Toxin Contamination of Foods: From Occurrence to Control

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Toxicology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2025 | Viewed by 4979

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Research Group in Alternative Methods for Determining Toxic Effects and Risk Assessment of Contaminants and Mixtures (RiskTox), Laboratory of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences, Universitat de València, Av. Vicent Andrés Estellés s/n, Burjassot, 46100 València, Spain
Interests: toxin; toxicity; contaminant detection; risk assessment; chromatography; spectrometry; mass spectrometry; analytical chemistry
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food science has greatly advanced in the last few years. This progress has resulted in increasing being paid attention to the origin and quality of raw materials, as well as their derived food products. This Special Issue invites authors to submit both research and review papers related to the field of food safety. Therefore, this Special Issue will gather the most recent contributions and findings concerning food control, food toxicology, and exposure assessments for different food contaminants. Obtaining and discussing new information is an important step toward ensuring that continuous research progress is made in the area of food science.

Prof. Dr. Yelko Rodríguez-Carrasco
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • food safety
  • food control
  • food toxicology
  • exposure assessment
  • food contaminants

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 472 KiB  
Communication
Determination of Opium Alkaloid Content in Poppy Seeds Using Liquid Chromatography Coupled with a Mass Spectrometer with a Time-of-Flight Analyzer (UPLC-TOF-HRMS)
by Agnieszka Zapaśnik, Adam Pierzgalski and Marcin Bryła
Foods 2024, 13(17), 2826; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13172826 - 5 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 608
Abstract
Opium poppy is a plant used in both the pharmaceutical and food industries. Substances found on the surface of dry poppy seeds belong to the group of opium alkaloids. However, the presence of these substances in food products poses a risk to consumer [...] Read more.
Opium poppy is a plant used in both the pharmaceutical and food industries. Substances found on the surface of dry poppy seeds belong to the group of opium alkaloids. However, the presence of these substances in food products poses a risk to consumer health, which is why new permissible levels for both substances in poppy seeds and derivative products have been introduced in Regulation (EU) 2023/915. This research aimed to analyze the content of all six opium alkaloids in poppy seeds provided directly by producers as well as those available on the local market in Poland. The research confirmed the presence of morphine in all examined poppy seed samples. The alkaloid content ranged from 12.46 to 102.86 mg/kg for seeds purchased in local markets and from 1.1 to 110.1 mg/kg for seeds obtained directly from producers. Both groups showed similar levels of morphine content as well as other OAs, which significantly exceeded the permissible limit of 20 mg/kg set by the European Commission (EU) 2023/915. These results indicate that the presence of morphine and other opium alkaloids in poppy seeds exceeds permissible levels, posing a serious health issue and necessitating further research and improvement in processing methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxin Contamination of Foods: From Occurrence to Control)
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14 pages, 2702 KiB  
Article
Identification of Biotransformation Products of T-2 Toxin in HepG2 Cells Using LC-Q-TOF MS
by Mercedes Taroncher, Veronica Zingales, Yelko Rodríguez-Carrasco and María José Ruiz
Foods 2024, 13(10), 1501; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13101501 - 13 May 2024
Viewed by 991
Abstract
The T-2 toxin (T-2) is a type A trichothecene found in cereals. The formation of metabolites is a frequent cause of mycotoxin-induced toxicity. In this work, the conversion of T-2 during biotransformation reactions in HepG2 cells was evaluated. For this, HepG2 cells were [...] Read more.
The T-2 toxin (T-2) is a type A trichothecene found in cereals. The formation of metabolites is a frequent cause of mycotoxin-induced toxicity. In this work, the conversion of T-2 during biotransformation reactions in HepG2 cells was evaluated. For this, HepG2 cells were exposed to 30 (IC50/2) and 60 (IC50) nM of T-2 for 0, 1, 2, 3, 6, 8 and 24 h, and the concentrations of T-2 and its metabolites HT-2, T2-triol, T2-tetraol and neosolaniol were determined in both the cell fraction and culture medium through liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry–time of flight (LC-Q-TOF MS). Results showed a fast metabolization of T-2 (>90%) during the first 2 h, with HT-2 as its main (>95%) biotransformation product. The cell fraction showed higher levels (p < 0.05) of HT-2 (39.9 ± 2.1 nM) compared to the culture medium (12.53 ± 2.4 nM). This trend was also observed for the identified metabolites. T2-triol reached its maximum concentration (1.7 ± 0.4 nM) at 2 h, and at later times a time-dependent increase in the T2-tetraol and neosolaniol concentrations was observed. The identification of T-2 metabolites shows the need to continue combined toxicity studies of mycotoxins for a correct risk characterization of these natural contaminants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxin Contamination of Foods: From Occurrence to Control)
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Review

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42 pages, 1769 KiB  
Review
Comprehensive Insights into Ochratoxin A: Occurrence, Analysis, and Control Strategies
by Yamina Ben Miri, Amina Benabdallah, Imene Chentir, Djamel Djenane, Andrea Luvisi and Luigi De Bellis
Foods 2024, 13(8), 1184; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13081184 - 12 Apr 2024
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2955
Abstract
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a toxic mycotoxin produced by some mold species from genera Penicillium and Aspergillus. OTA has been detected in cereals, cereal-derived products, dried fruits, wine, grape juice, beer, tea, coffee, cocoa, nuts, spices, licorice, processed meat, cheese, and other [...] Read more.
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a toxic mycotoxin produced by some mold species from genera Penicillium and Aspergillus. OTA has been detected in cereals, cereal-derived products, dried fruits, wine, grape juice, beer, tea, coffee, cocoa, nuts, spices, licorice, processed meat, cheese, and other foods. OTA can induce a wide range of health effects attributable to its toxicological properties, including teratogenicity, immunotoxicity, carcinogenicity, genotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and hepatotoxicity. OTA is not only toxic to humans but also harmful to livestock like cows, goats, and poultry. This is why the European Union and various countries regulate the maximum permitted levels of OTA in foods. This review intends to summarize all the main aspects concerning OTA, starting from the chemical structure and fungi that produce it, its presence in food, its toxicity, and methods of analysis, as well as control strategies, including both fungal development and methods of inactivation of the molecule. Finally, the review provides some ideas for future approaches aimed at reducing the OTA levels in foods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxin Contamination of Foods: From Occurrence to Control)
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