The Statement that Some Ochratoxins are “..classified as human carcinogens” is Not Accurate

Authors: Riley, Ronald; MILLER, DAVID - Carleton University - Canada

Submitted to: Toxicological Sciences
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/20/2014
Publication Date: 12/23/2014
Citation: Riley, R.T., Miller, D.J. 2014. The Statement that Some Ochratoxins are “..classified as human carcinogens” is Not Accurate. Toxicological Sciences. 143(1):1-2.

Interpretive Summary: To the Editor, We are writing in response to a statement made in the recent “Editor’s Highlights” of the paper on ochratoxin and the microbiome (Toxicological Sciences, 141(1), 2014, 1). Ochratoxins, like the other agriculturally-important mycotoxins, are natural contaminants and must be managed on a risk basis. Unfortunately, the assertion that some ochratoxins “…have been classified as human carcinogens” is not correct. A better way to characterize this toxin would be “that ochratoxin A has been shown to be carcinogenic in animal models”. This is the evaluation of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) making ochratoxin A Group 2B (possible human carcinogen). The United States National Toxicology Program (USNTP) classifies them as reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen. The only mycotoxins that are known human carcinogens are aflatoxins; IARC Group 1 and USNTP “known to be a human carcinogen” (Riley, 2014). While this may seem to be a minor point, regulating ochratoxin concentrations in cereal grains as if they were as dangerous as aflatoxins seems unwise. Additional costs would accrue to American and Canadian agriculture for little or no discernible public health benefit (Bui-Klimke et al. 2014). For this reason alone, caution should be exercised when making statements about the carcinogenic/mutagenic risk of mycotoxins to humans.

Technical Abstract: To the Editor, We are writing in response to a statement made in the recent “Editor’s Highlights” of the paper on ochratoxin and the microbiome (Toxicological Sciences, 141(1), 2014, 1). Ochratoxins, like the other agriculturally-important mycotoxins, are natural contaminants and must be managed on a risk basis. Unfortunately, the assertion that some ochratoxins “…have been classified as human carcinogens” is not correct. A better way to characterize this toxin would be “that ochratoxin A has been shown to be carcinogenic in animal models”. This is the evaluation of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) making ochratoxin A Group 2B (possible human carcinogen). The United States National Toxicology Program (USNTP) classifies them as reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen. The only mycotoxins that are known human carcinogens are aflatoxins; IARC Group 1 and USNTP “known to be a human carcinogen” (Riley, 2014). While this may seem to be a minor point, regulating ochratoxin concentrations in cereal grains as if they were as dangerous as aflatoxins seems unwise. Additional costs would accrue to American and Canadian agriculture for little or no discernible public health benefit (Bui-Klimke et al. 2014). For this reason alone, caution should be exercised when making statements about the carcinogenic/mutagenic risk of mycotoxins to humans.