GIUV2021-513
The presence of contaminants in food is a serious food safety problem. Exceeding the maximum limits established for some of them leads the food industry to discard them, so it is important to use innovative technologies to mitigate contaminant levels. Moreover, these contaminants and their mixtures present a significant toxic risk for consumers. The Alternative Methods for Determining Toxic Effects and Risk Assessment of Contaminants and Mixtures (RiskTox) research group consists of a multidisciplinary team of researchers who are experts in the use of sophisticated methodologies based on chromatographic techniques coupled to mass spectrometry with triple quadrupole and time-of-flight analysers for the elucidation, quantification and confirmation of food and environmental contaminants. Likewise, this research group studies the mitigation of the levels of these contaminants in food through the use of innovative conservation technologies based on non-thermal treatments (such as high-intensity electrical pulses) in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by opting for sustainability and the circular economy. For more than 20 years, the research team has also been...The presence of contaminants in food is a serious food safety problem. Exceeding the maximum limits established for some of them leads the food industry to discard them, so it is important to use innovative technologies to mitigate contaminant levels. Moreover, these contaminants and their mixtures present a significant toxic risk for consumers. The Alternative Methods for Determining Toxic Effects and Risk Assessment of Contaminants and Mixtures (RiskTox) research group consists of a multidisciplinary team of researchers who are experts in the use of sophisticated methodologies based on chromatographic techniques coupled to mass spectrometry with triple quadrupole and time-of-flight analysers for the elucidation, quantification and confirmation of food and environmental contaminants. Likewise, this research group studies the mitigation of the levels of these contaminants in food through the use of innovative conservation technologies based on non-thermal treatments (such as high-intensity electrical pulses) in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by opting for sustainability and the circular economy. For more than 20 years, the research team has also been researching the toxic mode of action (MoA) of food and environmental contaminants at cellular and molecular level and their simultaneous combination through in vitro models in cell cultures. A new line of research on new and improved models (3D models) has recently been implemented. For the study of toxic effects, molecular biology techniques (RT-PCR, microarrays), biochemistry (western blot, immunofluorescence, ELISA) and cell biology (monolayer and three-dimensional cultures, flow cytometry, bioimaging) are used. The group is also introducing computational models (QSAR) as a predictive tool for toxicity. This line conforms to legislation regulating the use of animals in scientific procedures to encourage and develop the principles of the 3Rs (replace, reduce and refine animal testing methods). In addition, the group uses the combination of these techniques together with biomonitoring in human biological samples by measuring contaminants and/or their biotransformation products as a more reliable indicator of the population's simultaneous exposure to these substances, favoring an integrated approach in decision-making regarding the evaluation of toxic risk. The research activity developed has allowed the members of the research group to collaborate with different national and international groups and companies and be part of the scientific committee of the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN). The group is mainly funded by international, national and regional R&D projects which has resulted in publication in high-impact international journals such as Food and Chemical Toxicology, Food Chemistry, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Food Control, Toxicology Letters, Antioxidants, Toxins, Journal of Food Science and Technology, Trends in Food Science and Technology, Current Opinion in Food Science, Food Analytical Methods, Chemosphere, etc.
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- Analisis de contaminantes alimentarios y ambientales en alimentos. Identificacion no dirigida de contaminantes de la dieta en muestras biologicas
- Monitorizacion de contaminantes alimentarios y de origen ambiental y sus metabolitos en muestras biologicas
- Mitigacion de contaminantes en alimentos mediante tecnicas de conservacion alternativas
- Uso de modelos celulares para determinar mecanismos d toxicidad: citotoxicidad, estres oxidativo, genotoxicidad, defensa y antioxidantes de la dieta
- Evaluacion de los posibles riesgos toxicologicos asociados a la ingesta de alimentos con contaminantes alimentarios o ambientales
- Determination of mechanisms of toxic action and defence systems in cell models.To determine the cytotoxic, genotoxic and immunotoxic effects produced by mycotoxins, pesticides and their metabolites, in single and combined exposure, using cell cultures (2D and 3D). Evaluate antioxidant defense mechanisms (enzymatic and non-enzymatic) at cellular level.
- Identification of biomarkers of exposure by monitoring their levels in biological samples.Monitor mycotoxins, pesticides and their metabolites in human biological fluids by validated and selective multi-residue methods, based on tandem mass spectrometry. To assess risk through exposure biomarkers using metabolomics and a chemometric approach.
- Risk assessment of human health exposure to food and environmental contaminants.Integrated risk assessment through monitoring and biovigilance of the levels of mycotoxins, pesticides or their metabolites in human biological fluids.
- Analysis of food and environmental contaminants in food and biological fluids.Development and validation of multi-residue methods of rapid, accurate and selective analysis with tandem high-resolution mass spectrometry for the simultaneous analysis of contaminants and their metabolites in food and biofluids to evaluate the exposure through diet in the population.
- Mitigation of contaminants in food.Reduction or degradation of contaminant levels in food by employing non-thermal technologies (such as electrical pulses, PEFs) throughout the food processing stages and identifying the degradation products generated.
| Name | Nature of participation | Entity | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MARIA JOSE RUIZ LEAL | Director | Universitat de València | |
| Research team | |||
| MÓNICA FERNÁNDEZ FRANZÓN | Member | Universitat de València | |
| HOUDA BERRADA RAMDANI | Member | Universitat de València | |
| ANA JUAN GARCIA | Member | Universitat de València | |
| YELKO RODRIGUEZ CARRASCO | Member | Universitat de València | |
| JOSEFA TOLOSA CHELOS | Member | Universitat de València | |
| VERONICA ZINGALES | Member | Universitat de València | |
| MERCEDES TARONCHER RUIZ | Member | Universitat de València | |
| FELIPE ANDRES FRANCO CAMPOS | Member | Universitat de València | |
| CARMEN MARTINEZ ALONSO | Member | Universitat de València | |
| CRISTINA FUENTES LOPEZ | Member | Universitat de València | |
| CRISTINA FUENTES LOPEZ | Member | Universitat Politècnica de València | researcher |
| EMILIA FERRER GARCIA | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| NOELIA PALLARES BARRACHINA | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| FRANCISCO JUAN MARTI QUIJAL | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| ALBERT SEBASTIA DUQUE | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| LUNA BRIDGEMAN TORRES | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| LUNA BRIDGEMAN TORRES | Collaborator | Universitat de València - Estudi General | UVEG PhD student |
| RAQUEL PENALVA OLCINA | Collaborator | Universitat de València | |
| RAQUEL PENALVA OLCINA | Collaborator | Universitat de València - Estudi General | UVEG PhD student |
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- Prev. Medicine, Public Health, Food Sc.,Toxic. and For. Med.
- Micotoxinas, plaguicidas, nuevos alimentos, biofluidos, LC-MS/MS, GC-MS/MS, Q-TOF-MS
- micotoxinas, plaguicidas, alimentos, PEF, Q-TOF-MS
- Micotoxinas, plaguicidas, metabolitos, cultivos celulares, citotoxicidad, estrés oxidativo, mecanismos de defensa, daño al ADN
- Micotoxinas, plaguicidas, metabolómica, q-TOF-MS, tecnología HRMS, METLIN DB
- Micotoxinas, plaguicidas, metabolitos, Human Biomonitoring for Europe initiative (HBM4EU)
