Toxic Effects
The risks of fumonisin B1 have been evaluated by The World Health Organization’s International Programme on Chemical Safety(IPCS) and the Scientific Committee on Food(SCF) of the European Commission. They determined a tolerable daily intake(TDI) for FB1, FB2, FB3, alone or in combination of 2 µg/kg body weight. Until now, nothing about the kinetics and metabolism of fumonisin B1 in humans have been reported. On other animals much research has been done, but it might not be comparable to humans. In mice the elimination of FB1 is very rapid, but in humans it could be much slower considering their body weight. There are several possible pathways that cause toxic effects of Fumonisin B1. Most toxic effects are due to altered sphingolipid metabolism by inhibition of ceramide synthase. Production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) could occur. This increases oxidative stress and induce lipid peroxidation and could damage cells. In agreement with this some studies showed decreased levels of gluthation(GSH) in liver, but other studies showed even elevated levels of GSH. Cytotoxic effects have also been reported. Another effect of exposure to FB1 is apoptosis. This has been observed in a number of different cells and tissues. Inhibition of ceramide synthase is not responsible for this effect. The main factors could be DNA fragmentation and caspase-3 activation. FB1 has also immunotoxic effects, but much more research is necessary to get a clear overview of the effects on the immune system.
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