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Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment
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Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Toxicology and Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2023) | Viewed by 8050

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Grażyna Kowalska

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Tourism and Recreation, University of Life Sciences, Akademicka Street 15, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
Interests: analytical chemistry; quality and food safety; food contaminations; phytochemistry
Prof. Dr. Radosław Kowalski

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Department of Analysis and Evaluation of Food Quality, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 8 Skromna Street, 20-704 Lublin, Poland
Interests: analytical chemistry; chromatography; extraction; phytochemistry; food technology; essential oils; aromas; herbal drug development; antioxidants; dietary supplements; special fats technology; quality and food safety; food contaminations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food is an indispensable source of energy components, as well as other compounds capable of affecting our metabolism and regulating life processes. Therefore, the quality and safety of food is very important, as it may also contain undesirable ingredients posing a threat to our health and life. Currently, there is interest in the problem concerning food quality from the perspective of consumers. A particularly important aspect in the assessment of food quality is compliance with safety standards for the presence of residues of plant protection products, as well as toxic substances originating from various sources and belonging to very diverse chemical groups, including mycotoxins, heavy metals (e.g., radioactive elements), dioxins, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and heterocyclic aromatic amines. It should also be mentioned that there is concern regarding contamination related to technological processes in food production such as acrylamide, as well as contamination with pathogenic microorganisms (fungi and bacteria) or contaminants related to the use of drugs (antibiotics) during animal husbandry. Agricultural products are contaminated with toxic substances during the development of the plant in the field, through harvesting, as well as during the processing, storage and transport of the finished product. The accumulation of heavy metals in soil, water and air results from incorrect waste management and from the rapid industrialisation and urbanisation of agricultural regions. Sources of inorganic contaminants of the air can be sought in the production of coal, petroleum oil, nonferrous metals as well as cement. Soil contaminants are formed as a result of the agricultural use of fertilisers and plant protection agents. The water environment is contaminated with heavy metals as a result of human activity related to wastewater treatment and drying, and with the disposal of sewage and sanitary wastes from households. Therefore, in this Special Issue, we encourage the submission of papers presenting research results determining the level of the contamination of agricultural products and food with toxic substances from, among others, the environment, as well as risk assessments.

Dr. Grażyna Kowalska
Prof. Dr. Radosław Kowalski
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • agricultural products
  • food
  • residues of plant protection products
  • mycotoxins
  • heavy metals
  • radioactive elements
  • nitrates
  • dioxins
  • polychlorinated biphenyls
  • polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
  • heterocyclic aromatic amines
  • acrylamide
  • biological contamination
  • antibiotics
  • environmental contamination
  • risk assessment

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 2508 KiB  
Article
Acrylamide-Induced Changes in the Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide (PACAP) Immunoreactivity in Small Intestinal Intramural Neurons in Pigs
by Aleksandra Karpiesiuk, Jarosław Całka and Katarzyna Palus
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(4), 3272; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043272 - 13 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1412
Abstract
Background: A particularly pressing problem is determining consumer-safe doses of potentially health- and life-threatening substances, such as acrylamide. The aim of the study was to determine how acrylamide affects the pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP)-immunoreactive intramural neurons in the small intestine of sexually [...] Read more.
Background: A particularly pressing problem is determining consumer-safe doses of potentially health- and life-threatening substances, such as acrylamide. The aim of the study was to determine how acrylamide affects the pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP)-immunoreactive intramural neurons in the small intestine of sexually immature gilts. Methods: The study was conducted on 15 sexually immature Danish gilts receiving for 28 days empty gelatin capsules or acrylamide in low (0.5 µg/kg of body weight (b.w.)/day) and high (5 µg/kg b.w./day) doses. After euthanasia, intestinal sections were stained using the double immunofluorescence staining procedure. Results: Studies have shown that oral administration of acrylamide in both doses induced a response of intramural neurons expressed as an increase in the population of PACAP-immunoreactive neurons in the small intestine. In the duodenum, only in the myenteric plexus (MP) was an increase in the number of PACAP-immunoreactive (IR) neurons observed in both experimental groups, while in the outer submucous plexus (OSP) and inner submucous plexus (ISP), an increase was noted only in the high-dose group. In the jejunum, both doses of acrylamide led to an increase in the population of PACAP-IR neurons in each enteric plexus (MP, OSP, ISP), while in the ileum, only supplementation with the higher dose of acrylamide increased the number of PACAP-IR enteric neurons in the MP, OSP, and ISP. Conclusions: The obtained results suggest the participation of PACAP in acrylamide-induced plasticity of enteric neurons, which may be an important line of defence from the harmful action of acrylamide on the small intestines. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment)
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15 pages, 1063 KiB  
Article
Contamination and Health Risk Assessment of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Seasoning Flour Products in Hunan, China
by Minghui Cheng, Zhen Tan, Xiwen Zeng, Zhu Liu, Pingyu Liu, Anwar Ali, Huali Qiu, Wenjun Jiang and Hong Qin
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(2), 963; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20020963 - 5 Jan 2023
Viewed by 1732
Abstract
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are persistent organic pollutants with carcinogenic, teratogenic, and mutagenic effects. Dietary intake is one of the significant exposure pathways of PAHs. In this study, gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was used to detect 16 priority PAHs listed by [...] Read more.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are persistent organic pollutants with carcinogenic, teratogenic, and mutagenic effects. Dietary intake is one of the significant exposure pathways of PAHs. In this study, gas chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was used to detect 16 priority PAHs listed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in seasoning flour products distributed in Hunan Province. The consumption of seasoning flour products by the Hunan population was investigated by questionnaire. The results showed that the detection rate of PAHs in seasoning flour products in Hunan Province was 92.41%. Among them, benzo[a]anthracene (BaA), phenanthrene (PHE), fluoranthene (FLA), and chrysene (CHR) were dominant. The total PAHs and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) contents of soggy seasoning flour product samples were higher than those of crisp samples and chewy samples. The total amount of PAHs in rod-shaped and flaky samples were higher than that in filamentous and granular samples. The margin of exposure (MOE) values of various seasoning flour products and all age groups (children, adolescents, and adults) was much more significant than 10,000. Moreover, the incremental lifetime of cancer risk (ILCR) values of all age groups were below 1 × 10−5. The above results indicate that PAHs in seasoning flour products have a relatively low health risk for the Hunan population. Still, it is recommended that susceptible populations (children, adolescents, etc.) should control their intake of flour products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment)
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20 pages, 3561 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Potentially Toxic Trace Metals and Associated Health Risk Assessment in Buffalo Milk
by Aqsa Rafiq, Munir H. Shah, Mohamed Mohany, Adnan Ahmad Tahir, Mohamed Farouk Elsadek, Muhammad Abdul Qayyum and Arshad Mehmood Abbasi
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(22), 14678; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192214678 - 9 Nov 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2270
Abstract
The contamination of toxic trace metals in the food chain is one of the major threats to human health. Milk is part of a balanced diet, which is essential for proper growth, but the ingestion of contaminated milk may cause chronic health disorders. [...] Read more.
The contamination of toxic trace metals in the food chain is one of the major threats to human health. Milk is part of a balanced diet, which is essential for proper growth, but the ingestion of contaminated milk may cause chronic health disorders. The present study is focused on the assessment of contamination of toxic trace metals in buffalo milk and the associated health risks to the consumers of Abbottabad, Pakistan. Standard analytical methods were employed to quantify the metal contents in the milk samples collected from various shops and homes in the months from June 2021 to October 2021. Health risk assessment was accomplished by computing estimated daily intake (EDI), health risk index (HRI), target hazard quotient (THQ), hazard index (HI), and target cancer risk (TCR). On a comparative basis, the mean concentration of Cr was found to be highest in both shop and home milk samples (101.3 ± 45.33 and 54.11 ± 24.20 mg/L, respectively), followed by Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cd levels. In buffalo milk collected from homes, the highest concentration of the metals was found in October, followed by July, September, June, and August. In shop milk, the increasing trend of metal contents was July > October > September > June > August. Significantly strong positive relationships were noted between the metal concentrations in the milk samples. Multivariate cluster analysis and principal component analysis exhibited significant anthropogenic contributions of the metals in buffalo milk. Mostly, the EDI and HRI values were exceeding the recommended limits; however, THQ, HI, and TCR showed that the intake of these metals through milk consumption was within the safe limit and thus revealed no significant carcinogenic or non-carcinogenic risks to the consumers. It is high time to ensure the continuous monitoring of organic/inorganic toxins in the milk and concerned authorities should take strict measures to control the contamination of milk and other food products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment)
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11 pages, 364 KiB  
Article
Probabilistic Risk Assessment of Dietary Exposure to Cadmium in Residents of Guangzhou, China—Young Children Potentially at a Health Risk
by Florence Mhungu, Kuncai Chen, Yanyan Wang, Yufei Liu, Yuhua Zhang, Xinhong Pan, Yanfang Cheng, Yungang Liu and Weiwei Zhang
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(15), 9572; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159572 - 4 Aug 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1975
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) and its compounds are hazardous environmental pollutants with renal toxicity and human carcinogenicity, with ingestion of contaminated foods representing the major mode of exposure. There have been a number of reports evaluating the Cd content in various foods; however, regarding the [...] Read more.
Cadmium (Cd) and its compounds are hazardous environmental pollutants with renal toxicity and human carcinogenicity, with ingestion of contaminated foods representing the major mode of exposure. There have been a number of reports evaluating the Cd content in various foods; however, regarding the actual risk posed by dietary cadmium exposure, only a few reports are available in which single point evaluation (less accurate than multiple point evaluation) was employed. In this study, we used a margin of exposure (MOE) model and @RISK software (for multiple evaluation) to evaluate Cd-related health risk in the local Guangzhou residents at varying ages, through a comparison between the estimated monthly exposures and the provisional tolerable monthly intake (0.025 mg/kg body weight (b.w.)), based on the Cd contents in various food categories available locally (a total of 3964 food samples were collected from each of the 13 districts of Guangzhou between 2015 and 2019), which were determined by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. In this study, Cd was detected in 69.6% of the samples (averaged 0.120 mg/kg), and rice and its products, leafy vegetables, bivalves, and shrimp and crabs contributed most to Cd exposure (8.63, 3.18, 2.79, and 1.48 ng/kg b.w./day, respectively). The MOE values demonstrated the following tendency: the younger age group, the lower MOE, and its 95% confidence range for the (youngest) 3~6 year old group started from 0.92, indicating a health risk of young children, while that for the other age groups were all above 1.0. Our preliminary findings warrant further clarification using biomarker assays in the relevant population. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Contaminants and Risk Assessment)
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