Aflatoxin contamination and health risk assessment in maize in Gansu Province in 2023

Aflatoxins (AFs) are one of the most toxic mycotoxins that can easily contaminate agricultural products and have adverse effects on both humans and animals. To understand the AF contamination in maize in Gansu Province and the risk of dietary exposure, LC-MS was used to determine the AFs in maize in Gansu Province in accordance with national standards. The results showed that the concentration range of AFs detected in maize was ND ∼15.9 μg/kg, and the detection rates of AFB₁, AFB₂, AFG₁ and AFG₂ were 13.3%, 5%, 6.7% and 4.2%, respectively. The estimated daily intake and margin of exposure (MOE) for infants, children, adolescents, and adults were 0.00575-0.0197 µg/kg bw/d, and 69.56-20.34, respectively. The consumption of maize may have adverse health effects in all age groups studied as all calculated MOEs were less than 10,000.