Cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of liquid synthetic food flavorings evaluated alone and in combination

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of food flavorings (Strawberry, Condensed Milk and Chocolate) on Allium cepa meristematic root cells, with exposure times of 24 and 48 hours. Cytotoxic and mutagenic potential were evaluated separately at doses of 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 ml and in combination, in which for each dose, the same dose of one other flavoring was combined. The results were analyzed by the Chi-square test (p <0.05). The Strawberry flavor in both exposure times and the three studied doses, the Condensed Milk at 0.6 ml in the 48 hour exposure time, the Chocolate flavor at 0.4 ml, exposure time of 48 hours, and at 0.6 ml, in both exposure times and all treatments with combined doses, significantly reduced the cell division rate, proving to be cytotoxic. No treatment resulted in a significant number of cellular aberrations in A. cepa cells, therefore, the flavorings, under the conditions studied, were non-mutagenic.Keywords: food additive; toxicity at the cellular level; meristematic cells of Allium cepa roots. Practical Application:The results of this study suggest that the studied food flavorings should not be used indiscriminately. They also call attention to the urgent need for more toxicity studies using these food additives so as to properly define the amount of daily intake of these flavoring by the population.

Cytotoxic, genotoxic and mutagenic potential of UHT whole milk

“…According to Caritá & Marin-Morales (2008), mitotic index lower than that of the negative control indicates the presence of agents whose toxic action affects the growth and development of exposed organisms. Complementing these authors, Gomes et al (2013), Marques et al (2015), and Moura et al (2016) claim that the inhibition of cell proliferation triggered by cytotoxic compounds in tissue with intense cell proliferation and with normal performance or without cellular changes, such as those used in this study for assessment of UHT milk toxicity, is quite harmful to the organism, since it possesses the property of inhibiting or limiting the replenishment of cells, altering the production of proteins and resulting in malfunction of the organ where it is located (Gomes et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016).…”

“…However, although it is not attributed to long life milk, flavoring, color and preservative additives -micro ingredients scientifically proven to be toxic at the systemic and cellular levels (Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016; -it is added to these food wetting, stabilizer and antioxidant agents which, among other features, have the function to preserve the texture and homogeneity and ensure no oxidation of milk, especially after opened for consumption (Aguiar et al, 2015;Taffarel et al, 2013). Bodies, such as Codex Alimentarius and the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), point out in their technical regulations the constant need for toxicological studies on the acute effect of food microingredients in general, and especially of foods containing these compounds, since many food additives, such as those with wetting, stabilizing and antioxidant action, have not been evaluated for their cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic potential (Gomes et al, 2013;Dliveira et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016;Nunes et al, 2016).…”

“…Bodies, such as Codex Alimentarius and the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA), point out in their technical regulations the constant need for toxicological studies on the acute effect of food microingredients in general, and especially of foods containing these compounds, since many food additives, such as those with wetting, stabilizing and antioxidant action, have not been evaluated for their cytotoxic, genotoxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic potential (Gomes et al, 2013;Dliveira et al, 2013;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016;Nunes et al, 2016). Also, they emphasize that the results of toxicological analyses are the basis for preparation or modification of documents that regulate the basic composition and the daily intake rate or consumption of semi-processed and processed foods (Brasil, 2007;Moura et al, 2016;.…”

Toxicity of synthetic flavorings, nature identical and artificial, to hematopoietic tissue cells of rodents

“…Among these substances, also called microingredients, are the flavorings, essential for the food industry for conferring specific sensory properties of taste and smell to processed foods (Xu et al, 2015;Marques et al, 2015). They have a complex formulation, comprising a wide variety of chemical compounds, such as diluents, preservatives, colorants, among others (Brasil, 2007;Koca et al, 2015), and are classified by the food industry into natural flavorings, synthetic nature identical and synthetic artificial.…”

“…However, none of these regulatory agencies report in detail which compounds and concentrations are present in these substances, and to date also have not defined the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) and the tolerable dose limit of flavorings for each food type (Brasil, 2007;Zengin et al, 2011;More et al, 2012;Xu et al, 2015;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016). Thus, technical regulations of FAO and FEMA mention the need for conduction of acute toxicological studies of flavorings, especially at the cellular level so as to determine whether or not the need for more detailed research on the toxic effects to organisms (Xu et al, 2015;Marques et al, 2015;Moura et al, 2016).…”