Abstract
The analytical scenario for determining contaminants in the food and feed sector is constantly prompted by the progress and improvement of knowledge and expertise of researchers and by the technical innovation of the instrumentation available. Mycotoxins are agricultural contaminants of fungal origin occurring at all latitudes worldwide and being characterized by acute and chronic effects on human health and animal wellness, depending on the species sensitivity. The major mycotoxins of food concern are aflatoxin B1 and ochratoxin A, the first for its toxicity, and the second for its recurrent occurrence. However, the European legislation sets maximum limits for mycotoxins, such as aflatoxin B1, ochratoxin A, deoxynivalenol, fumonisins, and zearalenone, and indicative limits for T-2 and HT-2 toxins. Due to the actual probability that co-occurring mycotoxins are present in a food or feed product, nowadays, the availability of reliable, sensitive, and versatile multi-mycotoxin methods is assuming a relevant importance. Due to the wide range of matrices susceptible to mycotoxin contamination and the possible co-occurrence, a multi-mycotoxin and multi-matrix method was validated in liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) with the purpose to overcome specific matrix effects and analyze complex cereal-based samples within the Italian Total Diet Study project.
Highlights
As is known, the change of climatic conditions of the planet will determine a warming of the eco-system leading to an unavoidable increase of the probability of the occurrence of fungal attack and mycotoxin production in the majority of crops worldwide [1,2,3,4,5]
The more immediate fallout is the increase of the menace of a further limitation of food availability prejudicing food security firstly and food safety secondly, as recently reported for the most dangerous hazard among mycotoxins, namely aflatoxin B1 [6]
The optimization of the LC-MS/MS parameters was conducted by directly applying tuning solutions of the selected mycotoxins
Summary
The change of climatic conditions of the planet will determine a warming of the eco-system leading to an unavoidable increase of the probability of the occurrence of fungal attack and mycotoxin production in the majority of crops worldwide [1,2,3,4,5]. Toxins 2017, 9, 169 yields, the economic gain and the quality of processed foods and the consumer health with a direct impact towards the more sensitive consumer groups such as infants, children, and adolescents together with other situations regarding specific status such as the pregnancy and people affected by coexistent pathologies such as celiac disease These aspects are even more relevant in consideration of the probability to have the concomitant presence of more than a mycotoxin in a feed or food product [7,8] that can pose a real, and still underestimated, increased level of risk for the end-consumer due to any potential additive, antagonistic, or synergistic toxic effects. Severe reductions in growth and immune response were found in broilers by dietary combinations of AFs and ochratoxin A (OTA) [12]
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