ABSTRACT
In this paper, a study of fungal and multi-mycotoxin contamination in 140 Camellia sinensis and 26 herbal teas marketed in Latvia is discussed. The analysis was performed using two-dimensional liquid chromatography with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (2D-LC-TOF-MS) and MALDI-TOF-MS. In total, 87% of the tea samples tested positive for 32 fungal species belonging to 17 genera, with the total enumeration of moulds ranging between 1.00 × 101 and 9.00 × 104 CFU g-1. Moreover, 42% of the teas (n = 70) were contaminated by 1 to 16 mycotoxins, and 37% of these samples were positive for aflatoxins at concentrations ranging between 0.22 and 41.7 µg kg-1. Deoxynivalenol (DON) and its derivatives co-occurred in 63% of the tea samples, with their summary concentrations reaching 81.1 to 17,360 µg kg-1. Ochratoxin A (OTA), enniatins, and two Alternaria toxins were found in 10-37% of the teas at low concentrations. The dietary exposure assessment based on the assumption of a probable full transfer of determined mycotoxins into infusions indicated that the analysed teas are safe for consumers: the probable maximum daily exposure levels to OTA and the combined DON mycotoxins were only 0.88 to 2.05% and 2.50 to 78.9% of the tolerable daily intake levels.
Subject(s)
Camellia sinensis/microbiology , Dietary Exposure , Fungi/metabolism , Mycotoxins/analysis , Tea/microbiology , Teas, Herbal/microbiology , Chromatography, Liquid , Colony Count, Microbial , Consumer Product Safety , Dietary Exposure/adverse effects , Humans , Latvia , Mycotoxins/adverse effects , Risk Assessment , Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization , Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-IonizationABSTRACT
This work reports data on the occurrence of nine mycotoxins and two food processing contaminants - acrylamide and furan - in a total of 100 beers produced in Latvia. Mycotoxins were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, acrylamide by HPLC coupled with quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometry, and furan by headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The most frequently occurring mycotoxins were HT-2 and deoxynivalenol (DON), which were detected in 52% and 51% of the analysed samples. The highest content was observed for DON, reaching the maximum of 248 µg kg-1. Furan was ubiquitous, and 74% of the samples contained acrylamide. In terms of the estimated exposure, the biggest potential risk was identified for HT-2 representing more than 11% of tolerable weekly intake. The margin of exposure approach indicated the exposure to furan through beer as significant, this parameter being close to the critical limit.
