ABSTRACT
Mycotoxins are widespread chemical hazards in crops and plant products, which pose a risk to human and animal health. A number of risk assessments, commonly based on dietary exposure point estimations, have been carried out for several mycotoxins, including aflatoxins, ochratoxin. Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites produced by several fungal species. The worldwide contamination of foods and feeds with mycotoxins is a significant problem. Mycotoxins can cause a variety of adverse health effects in humans. Risk assessment is commonly structured as a conceptual framework that in the context of food chemical safety, provides a mechanism for the systematic compilation, integration and critical review of information relevant to estimating the probability of adverse health effects derived from exposure to harmful chemicals present in food. In many cases, the toxicological endpoint and related dose–response are developed on the basis of a chronic exposure. Probabilistic exposure assessment of deoxynivalenol (DON) was performed within the context of the Total Diet Study of mycotoxins in Catalonia.
