Pesticides, metals, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in date fruits: A probabilistic assessment of risk to health of Iranian consumers

Simultaneous screening of 211 pesticide residues in date fruits in Iran and health risk assessments based on Mont Carlo simulation

In this study, 211 pesticides were analyzed simultaneously using a QuEChERS method coupled with GC-MS-MS and LC-MS-MS in 90 fresh date fruit samples produced in Kerman Province. Probabilistic estimates of non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks were evaluated using Monte Carlo simulation-based hazard Quotient (HQ), hazard index (HI) and carcinogenic risk (CR). The linearity of 0.015-0.30 mg kg-1 with the coefficient of determination (R2) values exceeding 0.9989 were achieved. The percentage of recoveries, limits of detection (LODs), limits of quantification (LOQs), Relative standard deviation (RSD %) and matrix effect (ME) were determined in the range of 77-119%, 0.001-0.003 mg kg-1 and 0.005-0.01 mg kg-1, ≤ 15% and - 7.5 to 14.2%, respectively. Among 90 analyzed date fruits, 9 samples (10%) contained at least one pesticide residue, whereas 5 samples (5.5%) showed pesticide residues exceeding maximum residual limit (MRL) according to the national and European Commission. The obtained HQ values for the target pesticides were as cypermethrin > imazalil > permethrind > endosulfan > Fenpropathrin. The HI values for adult and child consumers with all pesticide residues were lower than 1. The CR was less than 1.0E-6 value. Thus, there was no carcinogenic risk to the consumers of date fruits.

Review of the Terminology, Approaches, and Formulations Used in the Guidelines on Quantitative Risk Assessment of Chemical Hazards in Food

This paper reviews the published terminology, mathematical models, and the possible approaches used to characterise the risk of foodborne chemical hazards, particularly pesticides, metals, mycotoxins, acrylamide, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The results confirmed the wide variability of the nomenclature used, e.g., 28 different ways of referencing exposure, 13 of cancer risk, or 9 of slope factor. On the other hand, a total of 16 equations were identified to formulate all the risk characterisation parameters of interest. Therefore, the present study proposes a terminology and formulation for some risk characterisation parameters based on the guidelines of international organisations and the literature review. The mathematical model used for non-genotoxic hazards is a ratio in all cases. However, the authors used the probability of cancer or different ratios, such as the margin of exposure (MOE) for genotoxic hazards. For each effect studied per hazard, the non-genotoxic effect was mostly studied in pesticides (79.73%), the genotoxic effect was mostly studied in PAHs (71.15%), and both effects were mainly studied in metals (59.4%). The authors of the works reviewed generally opted for a deterministic approach, although most of those who assessed the risk for mycotoxins or the ratio and risk for acrylamide used the probabilistic approach.

A probabilistic approach to compare the risk associated with heavy metals and bromine in honey from Dominican Republic, Mexico, Mozambique and Spain

This study aims to analyse the risk to consumers given the presence of heavy metals and bromine in honey from different countries. A probabilistic approach was applied to assess carcinogenic risk. Concerning exposure, Al in Spain (3.3E-04 mg/kgBw/day), B in Dominican Republic and Mexico (2E-04 mg/kgBw/day in both cases) and Fe in Mexico and Mozambique had the highest values (5E-05 and 4.8E-05 mg/kgBw/day). In risk characterisation, the values were less than 1 for hazard index (HI), meaning that the consumption of honey represents a low level of concern for non-genotoxic effects. A combination of margin of exposure and probability of exceedance results that exposure to Pb pose no threat. The probability of suffering cancer for Br, Cd, Ni and Pb was lower than 1.0E-06 and, therefore, considered safe. However, the risk at the 95th percentile of Br in Dominican Republic was 1.18E-04 in adults and 2.45E-04 in children, exceeding 1.0E-04, and therefore, considered intolerable. Finally, the sensitivity analysis indicated that the most influential factor in the HI was the consumption in adults and the concentration of Ni in children, whereas for cancer risk, were the concentrations of Ni, Cd, Br and Pb, in both cases.

Organophosphorus pesticide contaminants in fruits and vegetables: A meta-analysis

The worldwide demand for organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) in food production has raised concerns about pesticide residues. Meta-analysis, proven effective in assessing contaminants like aflatoxins and organotin compounds, is applied here to comprehensively study OP contamination in fresh fruits and vegetables. Employing Comprehensive Meta-Analysis V3.0 software, we meticulously examined 24 relevant articles encompassing 69,467 data points. Our findings revealed that while the residual concentrations of OPs (such as chlorpyrifos and profenofos) in most fruits and vegetables have typically met international or national safety standards, including Codex Alimentarius Commission, European Union, British, and Chinese standards, there are some instances in which the maximum residue limits have been exceeded, posing safety risks. Therefore, significant efforts are required to maintain residual OP contamination at safe concentrations.

Heavy metal contamination and risk assessment in winter jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill. cv. Dongzao)

Winter jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill. cv. Dongzao) is a major fresh-eating jujube fruit with various important nutrients for humans. It can absorb heavy metals from polluted air, water and soils and applied pesticides, which may pose potential threats to consumers. Here, to evaluate the content of heavy metals in winter jujube and systematically evaluate the potential risks, we collected 212 winter jujube samples from four main producing areas in China and determined the contents of eight heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Pb, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, and Mn) using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS). Based on the integrated pollution index (IPI) evaluation standard, more than 99.06% of samples were at safe levels. Moreover, clustering analysis divided the eight heavy metals into four groups, namely Cr/Ni, Cd/Pb, Cu/Mn/Zn, and As. Importantly, none of the analyzed heavy metals posed risks to adults as indicted by the average carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks. Notably, Cr and Cd could pose low carcinogenic risks to children (≤12 age group) when their concentration reached the 90^th percentile. This study systematically assessed the health risks associated with heavy metal intake through winter jujube consumption and highlighted the necessity of constant heavy metal monitoring in winter jujube.

Assessment of Carcinogenic and Non-carcinogenic Risk of Exposure to Metals via Consumption of Coffee, Tea, and Herbal Tea in Iranians

In the current study, we assessed health risk posed to Iranian consumers through exposure to metals via oral consumption of coffee, tea, and herbal tea of various trademarks collected from Iran market. Level of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Ni, and Pb in 243 samples was quantified by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The metal levels in coffee samples from different trademarks of a specific country had statistically similar levels of metals; however, metal levels differed significantly among brand names form different countries. Metal levels in tea samples differed significantly between domestic and imported products, while different trademarks of similar countries did not show significant variations in this respect. Metal level in herbal tea samples did not show significant variations among different trademarks. Nevertheless, it should be highlighted that mean concentrations of metals statistically differed among different herbal tea samples. Deterministic hazard quotients (HQs) were <1.0 for all non-carcinogenic metals and total hazard index (HI) values indicated no risk; however, probabilistic assessment calculated HI values >1. In both deterministic and probabilistic scenarios, carcinogenic metals As and Ni had an estimated incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) of medium level while that of Pb indicated no cancer risk. Sensitivity analysis showed that the concentration of metals had the most significant effect on non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks.

Characteristics of contaminants in the polish-origin bee products and cancer risk assessment

The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentration of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), furfural, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and pesticide residues, as well as assessment of cancer risk of the Polish-origin bee products. The bee product samples were prepared using a modified QuEChERS method, then PAHs and pesticides were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), neonicotinoids by high-performance liquid chromatography with a diode array detector (HPLC-DAD), and HMF and furfural by spectrophotometry (HPLC-UV/Vis). The results showed that the highest furfural content was found in bee bread from the northeast part of Poland; moreover, samples obtained from the same region were also characterized with a higher level of HMF. The total sum of PAHs ranged from 324.0 to 866.4 μg/kg; the highest content of PAH4 (the sum of benzo[a]anthracene, chrysene, benzo[b]fluoranthene and benzo[a]pyrene) was 21.0 μg/kg, but only benzo[a]anthracene and chrysene were detected in the samples. Imidacloprid and acetamiprid were found only in bee bread from the northeast part of Poland, while clothianidin was detected in honey samples. The acceptable cancer risk has been calculated for PAHs due to ingestion of honey, while increasing the risk of cancer was calculated for bee bread and bee pollen. Due to the high concentration of PAHs and excessively high recommended consumption dose, regular consumption of bee bread and pollen may pose a severe threat to human health and should be strictly limited.

Public health implications of endocrine disrupting chemicals in drinking water and aquatic food resources in Nigeria: A state-of-the-science review

This state-of-the-science review is aimed at identifying the sources, occurrence, and concentrations of EDCs, including potential public health risks associated with drinking water and aquatic food resources from Nigerian inland waters. A total of 6024 articles from scientific databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of science, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and African Journals Online) were identified, out of which, 103 eligible articles were selected for this study. Eleven (11) classes of EDCs (OCPs, PCBs, PBDEs, PAHs, BPA, OTs, PEs, PCs, PPCPs, sterols and n-alkanes) were identified from drinking waters, river sediments and aquatic food species from Nigerian rivers, showing that OCPs were the most studied and reported EDCs. Analytical methods used were HPLC, LC-MS/MS, GC-FID, GC-ECD and GC-MS with all EDCs identified to originate from anthropogenic sources. Carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic effects were the highest (54.4 %) toxicological effects identified, while reproductive/endocrine disruptive effects (15.2 %) and obesogenic effects (4.3 %) were the least identified toxicological effects. The targeted hazard quotient (THQ) and cancer risk (CR) were generally highest in children, compared to the adult populations, indicating age-specific toxicity. PEs produced the highest THQ (330.3) and CR (1.2) for all the EDCs in drinking water for the children population, suggesting enhanced vulnerability of this population group, compared to the adult population. Due to associated public health, wildlife and environmental risk of EDCs and their increasing concentrations in drinking water and food fish species from Nigerian inland waters, there is an urgent need for focused and strategic interventions, sensitization and policy formulation/implementation towards public health and aquatic food safety in Nigeria.

MRTCM: A comprehensive dataset for probabilistic risk assessment of metals and metalloids in traditional Chinese medicine

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is still considered a global complementary or alternative medical system, but exogenous hazardous contaminants remain in TCM even after decocting. Besides, it is time-consuming to conduct a risk assessment of trace elements in TCMs with a non-automatic approach due to the wide variety of TCMs. Here, we present MRTCM, a cloud-computing infrastructure for automating the probabilistic risk assessment of metals and metalloids in TCM. MRTCM includes a consumption database and a pollutant database involving forty million rows of consumption data and fourteen types of TCM potentially toxic elements concentrations. The algorithm of probabilistic risk assessment was also packaged in MRTCM to assess the risks of eight elements with Monte Carlo simulation. The results demonstrated that 96.64% and 99.46% had no non-carcinogenic risk (hazard indices (HI) were < 1.0) for animal and herbal medicines consumers, respectively. After twenty years of exposure, less than 1% of the total carcinogenic risk (CR_t) was > 10^-4 for TCM consumers, indicating that they are at potential risk for carcinogenicity. Sensitivity analysis revealed that annual consumption and concentration were the main variables affecting the assessment results. Ultimately, a priority management list of TCMs was also generated, indicating that more attention should be paid to the non-carcinogenic risks of As, Mn, and Hg and the carcinogenic risks of As and Cr in Pheretima and Cr in Arcae Conch. In general, MRTCM could significantly enhance the efficiency of risk assessment in TCM and provide reasonable guidance for policymakers to optimize risk management.

Spatiotemporal Distribution and Evolution of Digestive Tract Cancer Cases in Lujiang County, China since 2012

This study aims to analyze the spatiotemporal distribution and evolution of digestive tract cancer (DTC) in Lujiang County, China by using the geographic information system technology. Results of this study are expected to provide a scientific basis for effective prevention and control of DTC. The data on DTC cases in Lujiang County, China, were downloaded from the Data Center of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Hefei, Anhui Province, China, while the demographic data were sourced from the demographic department in China. Systematic statistical analyses, including the spatial empirical Bayes smoothing, spatial autocorrelation, hotspot statistics, and Kulldorff's retrospective space-time scan, were used to identify the spatial and spatiotemporal clusters of DTC. GM(1,1) and standard deviation ellipses were then applied to predict the future evolution of the spatial pattern of the DTC cases in Lujiang County. The results showed that DTC in Lujiang County had obvious spatiotemporal clustering. The spatial distribution of DTC cases increases gradually from east to west in the county in a stepwise pattern. The peak of DTC cases occurred in 2012-2013, and the high-case spatial clusters were located mainly in the northwest of Lujiang County. At the 99% confidence interval, two spatiotemporal clusters were identified. From 2012 to 2017, the cases of DTC in Lujiang County gradually shifted to the high-incidence area in the northwest, and the spatial distribution range experienced a process of "dispersion-clustering". The cases of DTC in Lujiang County will continue to move to the northwest from 2018 to 2025, and the predicted spatial clustering tends to be more obvious.

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in samples of soil, feed and food collected in the Niger Delta region, Nigeria: A probabilistic human health risk assessment

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are widely distributed compounds with two or more fused aromatic ring, being some of them classified as carcinogenic. In the present study, the concentrations of 16 PAHs and the sum of them (∑PAHs) were determined in samples of food, feed, plant and soil collected in six different heavily polluted areas (Choba, Khana, Trans Amadi, Eleme, Uyo and Yenagoa) of the Niger Delta Region (Nigeria). Principal component analysis (PCA) was then used to identify groups of variables (PAHs) and groups of samples that were the best in rendering the environmental pollution in that Region of Nigeria. In addition, PAHs food consumption and the derived carcinogenic risks were assessed in a probabilistic way. The highest ∑PAHs (mg/kg) were: 16.7 in cow meat, 8.06 in goat meat, 25.4 in chicken meat, 7.72 in fish, 28.70 in fish feed, 15.3 in chicken feed, 8.42 in plant, and 8.80 in soil. In most of the Nigerian areas, cooked cow meat, chicken and chicken feed presented the highest impact regarding PAHs contamination. The highest intake of PAHs was through meat consumption, with a very high and unassumable carcinogenic risk, which is quite above 10^-5 for some PAHs, including benzo [a]pyrene. The results of the present survey highlight the importance of reducing PAHs content in food, specially in meat, in the Niger Delta region.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides, and metals in olive: analysis and probabilistic risk assessment

In the present study, levels of 22 pesticides, eight metals, and 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in 1800 Iranian olive samples (20 cultivars from six different cultivation zones), were determined; then, health risk posed by oral consumption of the olive samples to Iranian consumers was assessed. Quantification of PAHs and pesticides was done by chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and metal levels were determined using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). There were no significant differences among the cultivars and zones in terms of the levels of the tested compounds. Target hazard quotients (THQ) were <1.0 for all pesticides, and total hazard indices (HI) indicated di minimis risk. At the 25th or 95th centiles, Incremental Life Time Cancer Risks (ILCRs) for carcinogenic elements, arsenic, and lead and noncarcinogenic metals did not exhibit a significant hazard (HI <1.0 for both cases). At the 25th or 95th centiles, ILCR and margins of exposure (MoE) for PAHs indicated di minimis risk. Sensitivity analysis showed that concentrations of contaminants had the most significant effect on carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic risks.