The aim of this review is to give a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge on plant metabolites of mycotoxins, also called masked mycotoxins. Mycotoxins are secondary fungal metabolites, toxic to human and animals. Toxigenic fungi often grow on edible plants, thus contaminating food and feed. Plants, as living organisms, can alter the chemical structure of mycotoxins as part of their defence against xenobiotics. The extractable conjugated or non-extractable bound mycotoxins formed remain present in the plant tissue but are currently neither routinely screened for in food nor regulated by legislation, thus they may be considered masked. Fusarium mycotoxins (deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, fumonisins, nivalenol, fusarenon-X, T-2 toxin, HT-2 toxin, fusaric acid) are prone to metabolisation or binding by plants, but transformation of other mycotoxins by plants (ochratoxin A, patulin, destruxins) has also been described. Toxicological data are scarce, but several studies highlight the potential threat to consumer safety from these substances. In particular, the possible hydrolysis of masked mycotoxins back to their toxic parents during mammalian digestion raises concerns. Dedicated chapters of this article address plant metabolism as well as the occurrence of masked mycotoxins in food, analytical aspects for their determination, toxicology and their impact on stakeholders.

3-Mono-chloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) is a contaminant that occurs in food in its free (diol) form as well as in an esterified (with fatty acids) form. Using a simple intestinal model, it was demonstrated that 3-MCPD monoesters and 3-MCPD diesters are accepted by intestinal lipase as substrates in vitro. Under the chosen conditions, the yield of 3-MCPD from a 3-MCPD monoester was greater than 95% in approximately 1 min. Release from the diesters was slower, reaching about 45, 65 and 95% of 3-MCPD after 1, 5 and 90 min of incubation, respectively. However, in human, the hydrolysis of 3-MCPD esters is unlikely to release 100% as 3-MCPD, as triglycerides and phospholipids are hydrolysed in the intestine liberating 2-monoglycerides. Assuming a similar metabolism for 3-MCPD esters as that known for acylglycerols in humans in vivo, the de-esterification in positions 1 and 3 would thus be favoured by pancreatic lipases. Therefore, 3-MCPD, and 3-MCPD-2 monoesters would be released, respectively, from the 1-/3-monoesters, and the diesters potentially present in food. Hence, information on the exact amounts of the partial fatty acid chloroesters, i.e. 3-MCPD mono- and diesters, is important to assess the contribution of foods to the bioavailability of 3-MCPD. Therefore, a rapid method for the determination of the ratio of 3-MCPD monoesters to diesters in fats and oils was developed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and isotopically labelled 3-MCPD esters as internal standards. The analysis of 11 different samples of fat mixes typically employed in food manufacturing demonstrated that a maximum of about 15% of the total amount of 3-MCPD bound in esters is present in the monoesterified form. The potentially slower release of 3-MCPD from 3-MCPD diesters, and the mono- to diesters ratio suggest that 3-MCPD esters may in fact contribute only marginally to the overall dietary exposure to 3-MCPD. Further work on the bioavailability, metabolism and possible toxicity of chloroesters per se is warranted.

To study the formation of fumonisin artifacts and the binding of fumonisins to matrix components (e.g., saccharides and proteins) in thermal-treated food, model experiments were performed. Fumonisin B(1) and hydrolyzed fumonisin B(1) were incubated with alpha-d-glucose and sucrose (mono- and disaccharide models), with methyl alpha-d-glucopyranoside (starch model), and with the amino acid derivatives N-alpha-acetyl-l-lysine methyl ester and BOC-l-cysteine methyl ester (protein models). The reaction products formed were analyzed by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry. The incubation of d-glucose with fumonisin B(1) or hydrolyzed fumonisin B(1) resulted in the formation of Amadori rearrangement products. Whereas conjugates were found following the reaction of sucrose, methyl alpha-d-glucopyranoside, and the amino acid derivatives with fumonisin B(1), the heating with hydrolyzed fumonisin B(1) yielded no artifacts. For structural determination, the stable reaction product formed by heating of methyl alpha-d-glucopyranoside (as starch model) with fumonisin B(1) was purified and identified by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy as the diester of the fumonisin tricarballylic acid side chains with methyl alpha-d-glucopyranoside. These model experiments demonstrate that fumonisins are able to bind to polysaccharides and proteins via their two tricarballylic acid side chains.

Fusarium proliferatum is one of a group of fungal species that produce fumonisins and is considered to be a pathogen of many economically important plants. The occurrence of fumonisin B(1) (FB(1)) in F. proliferatum-infected asparagus spears from Germany was investigated using a liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) method with isotopically labeled fumonisin FB(1)-d(6) as internal standard. FB(1) was detected in 9 of the 10 samples in amounts ranging from 36.4 to 4513.7 ng/g (based on dry weight). Furthermore, the capability of producing FB(1) by the fungus in garlic bulbs was investigated. Therefore, garlic was cultured in F. proliferatum-contaminated soil, and the bulbs were screened for infection with F. proliferatum and for the occurrence of fumonisins by LC-MS. F. proliferatum was detectable in the garlic tissue, and all samples contained FB(1) (26.0-94.6 ng/g). This is the first report of the natural occurrence of FB(1) in German asparagus spears, and these findings suggest a potential for natural contamination of garlic bulbs with fumonisins.

Esters of 2 - and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (MCPD) and glycidol esters are important contaminants of processed edible oils used as foods or food ingredients. This review describes the occurrence and analysis of MCPD esters and glycidol esters in vegetable oils and some other foods. The focus is on the analytical methods based on both direct and indirect methods. Methods of analysis applied to oils and lipid extracts of foods have been based on transesterification to free MCPD and determination by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (indirect methods) and by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (direct methods). The evolution and performance of the different methods is described and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. The application of direct and indirect methods to the analysis of foods and to research studies is described. The metabolism and fate of MCPD esters and glycidol esters in biological systems and the methods used to study these in body tissues studies are described. A clear understanding of the chemistry of the methods is important when choosing those suitable for the desired application, and will contribute to the mitigation of these contaminants.