Citrinin Dietary Exposure Assessment Approach through Human Biomonitoring High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry-Based Data

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry 2021-06, Vol.69 (22), p.6330-6338
• Main Authors: Narváez, Alfonso, Izzo, Luana, Rodríguez-Carrasco, Yelko, Ritieni, Alberto
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Food Safety and Toxicology
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.1c01776

Citrinin (CIT) is a scarcely studied mycotoxin within foodstuffs, so the biomonitoring of this toxin and its metabolite dihydrocitrinone (DH-CIT) in biological samples represents the main alternative to estimate the exposure. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the presence of CIT and DH-CIT in 300 urine samples from Italian individuals in order to assess the exposure. Quantification was performed through an ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS)-based methodology. CIT was quantified in 47% of samples (n = 300) up to 4.0 ng/mg Crea (mean = 0.29 ng/mg Crea), whereas DH-CIT was quantified in 21% of samples up to 2.5 ng/mg Crea (mean = 0.39 ng/mg Crea). Considering different age groups, average exposure ranged from 8% to 40% of the provisional tolerable daily intake, whereas four individuals surpassed the limits suggested by the European Food Safety Authority. These results revealed non-negligible exposure levels to CIT, encouraging further investigation in foodstuffs monitoring studies.