Ochratoxin A [BSA]

The European Commission asked EFSA to update their 2006 opinion on ochratoxin A (OTA) in food. OTA is produced by fungi of the genus Aspergillus and Penicillium and found as a contaminant in various foods. OTA causes kidney toxicity in different animal species and kidney tumours in rodents. OTA is genotoxic both in vitro and in vivo; however, the mechanisms of genotoxicity are unclear. Direct and indirect genotoxic and non-genotoxic modes of action might each contribute to tumour formation. Since recent studies have raised uncertainty regarding the mode of action for kidney carcinogenicity, it is inappropriate to establish a health-based guidance value (HBGV) and a margin of exposure (MOE) approach was applied. For the characterisation of non-neoplastic effects, a BMDL10 of 4.73 mu g/kg body weight (bw) per day was calculated from kidney lesions observed in pigs. For characterisation of neoplastic effects, a BMDL10 of 14.5 mu g/kg bw per day was calculated from kidney tumours seen in rats. The estimation of chronic dietary exposure resulted in mean and 95th percentile levels ranging from 0.6 to 17.8 and from 2.4 to 51.7 ng/kg bw per day, respectively. Median OTA exposures in breastfed infants ranged from 1.7 to 2.6 ng/kg bw per day, 95th percentile exposures from 5.6 to 8.5 ng/kg bw per day in average/high breast milk consuming infants, respectively. Comparison of exposures with the BMDL10 based on the non-neoplastic endpoint resulted in MOEs of more than 200 in most consumer groups, indicating a low health concern with the exception of MOEs for high consumers in the younger age groups, indicating a possible health concern. When compared with the BMDL10 based on the neoplastic endpoint, MOEs were lower than 10,000 for almost all exposure scenarios, including breastfed infants. This would indicate a possible health concern if genotoxicity is direct. Uncertainty in this assessment is high and risk may be overestimated. (C) 2020 European Food Safety Authority. EFSA Journal published by John Wiley and Sons Ltd on behalf of European Food Safety Authority.

Myristicae Semen (nutmeg) has been extensively used for a long time because of its pharmaceutical properties and edible values. However, nutmeg is susceptible to fungi and mycotoxin contamination under suitable conditions during growing or post-harvest, thereby posing considerable hazards to consumers and resulting in significant economic losses. In this study, the surface fungi of nutmegs collected from producing areas and commercial markets were investigated for the first time by targeting the internal transcribed spacer 2 region using an Illumina MiSeq PE250 platform. Fungal contaminations were detected in all 13 tested samples. Aspergillus was the most prevailing fungi at the genus level with the relative abundance of 4.37%-82.81%, followed by Xerochrysium (0.36%-55.18%), Xeromyces (0.87%-86.38%), Hyphopichia (0.06%-29.14%), and Alternaria (0.03%-52.28%). Meanwhile, 108 fungal taxa were identified at the species level with six potential mycotoxin-producing fungi, such as Aspergillus fumigants, Penicillium steckii, and Penicillium capsulatum. The differences between two groups of fungal communities were monitored. In conclusion, amplicon sequencing features a wide application prospect for fungal community analysis in spices and herbs and provides an early warning for subsequent potential mycotoxin biosynthesis.