Deoxynivalenol Biomarkers in the Urine of UK Vegetarians
Liz Wells,
Laura Hardie,
Courtney Williams,
Kay White,
Yunru Liu,
Barbara De Santis,
Francesca Debegnach,
Georgio Moretti,
Stephanie Greetham,
Carlo Brera,
Maria Papageorgiou,
Natalie J. Thatcher,
Alan Rigby,
Stephen L. Atkin,
Thozhukat Sathyapalan
Affiliations
Liz Wells
Department of Academic Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Brocklehurst Building, Hull Royal Infirmary, Anlaby Road, Hull HU3 2RW, UK
Laura Hardie
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, LICAMM, School of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Courtney Williams
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, LICAMM, School of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Kay White
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, LICAMM, School of Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Yunru Liu
Department of Environmental Medicine, Hainan Medical University, 3 Xueyuan Road, Haikou 571199, China
Barbara De Santis
Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, GMO and Mycotoxins Unit, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299,001,61 Rome, Italy
Francesca Debegnach
Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, GMO and Mycotoxins Unit, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299,001,61 Rome, Italy
Georgio Moretti
Department of Statistical Sciences, Piazzale Aldo Moro, Università degli studi di Roma “La Sapienza”, 500,185 Roma, Italy
Stephanie Greetham
Echuca Regional Health, Service Street, Echuca 3564, Australia
Carlo Brera
Department of Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, GMO and Mycotoxins Unit, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena, 299,001,61 Rome, Italy
Maria Papageorgiou
Department of Academic Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Brocklehurst Building, Hull Royal Infirmary, Anlaby Road, Hull HU3 2RW, UK
Natalie J. Thatcher
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), 43126 Parma, Italy
Alan Rigby
Centre for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research, Hull York Medical School, Hertford Building, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, UK
Stephen L. Atkin
Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar, Education City, P.O. Box 24144, Qatar
Thozhukat Sathyapalan
Department of Academic Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, Brocklehurst Building, Hull Royal Infirmary, Anlaby Road, Hull HU3 2RW, UK
Deoxynivalenol (DON) is produced by Fusarium graminearum and is one of the most commonly occurring trichothecenes. Vegetarians are alleged to be a high-risk group for DON exposure due to high intakes of cereals susceptible to the growth of the mycotoxin. This study provides the levels of DON and de-epoxi Deoxynivalenol (DOM-1) in urine analysed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) in UK vegetarians. Over two consecutive days, morning urine samples were collected from 32 vegetarians and 31 UK adult volunteers, and associated food consumption 24 h prior to the sample was recorded. Statistically significant differences between the weight of the UK adults and vegetarians (t = 3.15. df = 61, p ≤ 0.005 two-tailed) were observed. The mean levels of DON in urine for adults on day 1 was 3.05 ng free DON/mg creatinine, and on day 2 was 2.98 ng free DON/mg creatinine. Even though high mean levels were observed, most adults were within the tolerable daily intake. However, for vegetarians, the mean level of urinary DON on day 1 was 6.69 ng free DON/mg creatinine, and on day 2 was 3.42 ng free DON/mg creatinine. These levels equate to up to 32% of vegetarians exceeding recommended tolerable daily intakes (TDI) of exposure (1 µg/kg b.w./day).
