Toxicological Exposure Research Articles

The Toxicology Investigators Consortium 2023 Annual Report.

Since 2010, the American College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT) Toxicology Investigators Consortium (ToxIC) has maintained the ToxIC Core Registry, a national case registry of in-hospital and clinic patient consultations submitted by medical toxicology physicians. Deidentified patient data entered into the registry includes patient demographics, reason for medical toxicology evaluation, exposure agents, clinical signs and symptoms, treatments and antidotes administered, and mortality. This fourteenth annual report provides data from 7392 patients entered into the Core Registry in 2023 by 36 participating sites comprising 61 distinct healthcare facilities, bringing the total case count to 102331 between 2010 and 2023. Ethanol was the most commonly reported exposure agent class (24.4%), followed by opioids (22.7%), non-opioid analgesics (16.7%), and antidepressants (11.7%). For the first time since the registry's initiation, in 2023, ethanol was the leading agent of exposure. There were 98 fatalities (case fatality rate of 1.3%). Additional descriptive analyses in this annual report were conducted to describe the reasons for medical toxicology consultation by age in 2023, and yearly trends for opioid and psychoactive exposures, physostigmine and rivastigmine treatments, and acetaminophen exposures treated with fomepizole.

Cytotoxicity and mechanisms of perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS) in umbilical cord fibroblast cells of Yangtze finless porpoise

Yangtze finless porpoises (YFP) accumulate high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). However, the health impacts of PFASs to YFP are still unknown because it is technically and ethically unfeasible to use the critically endangered YFP in toxicological exposures. To uncover the potential toxicities of PFASs to YFP, this study exposed a YFP umbilical cord fibroblast cell line to perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS), an emerging PFASs pollutant in the aquatic environments. After exposure, the cytotoxicity and mechanisms of PFBS were explored. Our preliminary experiments found that PFBS compromised the cell viability in a concentration and duration dependent manner. In an exposure of 48-h duration, the maximum no observed effect concentration (NOEC) of PFBS was determined to be 400 µM. High-throughput proteomics were then conducted to identify the differentially expressed proteins in YFP cells exposed to 400 µM PFBS for 48 h. The results found that PFBS exposure significantly perturbed the proteome fingerprints of YFP umbilical cord fibroblast cells. Functional annotation of differential proteins showed that PFBS had the potential to impair a variety of biological processes associated with the immunity, oxidative stress, metabolism, and proteolysis. Consistently, the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β were significantly increased by PFBS in YFP umbilical cord fibroblast cells. Overall, this study highlights the toxic effects of emerging PFASs on YFP and provides reference data to evaluate the health risks of aquatic pollution under the context of national YFP protection. To our knowledge, this is the first omics study using YFP umbilical cord fibroblast cells in ecotoxicology of PFASs, which is applicable to various cetacean species and pollutants.

Sex differences among patients with intentional poisoning presenting to the emergency Department at a Tertiary Care Centre in Beirut, Lebanon.

Poisoning poses a worldwide public health challenge and recent data from Lebanon in 2020 revealed that over half patients presenting with acute toxicological exposure intentionally poisoned themselves, primarily with suspected suicidal intent. This study aims to assess sex disparities in intentional toxicological exposures among patients presenting to the Emergency Department, at a tertiary care centre in Lebanon. This was a secondary analysis of an existing toxicological database, including patients aged 6 years and older admitted due to acute overdose from March 2015 to August 2022. A total of 444 cases of intentional poisoning were analysed, with 302 (68.0%) women. The primary cause of intentional poisoning was suspected suicide in both sexes, significantly more common in women (85.1% versus 65.5%, P < 0.001). Specific agents exposed to patients varied by sex; sedatives/hypnotics/antipsychotics, antihistamines, and melitracen/flupentixol were significantly more prevalent in women (P < 0.001) while men showed higher prevalence for ethanol (P = 0.02), stimulants, street drugs and opioids (P < 0.001). Our study underscores substantial sex differences in intentional poisoning cases in Lebanon. Women exhibited a higher likelihood of exposures to sedatives/hypnotics/antipsychotics, antihistamines and melitracen/flupentixol, while stimulant drugs, ethanol, and opioids were prevalent in men. Developing proper and effective sex-specific measures may mitigate potential physical and psychological consequences.

Attempted Self-Harm with Elemental Thallium Purchased Online: Case Report with Analytical Confirmation

IntroductionThallium is a highly toxic metal, with most publications demonstrating poisoning from thallium salts. We report on a patient with elevated serum and urine thallium concentrations from an intentional ingestion of elemental thallium purchased from the internet for self-harm.Case ReportThe regional poison center was contacted about an 18-year-old man who ingested a fragment from a 100-gram bar reported to be elemental thallium. Serial serum and urine thallium concentrations were obtained. Prussian blue was started on hospital day (HD) 2. A metal fragment was seen on abdominal x-ray and removed via colonoscopy on HD3. The ingested fragment was analyzed via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and found to be 87.0% elemental thallium. The initial serum thallium concentration obtained on HD1 was 423.5 mcg/L (reference range < 5.1 mcg/L), which subsequently decreased to 4.5 mcg/L, 29 days after the ingestion. An initial random urine thallium concentration obtained on HD 3 was 1850.5 mcg/g creatinine (reference range < 0.4 mcg/g creatinine). The patient remained hospitalized for 23 days and, when seen in follow-up, had not developed any signs or symptoms of thallium toxicity.DiscussionElemental thallium ingestion is a rare toxicologic exposure, with limited published clinical and analytical experience to guide management. This case report describes a patient with ingestion of elemental thallium who developed elevated serum and urine thallium concentrations and was treated with Prussian blue. Despite having elevated serum and urine thallium concentrations consistent with previous fatal exposures, more evidence is needed to understand the differences between elemental thallium and thallium salts.

Epidemiologic Trends In Children With Toxicologic Exposures Requiring Intensive Care Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Pediatric poison exposures are a common reason for pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) -admission. The purpose of this study was to examine the exposure trends and patient outcomes in 2018-2019 compared with 2020-2021 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a retrospective cohort study of patients 18 years of age or younger with a suspected toxicologic exposure from January 2018 to March 2021. The primary endpoint was rate of PICU admissions between the 2 cohorts. Secondary endpoints included medical outcome stratified by severity, PICU length of stay, and need for mechanical ventilation. Our study included a total of 340 patients with median age 14.5 (IQR, 11.9-16.1) years. There was no significant difference in age, sex, or race between the 2 cohorts. The percentage of patients admitted to the PICU for poison exposures was significantly higher in the COVID-19 cohort compared with the pre-COVID-19 cohort (8.4% vs 3.7%, p < 0.01). Severity of medical outcomes differed between the groups; the COVID-19 cohort had more extreme clinical presentations of no effect or death (p < 0.01). No significant difference was found among the remaining secondary outcomes. Classes of substances ingested were comparable with baseline poison center data. Poisoning-related PICU admissions occurred at more than twice the pre-pandemic rate. This may emphasize the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric access and exposure to poisons.

Reduced Freshwater Mussel Juvenile Production as a Result of Agricultural and Urban Contaminant Mixture Exposures.

Freshwater mussels provide invaluable ecological services but are threatened by habitat alteration, poor water quality, invasive species, climate change, and contaminants, including contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). Contaminants of emerging concerns are well documented in aquatic environments, including the Great Lakes Basin, but limited information is available on how environmentally relevant mixtures affect freshwater mussel biology throughout their varied life stages. Our main goal was to assess mussels' reproductive output in response to exposure to agricultural and urban CEC mixtures during glochidial development through juvenile transformation and excystment focusing on how exposure duration and treatment affect: (1) the number of glochidia prematurely released by brooding females, (2) glochidial transformation through host-fish excystment, and (3) the number of fully metamorphosed juveniles able to continue the lifecycle. Mussels and host fish were exposed to either a control water (CW), control ethanol (CE), agriculture CEC mixture (AM), or urban CEC mixture (UM) for 40 and 100 days. We found no effect from treatment or exposure duration on the number of glochidia prematurely released. Fewer partially and fully metamorphosed AM juveniles were observed during the 100-day exposure, compared with the 40-day. During the 40-day exposure, CW produced more fully metamorphosed individuals compared with CE and UM, but during the 100-day exposure AM produced more fully metamorphosed individuals compared with the CW. There was reduction in fully metamorphosed juveniles compared with partially metamorphosed for CE and UM during the 40-day exposure, as well as in the CW during the 100-day exposure. These results will be important for understanding how mussel populations are affected by CEC exposure. The experiments also yielded many insights for laboratory toxicology exposure studies. Environ Toxicol Chem 2024;43:1112-1125. © 2024 The Authors. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

Characterization of Emergency Department Poisoning Epidemiology in Belize

Objective: Little is known about the epidemiology of poisonings in Belize. The purpose of this study was to characterize poisonings presenting to Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, Department of Accident and Emergency in Belize City, Belize. Methods: Charts were reviewed for patients with possible toxicologic exposures, presenting between May 31, 2016 – December 31, 2018. Variables of interest included patient age and sex, type and route of poisoning, reason for exposure, and disposition. Results: Of the 60,310 patient visits during the study period, 768 patients, 1.3%, presented after a toxicologic exposure. The age distribution of poisoned patients varied with the largest proportion being between 19-30 years of age, 29.3%. There was a male predominance of patients, 60.4%. Approximately 44% of all poisonings involved ethanol only. Marijuana was the most common drug of abuse. Other common inhalation and ingested exposures included cleaning agents, household agents, acetaminophen, NSAIDs, pesticides, organophosphates, sedating medications, antibiotics, and ciguatera poisoning. Nearly 48 % of intoxication cases were due to intentional abuse, while about eight percent were from suicide attempts. Of identified poisoned patients, 84.4% were ultimately discharged, 13.8% were admitted, 1.6% were “self-discharged,” 0.13% were transferred, and 0.13% died. Conclusions: This study illustrates that poisoning is an important cause of Accident and Emergency visits in Belize, whose patterns may differ from those in other countries. Understanding the current state of poisonings in Belize can aid in the development of treatment protocols, antidote stocking, and educational activities for poisoning prevention.

Investigating Behavioral and Neuronal Changes in Adolescent Mice Following Prenatal Exposure to Electronic Cigarette (E-Cigarette) Vapor Containing Nicotine.

A substantial percentage of pregnant smokers stop using traditional cigarettes and switch to alternative nicotine-related products such as e-cigarettes. Prenatal exposure to tobacco increases the risk of psychiatric disorders in children. Adolescence is a complex phase in which higher cognitive and emotional processes undergo maturation and refinement. In this study, we examined the behavioral and molecular effects of first-trimester prenatal exposure to e-cigarettes. Adult female mice were divided into normal air, vehicle, and 2.5%-nicotine-exposed groups. Our analyses indicated that the adolescents in the 2.5%-nicotine-exposed group exhibited a significant lack of normal digging behavior, elevated initial sucrose intake, and reduced recognition memory. Importantly, we identified a substantial level of nicotine self-administration in the 2.5%-nicotine-exposed group. At a molecular level, the mRNAs of metabotropic glutamate receptors and transporters in the nucleus accumbens were not altered. This previously undescribed work indicates that prenatal exposure to e-cigarettes might increase the risk of nicotine addiction during adolescence, reduce cognitive capacity, and alter normal adolescent behavior. The outcome will aid in translating research and assist healthcare practitioners in tackling addiction and mental issues caused by toxicological exposure. Further, it will inform relevant policymaking, such as recommended taxation, labeling e-cigarette devices with more detailed neurotoxic effects, and preventing their sale to pregnant women and adolescents.

The Toxicology Investigators Consortium 2022 Annual Report.

Since 2010, medical toxicology physicians from the American College of Medical Toxicology (ACMT) Toxicology Investigators Consortium (ToxIC) have provided reports on their in-hospital and clinic patient consultations to a national case registry, known as the ToxIC Core Registry. De-identified patient data entered into the registry includes patient demographics, reason for medical toxicology evaluation, exposure agents, clinical signs and symptoms, treatments and antidotes administered, and mortality. This thirteenth annual report provides data from 7206 patients entered into the Core Registry in 2022 by 35 participating sites comprising 52 distinct healthcare facilities, bringing the total case count to 94,939. Opioid analgesics were the most commonly reported exposure agent class (15.9%), followed by ethanol (14.9%), non-opioid analgesic (12.8%), and antidepressants (8.0%). Opioids were the leading agent of exposure for the first time in 2022 since the Core Registry started. There were 118 fatalities (case fatality rate of 1.6%). Additional descriptive analyses in this annual report were conducted to describe the location of the patient during hospitalization, telemedicine consultations, and addiction medicine treatments.

157 Keynote: Understanding Exposure, Hazard Identification, and Human Health Effects: How Ultrafine/Nano Particle Toxicology Influenced Occupational Safety and Health

Abstract Particles and fibers, whether process-derived, engineered, or environmental, have the possibility to cause adverse health effects when inhaled. Historic occupational particulates, such as coal, silica, and asbestos were clearly associated with human disease and induced a human health burden. This necessitated worldwide formation of national institutes to evaluate and mitigate exposures and mechanisms. The scientific evaluation of historic exposures set the stage for conducting air pollution/particulate matter research demonstrating that adverse health outcomes from particulates created potential risk for the general population, not just an occupational workforce. Research soon showed that adverse effects were not confined to the primary target site (e.g., lung) but also included cardiovascular, neurological, and developmental dysfunction. The evaluation of particulate matter, especially the fine and ultrafine fraction, quickly adapted to the rapid expansion of engineered nanomaterials. However, the study of novel engineered nanomaterials required a transition to preventative measures when interpreting controlled toxicity evaluations. Shifting the paradigm of particulate toxicology from explaining a chronic disease to intervening prior to a health burden brought many challenges to toxicologic research, exposure science, and responsible commercialization. Challenges included physicochemical characterization of nanoscale material, toxicologic research proceeding without exposure science guidance, and epidemiological investigations without post-exposure timepoints sufficient for evaluating potential induction of chronic disease. The navigation of these challenges shaped current approaches for evaluating multiple emerging technologies as well as influenced perspective on historic particles, especially those which resurface as part of complex mixtures.

Can North American animal poison control center call data provide early warning of outbreaks associated with contaminated pet food? Using the 2007 melamine pet food contamination incident as a case study.

The 2007 melamine pet food contamination incident highlighted the need for enhanced reporting of toxicological exposures and development of a national quantitative disease surveillance system for companion animals. Data from poison control centers, such as the Animal Poison Control Center (APCC), may be useful for conducting real-time surveillance in this population. In this study, we explored the suitability of APCC call data for early warning of toxicological incidents in companion animal populations by using a-priori knowledge of the melamine-related nephrotoxicosis outbreak. Patient and household-level information regarding possible toxicological exposures in dogs and cats reported to the APCC from 2005 to 2007, inclusive, were extracted from the APCC's AnTox database. These data were used to examine the impact of surveillance outcome, statistical methodology, analysis level, and call source on the ability to detect the outbreak prior to the voluntary recall issued by the pet food manufacturer. Retrospective Poisson temporal scan tests were applied for each combination of outcome, method, level, and call source. The results showed that month-adjusted scans using syndromic data may have been able to help detect the outbreak up to two months prior to the voluntary recall although the success of these methods varied across call sources. We also demonstrated covariate month-adjustment can lead to vastly different results based on the surveillance outcome and call source to which it is applied. This illustrates care should be taken prior to arbitrarily selecting a surveillance outcome and statistical model for surveillance efforts and warns against ignoring the impacts of call source or key covariates when applying quantitative surveillance methods to APCC call data since these factors can lead to very different results. This study provides further evidence that APCC call data may be useful for conducting surveillance in the US companion animal population and further exploratory analyses and validation studies are warranted.

A Review of Hydroxylated and Methoxylated Brominated Diphenyl Ethers in Marine Environments.

Hydroxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (OH-PBDEs) and methoxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (MeO-PBDEs) are present in the marine environment worldwide. Both OH-PBDEs and MeO-PBDEs are known natural products, whereas OH-PBDEs may also be metabolites of PBDEs. There is growing concern regarding OH-PBDEs as these compounds seem to be biological active than PBDEs. In the present study, we reviewed the available data on the contamination of OH/MeO-PBDEs in the marine environment worldwide, including seawater, marine sediment, marine plants, invertebrates, fish, seabirds and mammals. Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of OH/MeO-PBDEs in the marine food web were summarized as well. This study also proposes the future research of OH/MeO-PBDEs, including the production and the synthesis pathway of OH/MeO-PBDEs, the toxicokinetics of OH/MeO-PBDEs and the toxicology and human exposure risk assessment.

Innovative invitro approaches to toxicological investigations of mycotoxins effects.

Among the potential contaminants, mycotoxins are of particular concern due to the importance in terms of food and feed safety. The difficulty in establishing a diagnosis for mycotoxicosis relies in the fact that the effects are subclinical, and that multicontamination by various toxins is the most common scenario. The co-occurrence of these mycotoxins raises questions concerning both food safety and regulation. However, there is still limited knowledge on toxicity data on co-exposure. The current technical report will describe the activities performed by the fellow in the LUBEM-Brest University (France). In this context, the work programme offered by the hosting site consisted invitro toxicological approaches to evaluate the toxicity of mycotoxin mixtures. The aim of this project was to assess human risk to the exposure of two main regulated mycotoxins (ochratoxin A and fumonisin B1) using different innovative cellular models (2D and 3D spheroids). In this framework, these mycotoxins were tested individually and as a combination on intestinal and hepatic cell lines alone or in co-cultures. Overall, our results show the outstanding potential of using more predictive and realistic approaches for the risk assessment (RA) of mycotoxins. It is of high importance to pursue further toxicological characterisations and exposure evaluations for mycotoxins, in order to determine a more detailed RA. This will serve as a reference to understand multicontamination mechanism of mycotoxins at the cell level and help authority to revise regulation.

Occurrence of Pharmaceutical and Pesticide Transformation Products in Freshwater: Update on Environmental Levels, Toxicological Information and Future Challenges

Pharmaceuticals and pesticides are recognized micropollutants in freshwater systems. Their ever-increasing frequency of detection, levels found and little information available about their effects on non-target organisms, make them emerging contaminants. However, parental compounds are not the only substances of concern. Their metabolites and degradation products, hereby referred to as transformation products, are increasingly detected in freshwater samples and wastewater effluents. In the past years, a wealth of publications provided concentration levels detected in freshwater and some toxicological data, which required critical systematization. This review identified concentrations for 190 transformation products (92 from pesticides and 98 from pharmaceuticals) in water bodies and wastewater effluents. A concentration heatmap was produced to easily spot the substances found at higher levels and plan future research. The very limited available toxicological data link exposure to transformation products to adverse outcomes in humans (genotoxicity and alteration in detoxification processes) and aquatic species (mostly related to apical endpoints). Overall, environmental levels of these transformation products may pose a severe threat to aquatic organisms and need to be further investigated in sound experimental designs, testing for the effects of the single substances as well as of their mixtures. Such toxicological information is highly needed to improve both water treatment technologies and monitoring programmes.

Cocaethylene cardiotoxicity in emergency department patients with acute drug overdose.

Cocaine use results in over 500,000 emergency department (ED) visits annually across the United States and ethanol co-ingestion is reported in 34% of these. Commingling cocaine with ethanol results in the metabolite cocaethylene (CE), which is metabolically active for longer than cocaine alone. Current literature on the cardiotoxicity of CE compared to cocaine alone is limited and lacks consensus. This study aims to fill this gap in the literature and examine cardiovascular events in cocaine use as confirmed by urine toxicology versus CE exposure. This was a secondary data analysis of a prospective cohort study of adult patients with acute drug overdose at two urban tertiary care hospital EDs over 4 years. Patients with positive urinary cocaine metabolites were analyzed, and outcomes were compared between patients with overdose and confirmed presence of cocaine on urine toxicology (cocaine group) and patients with cocaine and ethanol use (CE group). The primary outcome was cardiac arrest. Secondary outcomes included myocardial injury and hyperlactatemia. Data were analyzed using multivariable regression models. We enrolled a total of 199 patients (150 cocaine, 49 CE). Rates of cardiac arrest were significantly higher in the CE group compared to cocaine (6.1% vs. 0.67%, p= 0.048). Cocaine was significantly associated with myocardial injury compared to CE exposure (mean initial troponin 0.01 ng/ml vs. 0.16 ng/ml, p= 0.021), while hyperlactatemia was associated with CE exposure (mean initial lactate 4.1 mmol/L vs. 2.9 mmol/L, p= 0.038). When compared to cocaine exposure alone, CE exposure in ED patients with acute drug overdose was significantly associated with higher occurrence of cardiac arrest, higher mean lactate concentrations, and lower occurrence of myocardial injury.

The Toxicology Investigators Consortium Case Registry-the 2021 Annual Report.

The Toxicology Investigators Consortium (ToxIC) Core Registry was established by the American College of Medical Toxicology in 2010. The Core Registry collects data from participating sites with the agreement that all bedside and telehealth medical toxicology consultations will be entered. This twelfth annual report summarizes the registry’s 2021 data and activity with its additional 8552 cases. Cases were identified for inclusion in this report by a query of the ToxIC database for any case entered from January 1 to December 31, 2021. Detailed data was collected from these cases and aggregated to provide information, which included demographics, reason for medical toxicology evaluation, agent and agent class, clinical signs and symptoms, treatments and antidotes administered, mortality, and whether life support was withdrawn. Gender distribution included 50.4% of cases in females, 48.2% of cases in males, and 1.4% of cases in transgender or gender non-conforming individuals. Non-opioid analgesics were the most commonly reported agent class (14.9%), followed by opioids (13.1%). Acetaminophen was the most common agent reported. Fentanyl was the most common opioid reported and was responsible for the greatest number of fatalities. There were 120 fatalities, comprising 1.4% of all cases. Major trends in demographics and exposure characteristics remained similar to past years’ reports. Sub-analyses were conducted to describe new demographic characteristics, including marital status, housing status and military service, the continued COVID-19 pandemic and related toxicologic exposures, and novel substances of exposure.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13181-022-00910-6.

Sublethal effects of a pyrethroid insecticide on cuticle thickness, wing size and shape in the main vector Triatoma infestans.

Exposure to sublethal doses of insecticide may affect biological traits in triatomines. We investigated the effects of toxicological phenotype (pyrethroid resistance status) and exposure to sublethal doses of deltamethrin on two traits of Triatoma infestans Klug (Heteroptera: Reduviidae) using a phenotypic plasticity experimental design. First-instar nymphs from 14 and 10 full-sib families from pyrethroid-susceptible and pyrethroid-resistant populations, respectively, were used. For the susceptible population, we treated first instars topically with acetone (control) or deltamethrin (treatment) once. For the resistant population, instars were treated once, twice and three times as first, third or fifth-instar nymphs, respectively. We measured cuticle thickness, wing size and wing shape of 484 emerging adults, and tested for treatment effects using mixed ANOVA and MANOVA models. Toxicological phenotype, exposure to deltamethrin and full-sib family exerted significant effects on cuticle thickness, wing size and wing shape. Adult triatomines previously treated with deltamethrin developed significantly thicker cuticles than control triatomines only in the resistant population and significantly bigger wings in both populations. Mean cuticle thickness and wing size increased with increasing exposures to deltamethrin. Exposure to sublethal doses of deltamethrin generated morphological modifications that may affect insect survival and flight dispersal, and hence may have evolutionary and epidemiological consequences.

Evaluation of existing guidelines for their adequacy for the food and feed risk assessment of microorganisms obtained through synthetic biology.

EFSA was asked by the European Commission to evaluate synthetic biology (SynBio) developments for agri‐food use in the near future and to determine whether or not they are expected to constitute potential new hazards/risks. Moreover, EFSA was requested to evaluate the adequacy of existing guidelines for risk assessment of SynBio and if updated guidance is needed. The scope of this Opinion covers food and feed risk assessment, the variety of microorganisms that can be used in the food/feed chain and the whole spectrum of techniques used in SynBio. This Opinion complements a previously adopted Opinion with the evaluation of existing guidelines for the microbial characterisation and environmental risk assessment of microorganisms obtained through SynBio. The present Opinion confirms that microbial SynBio applications for food and feed use, with the exception of xenobionts, could be ready in the European Union in the next decade. New hazards were identified related to the use or production of unusual and/or new‐to‐nature components. Fifteen cases were selected for evaluating the adequacy of existing guidelines. These were generally adequate for assessing the product, the production process, nutritional and toxicological safety, allergenicity, exposure and post‐market monitoring. The comparative approach and a safety assessment per se could be applied depending on the degree of familiarity of the SynBio organism/product with the non‐genetically modified counterparts. Updated guidance is recommended for: (i) bacteriophages, protists/microalgae, (ii) exposure to plant protection products and biostimulants, (iii) xenobionts and (iv) feed additives for insects as target species. Development of risk assessment tools is recommended for assessing nutritional value of biomasses, influence of microorganisms on the gut microbiome and the gut function, allergenic potential of new‐to‐nature proteins, impact of horizontal gene transfer and potential risks of living cell intake. A further development towards a strain‐driven risk assessment approach is recommended.

Tracking pesticide residues and risk levels in individual samples—insights and applications

BackgroundA method is now available to quantify the number of pesticide residues and relative pesticide dietary risks in individual servings of food. The Dietary Risk Index (DRI) system combines the results of United States and United Kingdom pesticide residue testing programs with data on food serving sizes and each pesticide’s chronic Reference Dose or Acceptable Daily Intake. Chronic DRI values are a ratio: the amount of residue in a serving of food relative to the maximum amount allowed by regulators.ResultsThe DRI system generates individual sample tables reporting the number of residues detected and individual pesticide and aggregate-pesticide DRI values in specific, individual samples of food. It is the first such system to do so worldwide. Output tables produce accurate estimates of real-world dietary risks based on current toxicology data and exposure benchmarks set by regulators. System outputs allow assessment of the distribution of pesticide-dietary risks across foods and pesticides and demonstrate that dietary risk levels are highly skewed. A large number of samples pose moderate, low, or very-low risks, and relatively few samples pose high or very-high risks.ConclusionsThe DRI system provides the food industry, regulators and analysts with a simple, accessible online tool to assess pesticide dietary-risk levels by food, by pesticide, as a function of country of origin, and on food grown on conventional versus organic farms. DRI system output tables show that the number of residues in a sample of food is a consistently poor indicator of dietary risk levels. By identifying the relatively small number of high-risk samples, efforts to mitigate pesticide dietary risks can be targeted where the most worrisome risks are.

Toxicological exposure to phthalates mixtures and human health risk assessment of drinking water and fruit drinks packaged in plastics and tetra pak cartons

BackgroundThis study estimates the migration and levels of phthalate esters in drinking water and fruit drinks packed in plastics and tetra pak cartons that are regularly available for consumption in Nigeria. The probable human health risk from the long-term consistent ingestion of the drinking water and fruit drinks products were also investigated.ResultsNine (9) phthalates were detected in the analyzed samples and they all showed varying concentrations. The results showed that the total mean concentration of the analyzed phthalates in the drinking water and fruit drinks packed in plastic container were found with the range of 1740–2370 µg/L and 1340–2220 µg/L respectively while fruit drinks packed in tetra pak container showed comparatively low concentration range of 385–450 µg/L. Also, the health hazard (HQ) values for the exposure via oral ingestion by adults were recorded at 505.974, 390.353 and 64.161 respectively for water and, fruit drinks packed in plastics and tetra pak containers. Correspondingly, very high values of HQ were observed in children (2529.80, 2187.39 and 355.92). The overall carcinogenic risks estimated owing to oral ingestion in adults were 0.01, 0.02 and 3.3 × 10–4 for drinking water and fruit drinks packaged with plastics and tetra pak container respectively while higher carcinogenic (CR) values of 0.04, 0.08 and 0.02 were observed in children.ConclusionsThe result obtained showed comparatively low concentrations of phthalates in fruits drinks packaged in Tetra Pak cartons than drinking water and fruit drinks in plastics containers. The high values of hazard index (HI) and CR observed in drinking water and fruit drink packaged in plastics is an indication of future health challenges relating to carcinogenic effects on the favorite consumer of the drinks in which children are more vulnerable. In view of this, packages like tetra pak product and less toxic materials could be adopted for packing drinking water and fruit drinks to avoid exposing consumers to phthalates present in plastics containers which have attendant negative health effect.