Pig Urinary Concentration of Mycotoxins and Metabolites Reflects Regional Differences, Mycotoxin Intake and Feed Contaminations

Abstract

The determination of mycotoxin and metabolite concentrations in human and animal urine is currently used for risk assessment and mycotoxin intake measurement. In this study, pig urine (n = 195) was collected at slaughterhouses in 2012 by the Swedish National Food Agency in three counties representing East, South and West regions of Sweden. Urinary concentrations of four mycotoxins, (deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEA), fumonisin B1 (FB1), and ochratoxin A (OTA)), and four key metabolites, (deepoxy-deoxynivalenol (DOM-1), aflatoxin M1 (AFM1, biomarker of AFB1), α-zearalenol (α-ZOL), and β-zearalenol (β-ZOL)) were identified and measured by UPLC-MS/MS. Statistically significant regional differences were detected for both total DON (DON + DOM-1) and total ZEA (ZEA + α-ZOL + β-ZOL) concentrations in pig urine from the three regions. These regional differences were in good agreement with the occurrence of Fusarium graminearum mycotoxins (DON + ZEA) in cereal grains harvested in 2011 in Sweden. There were no statistically significant differences in FB1, AFM1 and OTA urinary concentrations in pigs from the three regions. The overall incidence of positive samples was high for total ZEA (99–100%), total DON (96–100%) and OTA (85–95%), medium for FB1 (30–61%) and low for AFM1 (0–13%) in the three regions. Urinary mycotoxin biomarker concentrations were used to estimate mycotoxin intake and the level of mycotoxins in feeds consumed by the monitored pigs. The back-calculated levels of mycotoxins in feeds were low with the exception of seven samples that were higher the European limits.