Mycotoxins and applicability of in vitro methods of digestion and absorption assessment - the patulin case study

Assunção, Ricardo; Ferreira, Mariana; Martins, Carla; Dupont, Didier; Alvito, Paula

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.18/2281

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Abstract(s)

Mycotoxins are a wide group of fungal secondary metabolites that exert multiple toxic effects on humans and animals1. Patulin, a mycotoxin with significant public health risk, is a toxic secondary metabolite produced by a wide range of fungal species growing on rotten fruit2. In human health risk assessment, ingestion of food is considered a major route of exposure to many contaminants, although the total amount of an ingested contaminant does not always reflect the amount that is available to the body and exert its toxic effects3. In this study, two in vitro methods were applied to evaluate the bioaccessibility of patulin at different experimental conditions and the intestinal membrane integrity of Caco-2 cells exposed to patulin and cysteine (antioxidant) protective effects. Seven artificially contaminated fruit juices were assayed in the presence or absence of a standard meal showing a significant difference (p=0.001) for bioaccessibility values between contaminated samples alone and combinations with a standard meal4. Different concentrations of patulin and cysteine were assayed in a Caco-2 cells monolayers. At 95 µM, patulin produced a dramatic decrease of transepithelial electrical resistance. This effect was significantly (p=0.016) reduced when 400 µM and 4000 µM of cysteine was added to the cells4. The combination of in vitro digestion models with other techniques using intestinal cell lines offer a more complete picture of what is happening in the digestion and absorption process, as well as the study of beneficial effects of protective agents.