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Review
. 2021 Apr 28;13(5):314.
doi: 10.3390/toxins13050314.

Development and Limitations of Exposure Biomarkers to Dietary Contaminants Mycotoxins

Paul C Turner  1 , Jessica A Snyder  1
Affiliations
Review

Development and Limitations of Exposure Biomarkers to Dietary Contaminants Mycotoxins

Paul C Turner et al. Toxins (Basel). .

Abstract

Mycotoxins are toxic secondary fungal metabolites that frequently contaminate cereal crops globally, presenting exposure hazards to humans and livestock in many settings. The heterogeneous distribution of mycotoxins in food restricts the usefulness of food sampling and intake estimates for epidemiological studies, making validated exposure biomarkers better tools for informing epidemiological investigations. While biomarkers of exposure have served important roles for understanding the public health impact of mycotoxins such as aflatoxins (AF), the science of biomarkers must continue advancing to allow for better understanding of mycotoxins' roles in the etiology of disease and the effectiveness of mitigation strategies. This review will discuss mycotoxin biomarker development approaches over several decades for four toxins of significant public health concerns, AFs, fumonisins (FB), deoxynivalenol (DON), and ochratoxin A (OTA). This review will also highlight some knowledge gaps, key needs and potential pitfalls in mycotoxin biomarker interpretation.

Keywords: aflatoxin; biomarkers; blood; deoxynivalenol; fumonisin; ochratoxin A; urine.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Structures of the four naturally occurring aflatoxins. The 8,9 position is where the reactive epoxide can be readily formed across the double bond.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Structures of aflatoxin metabolites aflatoxin Q1, aflatoxin M1, and aflatoxin P1, highlighting phase 1 hydroxylation reactions.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Structures of the aflatoxin B1 exo- and endo-epoxides.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Structure of aflatoxin-N7-guanine. Formed by the aflatoxin exo-epoxide binding to guanine in DNA.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Structure of aflatoxin B-lysine (AF-lys). The major Pronase digest product from the aflatoxin–albumin adduct.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Structures of fumonisin B1 (upper) and fumonisin B2 (lower).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Generic structure of Type B-trichothecenes including deoxynivalenol (DON).
Figure 8
Figure 8
Structure of Ochratoxin A (OTA).
Figure 9
Figure 9
Timeline for identification and biomarker validation. AFM1—aflatoxin M1, AF-N7-GUA—aflatoxin N7-guanine, AF-ALB—aflatoxin–albumin, OTA—Ochratoxin A, T-DON—total deoxynivalenol, FB1—fumonisin B1, SaP/SoP—spinganine 1-phosphate/sphingosine 1-phosphate, IDMS—isotope dilution mass spectrometry, and HR—high resolution.
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