Assessment of Dietary Exposure to Ochratoxin A in Lebanese Students and Its Urinary Biomarker Analysis

Abstract

The present study investigated the dietary and urinary OTA occurrence among 44 Lebanese children. Relying on HPLC-FLD analysis, OTA was found in all the urine samples and in 46.5% and 25% of the 24 h duplicate diet and dinner samples, respectively. The means of OTA levels in positive samples were 0.32 ± 0.1 ng/g in 24 h diet, 0.32 ± 0.18 ng/g in dinner and 0.022 ± 0.012 ng/mL in urines. These values corresponded to margin of exposure (MOE) means of 7907 ± 5922 (neoplastic) and 2579 ± 1932 (non-neoplastic) calculated from positive 24 h diet, while 961 ± 599 (neoplastic) and 313 ± 195 (non-neoplastic) calculated from the urine. Since the MOE levels for the neoplastic effect were below the limit (10,000), a major health threat was detected and must be addressed as a health institutions’ priority. Besides, the wide difference between PDIs and MOEs calculated from food and urine suggests conducting further OTA’s toxicokinetics studies before using urine to measure OTA exposure.

Dietary Exposure and Risk Assessment of Mycotoxins in Thyme and Thyme-Based Products Marketed in Lebanon

“…The dietary exposure to OTA for regular consumption was calculated, and is shown in Table 5 . The average total dietary intake of OTA was 1.345 ng/kg bw/day from thyme-based products, which was similar to another study conducted in Lebanon testing a 24 h diet showing a mean exposure of 1.4 ng/kg bw/day from the 24 h diet [ 26 ]. However, other studies in Lebanon reported higher exposures of 4.28 ng/kg bw/day [ 8 ] and 7.60 ng/kg bw/day [ 25 ].…”

“…For the dried herbs category, only thyme regular mix exceeded the acceptable limit according to the Lebanese standards, with a concentration of 4.83 µg/kg. Other studies conducted in Lebanon reported higher OTA concentrations of 9.13 µg/kg [ 26 ] and 7.0–7.1 µg/kg [ 28 ] in spices and herbs, respectively. A study conducted in Italy also showed a higher OTA concentration in spices, with a mean of 6.18 µg/kg [ 50 ].…”

“…A study conducted in Lebanon to assess OTA in a 24 h diet in students showed a mean of 0.16 µg/kg. However, OTA was not detected in thyme manakish, nor in wheat products such as toast and tea [ 26 ]. Toast, croissant, and kaak samples in a study previously conducted in Lebanon [ 25 ] reported OTA concentrations of 4.11, 0.74, and 2.03 µg/kg, respectively.…”

“…The calculated MOE for regular consumption was above 10,000 for neoplastic effects and above 200 for non-neoplastic effects, which indicated in both cases that there was no potential health risk related to OTA from consumption of thyme and thyme-based products in Lebanon. The MOE in one study was reported to be below 10,000 for 24 h from meals and snacks for the neoplastic effect, indicating a major health threat; however, for the non-neoplastic effect, the MOE was above 200, which posed no threat [ 26 ]. In Belgium, the MOE showed a health concern due to the intake of biscuits, croissants, rice, flour, and herbs and spices [ 65 ].…”

“…In order to evaluate the risk of exposure by consumers, it is important to assess not only the contamination of thyme, but also its related products, as it is a common ingredient in several recipes. Few studies have been conducted to evaluate AFB1 and OTA in food products in Lebanon [ 8 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ]; however, no studies targeted thyme herbs and its related products specifically. The objective of the present study was to determine the occurrence of AFB1 and OTA, evaluate the dietary exposure, and assess the risk posed by AFB1 and OTA in thyme and thyme-based products marketed in Lebanon.…”