Routledge  2   3 , Hifza Rasheed  4 , Amir Ismail  5 , Yao Dong  1 , Tao Jiang  1 , Yun Yun Gong  1
Affiliations

Biomonitoring of Aflatoxin B1 and Deoxynivalenol in a Rural Pakistan Population Using Ultra-Sensitive LC-MS/MS Method

Lei Xia et al. Toxins (Basel). .

Abstract

There are limited data on exposure to mycotoxins in Pakistan. Here, we measured exposure to deoxynivalenol (DON), a common contaminant of wheat, and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), a known contaminant of rice, using biomarkers of exposure. Wheat (n = 195) and rice (n = 62) samples were analyzed for AFB1 and DON levels, and the corresponding urinary biomarkers were analyzed in urine samples from a rural population (n = 264, aged 4-80 years, male 58%) using ultra-sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. AFB1 was detected in 66% of rice (5.04 ± 11.94 µg/kg) and 3% of wheat samples. AFM1 (hydroxylated form of AFB1)was detected in 69% of urine samples, mean 0.023 ± 0.048 ng/mL and DON was detected in 20% of urine samples, mean 0.170 ± 0.129 ng/mL. The maximum probable daily intake for DON derived from the urinary biomarker was 59.8 ng/kg b.w./day, which is below the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives' tolerable daily intake (1000 ng/kg b.w./day). However, for aflatoxin, the derived margin of exposure (MoE) of (13.2) was well below the safe MoE (10,000) suggested by the European Food Safety Authority. The calculated aflatoxin-associated cancer risk of 0.514/105 individuals/year suggests that measures should be taken to reduce the AFB1 contamination in food, particularly rice, in Pakistan.

Keywords: UPLC-MS/MS; aflatoxin; deoxynivalenol; exposure assessment; human biomonitoring.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation graphs for urinary AFM1 level and rice consumption in each village. Urinary AFM1 levels have been log-transformed to normalize the data and rice consumption has been standardized by body weight.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlation graphs for urinary AFM1 level and chapatti consumption in each village. Urinary AFM1 levels have been log-transformed to normalize the data and chapatti consumption has been standardized by body weight.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Variation patterns of (a) rice consumption rate, (b) distribution of AFB1 level in rice samples, and (c) urinary AFM1 among Chak-46, 48, 49 in Sahiwal district. * EU regulation limit for AFB1 in rice is 5 µg/kg [24].
Figure 4
Figure 4
Geographic location of the studied cohort [52].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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