Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Sylhet, 3114, Bangladesh.
Leibniz-Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo) at the TU Dortmund, Ardeystr. 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
Mycotoxin Res. 2021 Aug;37(3):241-248. doi: 10.1007/s12550-021-00436-w. Epub 2021 Jun 22.
Breast milk is the best, most complete form of nutrition for newborns and infants. However, human milk can contain aflatoxin M (AFM) upon ingestion of dietary mycotoxin contaminants, namely, aflatoxin B (AFB), by lactating mothers. AFB and its hydroxylated metabolite AFM are potent carcinogens and thus an important issue in food safety and public health. This study is the first to explore the presence of AFM in breast milk samples from Bangladesh and assess infant exposure to this toxin, as a consequence of maternal mycotoxin intake. A total of 62 breast milk samples were collected from nursing mothers in Sylhet region of Bangladesh. The milk samples were collected between October 2019 and March 2020 and analyzed by a sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. AFM was detected in 51.6% of the breast milk samples (colostrum, transitional and mature milk), with a mean concentration of 4.42 ± 0.56 pg/mL, and in the range between LOD (4.0 pg/mL) and 6.66 pg/mL. The frequent detection of AFM in breast milk indicates widespread dietary exposure to mycotoxins in our cohort. The estimated average daily intake of AFM for all nursed infants was 0.49 ng/kg b.w./day. No significant correlations were observed between AFM levels in human milk and food items regularly consumed by nursing women. Overall, AFM levels in breast milk samples from the Sylhet region of Bangladesh are moderate, and lower than the permissible levels established for AFM in dairy milk or infant formulae (50 and 25 ng/kg, respectively). Yet, this first data for AFM breast milk contaminant levels just reflect the recent situation in one cohort, and monitoring should be continued.
母乳是新生儿和婴儿最优质、最全面的营养来源。然而，当哺乳期母亲摄入受真菌毒素污染的食物时，人乳中可能会含有黄曲霉毒素 M（AFM），例如黄曲霉毒素 B（AFB）。AFB 及其羟化代谢物 AFM 是强有力的致癌物质，因此是食品安全和公共卫生领域的一个重要问题。本研究首次探索了孟加拉国母乳样本中 AFM 的存在，并评估了由于母亲摄入真菌毒素，婴儿接触这种毒素的情况。本研究共收集了孟加拉国锡尔赫特地区 62 名哺乳期母亲的母乳样本。这些母乳样本采集于 2019 年 10 月至 2020 年 3 月之间，并通过灵敏的酶联免疫吸附试验进行分析。在 51.6%（初乳、过渡乳和成熟乳）的母乳样本中检测到 AFM，平均浓度为 4.42±0.56 pg/mL，检测范围为检测限（4.0 pg/mL）至 6.66 pg/mL。母乳中频繁检测到 AFM 表明我们的研究队列中普遍存在真菌毒素的饮食暴露。所有哺乳期婴儿的平均每日 AFM 摄入量为 0.49 ng/kg b.w./天。母乳中 AFM 水平与哺乳期妇女经常食用的食物之间未观察到显著相关性。总体而言，孟加拉国锡尔赫特地区母乳样本中的 AFM 水平适中，低于乳制品或婴儿配方奶粉中 AFM 的允许水平（分别为 50 和 25 ng/kg）。然而，这是孟加拉国锡尔赫特地区母乳中 AFM 污染物水平的首次数据，仅反映了一个队列的近期情况，应继续进行监测。
