Biomonitoring studies can provide valuable insights into human mycotoxin exposure, especially when food contaminant data are scarce or unavailable as in Bangladesh. First biomonitoring data in Bangladeshi adults indicated exposure to the nephrotoxic mycotoxins ochratoxin A (OTA) and citrinin (CIT). This led us to conduct a follow-up study with analysis of urinary biomarkers for both CIT and OTA to investigate regional and seasonal influences on mycotoxin exposure in two Bangladeshi cohorts. In total, 164 urines were collected (n = 69 in summer, n = 95 in winter) from residents of a rural and an urban area, among which there were 62 participants enrolled in both sampling periods. Most urines had detectable biomarker levels (OTA, CIT and its metabolite dihydrocitrinone, HO-CIT), with more or less pronounced differences with regard to season and region. In both cohorts, OTA was found at a mean level of 0.06 ± 0.10 ng/mL urine (range 0.01-0.55 ng/mL) in summer and a mean of 0.19 ± 0.38 ng/mL (range 0.01-1.75 ng/mL) in winter season. A season difference was significant in the rural cohort, but not in the urban cohort, and slightly higher mean OTA levels in the rural compared to the urban cohort were only observed in winter urines. CIT biomarkers showed more pronounced variations, with a CIT mean of 0.10 ± 0.17 ng/mL (range 0.02-1.22 ng/mL) and HO-CIT mean of 0.42 ± 0.98 ng/mL (range 0.02-5.39 ng/mL) in summer, and CIT mean of 0.59 ± 0.98 ng/mL (range 0.05-5.03 ng/mL) and HO-CIT mean of 3.18 ± 8.49 ng/mL (range 0.02-46.44 ng/mL) in winter urines of both cohorts. In both seasons, total CIT biomarker concentrations were significantly higher in the rural cohort than in the urban cohort. A provisional daily intake for CIT was calculated and exceeded a preliminary value set by EFSA (0.2 µg/kg/d) in 10 and 24 % of participants in summer and winter, respectively. No significant correlations were found between urinary biomarker levels and intake of certain types of food, except for a positive trend for higher rice consumption. Our results in the Bangladeshi population indicate frequent co-exposure to nephrotoxic mycotoxin food contaminants that vary by season and region.
Keywords: Biomarkers; Citrinin; Exposure; Mycotoxins; Ochratoxin A; Urine.