Exposure assessment and cancer risk characterization of aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) through ingestion of raw cow milk in southern Ghana

Nii Korley Kortei; Theophilus Annan; Vincent Kyei-Baffour; Edward Ken Essuman; Adjoa Agyemang Boakye; Clement Okraku Tettey; Nathaniel Owusu Boadi

doi:10.1016/j.toxrep.2022.05.015

Exposure assessment and cancer risk characterization of aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) through ingestion of raw cow milk in southern Ghana

Toxicol Rep. 2022 May 20:9:1189-1197. doi: 10.1016/j.toxrep.2022.05.015. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Nii Korley Kortei¹, Theophilus Annan², Vincent Kyei-Baffour³, Edward Ken Essuman¹, Adjoa Agyemang Boakye⁴, Clement Okraku Tettey⁴, Nathaniel Owusu Boadi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Health and Allied Sciences, PMB 31, Ho, Ghana.
² Food Microbiology Division, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Food Research Institute, P.O. Box M20, Accra, Ghana.
³ Food Chemistry and Nutrition Research Division, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Food Research Institute, P.O. Box M20, Accra, Ghana.
⁴ Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Basic and Biomedical Sciences, University of Health and Allied Sciences, PMB 31, Ho, Ghana.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.

Abstract

Milk and dairy products are the most important nutritional foods among all age groups. Aflatoxin M1 (AFM₁) contaminates milk and makes its consumption potentially dangerous. Infants are mostly at risk because they are typically fed as many as six and more times per day, which is indeed a disquieting concern. This study aimed at evaluating AFM₁ levels especially above international (European Food Safety Authority, EFSA) (0.05 µg/kg) and local (Ghana Standards Authority, GSA) (0.5 µg/kg) standards and cancer risks associated with the ingestion of raw cow milk (n = 120) sampled from Southern Ghana (Greater Accra, Volta, Western and Eastern Regions). AFM₁ were measured with High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with a Fluorescence Detector (HPLC-FLD). Risk assessments were also conducted using models prescribed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Additives (JECFA). Out of the 120 samples analyzed for AFM₁, 67 (55.8%) tested positive, 63 (52.5%) exceeded the limits of EFSA and were between the range 0.06 ± 0.001-3.52 ± 0.5 µg/kg whereas 50(41.7%) within the range of 0.50 ± 0.03-3.52.01 ± 0.5 µg/kg exceeded GSA limits. Risk assessments of AFM₁ for infants, toddlers, children, adolescents, and adults ranged between 0.06 and 2.03 ng/kg bw/day, 197.04-6666.67, 0-0.0323 ng aflatoxins/kg bw/day and 1.94 × 10^-3- 0.07 cases/100,000 person/yr respectively for Estimated Daily Intake (EDI), Margin of Exposure (MOE), Average Potency, and Cancer Risks. It was concluded that the consumption of raw milk posed adverse health effects on all age categories studied for the regions investigated. The use of raw cow milk may cause some problems and endanger the health of people of different age groups due to noncompliance with prescribed regulatory limits.

Keywords: Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1); Ghana; HPLC-FLD; Mycotoxins; Raw milk; Toxigenic fungi.