“…Temperature is also a factor leading to the presence of EC in food. Studies of EC formation in bread and puddings [ 12 ], in wine [ 26 , 27 ] and in soy sauce [ 13 ] have shown that concentrations increase rapidly with temperature. It is therefore plausible that the pasteurisation process conducted during snus manufacture, which involves holding tobacco at high temperatures, contributes to EC formation from pre-established precursors within the tobacco.…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…For stone fruit brandies, in particular, an additional precursor is cyanide, derived from cyanogenic glycosides such as amygdalin. Citrulline, derived from the catabolism of arginine by lactic acid bacteria, is also a precursor for EC in wines [ 12 ] as well as in soy sauce, in which ethanol present in the fermented soy reacts with citrulline during the pasteurisation process to form EC [ 13 ]. Fig.…”
BackgroundWe are interested in comparing the levels of harmful or potentially harmful constituents in Swedish and American smokeless tobacco products (STPs). We report here the concentrations of the IARC Group 2 A (probable human) carcinogen ethyl carbamate (EC) in seventy commercial STPs from the US and Sweden, representing 80–90% of the market share of the major STP categories in these countries. We also examine the effects of various additives, processing and storage conditions on EC concentrations in experimental snus samples.ResultsEC was determined from aqueous extracts of the STPs using ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS/MS). EC was undetectable (< 20 ng/g wet weight basis WWB) in 60% of the commercial STPs, including all the chewing tobacco (CT), dry snuff (DS), hard pellet (HP), soft pellet (SP), and plug products. Measurable levels of EC were found in 11/16 (69%) of the moist snuff (MS) samples (average 154 ng/g in those samples containing EC) and 19/32 (59%) of the Swedish snus samples (average 35 ng/g). For the experimental snus samples, EC was only observed in ethanol treated samples. EC concentrations increased significantly with ethanol concentrations (0–4%) and with storage time (up to 24 weeks) and temperature (8 °C vs 20 °C). EC concentrations were lower at lower pHs but were unaffected by adding nitrogenous precursors identified from food studies (citrulline and urea), increasing water content or by pasteurisation. Added EC was stable in the STP matrix, but evaporative losses were significant when samples were stored for several weeks in open containers at 8 °C.ConclusionsEC was found in measurable amounts only in some moist STPs i.e. pasteurised Swedish snus and unpasteurised US MS; it is not a ubiquitous contaminant of STPs. The presence of ethanol contributed significantly to the presence of EC in experimental snus samples, more significantly at higher pH levels. Sample age also was a key determinant of EC content. In contrast, pasteurisation and fermentation do not appear to directly influence EC levels. Using published consumption rates and mouth level exposures, on average STP consumers are exposed to lower EC levels from STP use than from food consumption.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13065-018-0454-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
“…Temperature is also a factor leading to the presence of EC in food. Studies of EC formation in bread and puddings [ 12 ], in wine [ 26 , 27 ] and in soy sauce [ 13 ] have shown that concentrations increase rapidly with temperature. It is therefore plausible that the pasteurisation process conducted during snus manufacture, which involves holding tobacco at high temperatures, contributes to EC formation from pre-established precursors within the tobacco.…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…For stone fruit brandies, in particular, an additional precursor is cyanide, derived from cyanogenic glycosides such as amygdalin. Citrulline, derived from the catabolism of arginine by lactic acid bacteria, is also a precursor for EC in wines [ 12 ] as well as in soy sauce, in which ethanol present in the fermented soy reacts with citrulline during the pasteurisation process to form EC [ 13 ]. Fig.…”
BackgroundWe are interested in comparing the levels of harmful or potentially harmful constituents in Swedish and American smokeless tobacco products (STPs). We report here the concentrations of the IARC Group 2 A (probable human) carcinogen ethyl carbamate (EC) in seventy commercial STPs from the US and Sweden, representing 80–90% of the market share of the major STP categories in these countries. We also examine the effects of various additives, processing and storage conditions on EC concentrations in experimental snus samples.ResultsEC was determined from aqueous extracts of the STPs using ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS/MS). EC was undetectable (< 20 ng/g wet weight basis WWB) in 60% of the commercial STPs, including all the chewing tobacco (CT), dry snuff (DS), hard pellet (HP), soft pellet (SP), and plug products. Measurable levels of EC were found in 11/16 (69%) of the moist snuff (MS) samples (average 154 ng/g in those samples containing EC) and 19/32 (59%) of the Swedish snus samples (average 35 ng/g). For the experimental snus samples, EC was only observed in ethanol treated samples. EC concentrations increased significantly with ethanol concentrations (0–4%) and with storage time (up to 24 weeks) and temperature (8 °C vs 20 °C). EC concentrations were lower at lower pHs but were unaffected by adding nitrogenous precursors identified from food studies (citrulline and urea), increasing water content or by pasteurisation. Added EC was stable in the STP matrix, but evaporative losses were significant when samples were stored for several weeks in open containers at 8 °C.ConclusionsEC was found in measurable amounts only in some moist STPs i.e. pasteurised Swedish snus and unpasteurised US MS; it is not a ubiquitous contaminant of STPs. The presence of ethanol contributed significantly to the presence of EC in experimental snus samples, more significantly at higher pH levels. Sample age also was a key determinant of EC content. In contrast, pasteurisation and fermentation do not appear to directly influence EC levels. Using published consumption rates and mouth level exposures, on average STP consumers are exposed to lower EC levels from STP use than from food consumption.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13065-018-0454-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
