The Austrian children's biomonitoring survey 2020 Part B: Mycotoxins, phytotoxins, phytoestrogens and food processing contaminants.

This study assessed the levels of environment and food-related exposures in urine of Austrian school children aged six to ten (n = 85) focusing on mycotoxins, phytoestrogens, and food processing by-products using two multi-analyte LC-MS/MS methods. Out of the 55 biomarkers of exposure reported in this study, 22 were quantified in the first void urine samples. Mycotoxins frequently quantified included zearalenone (detection rate 100%; median 0.11 ng/mL), deoxynivalenol (99%; 15 ng/mL), alternariol monomethyl ether (75%; 0.04 ng/mL), and ochratoxin A (19%; 0.03 ng/mL). Several phytoestrogens, including genistein, daidzein, and its metabolite equol, were detected in all samples at median concentrations of 22 ng/mL, 43 ng/mL, and 14 ng/mL, respectively. The food processing by-product 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP), was detected in 4% of the samples (median 0.016 ng/mL). None of the investigated samples contained the tested phytotoxins that were rarely considered for human biomonitoring previously (pyrrolizidine alkaloids, tropane alkaloids, aristolochic acids). When relating estimated exposure to current health-based guidance values, 22% of the children exceeded the tolerable daily intake for deoxynivalenol, and the estimated MOE for OTA indicates possible health risks for some children. The results clearly demonstrate frequent low-level (co-)exposure and warrant further exposome-scale exposure assessments, especially in susceptible sub-populations and longitudinal settings.

Understanding the Chemical Exposome During Fetal Development and Early Childhood: A Review.

Early human life is considered a critical window of susceptibility to external exposures. Infants are exposed to a multitude of environmental factors, collectively referred to as the exposome. The chemical exposome can be summarized as the sum of all xenobiotics that humans are exposed to throughout a lifetime. We review different exposure classes and routes that impact fetal and infant metabolism and the potential toxicological role of mixture effects. We also discuss the progress in human biomonitoring and present possiblemodels for studying maternal-fetal transfer. Data gaps on prenatal and infant exposure to xenobiotic mixtures are identified and include natural biotoxins, in addition to commonly reported synthetic toxicants, to obtain a more holistic assessment of the chemical exposome. We highlight the lack of large-scale studies covering a broad range of xenobiotics. Several recommendations to advance our understanding of the early-life chemical exposome and the subsequent impact on health outcomes are proposed.