Aflatoxins are fungal metabolites found in feeds and foods. When the ruminants eat feedstuffs containing Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), this toxin is metabolized and Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) is excreted in milk. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified AFB1 and AFM1 as human carcinogens belonging to Group 1 and Group 2B, respectively, with the formation of DNA adducts. In the last years, some epidemiological studies were conducted on cancer patients aimed to evaluate the effects of AFB1 and AFM1 exposure on cancer cells in order to verify the correlation between toxin exposure and cancer cell proliferation and invasion. In this review, we summarize the activation pathways of AFB1 and AFM1 and the data already reported in literature about their correlation with cancer development and progression. Moreover, considering that few data are still reported about what genes/proteins/miRNAs can be used as damage markers due to AFB1 and AFM1 exposure, we performed a bioinformatic analysis based on interaction network and miRNA predictions to identify a panel of genes/proteins/miRNAs that can be used as targets in further studies for evaluating the effects of the damages induced by AFB1 and AFM1 and their capacity to induce cancer initiation.

To evaluate the effects of feeding a Hermetia illucens (HI) larvae meal on the different intestinal traits of hens, and to determine the toxic elements’ concentration in the insect meal and diets, 162 hens were randomly allotted to three groups. The control received a corn-soybean meal-based diet (SBM); the HI25 and HI50 groups received two diets in which the 25% and 50% of the dietary protein were replaced by the HI protein, respectively. The duodenal and jejunal villi height and villi/crypt were higher (p < 0.01) in the SBM than in the HI groups. The ileal villi height was higher (p < 0.05) in the SBM and HI25 groups than the HI50. The HI50 group exhibited a lower duodenal maltase activity. The intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP) activity linearly decreased in the duodenum and jejunum as the dietary insect meal inclusion increased. The HI50 group had a higher acetate and butyrate level than the SBM. The levels of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) in the diets and insect meal were lower than the maximum values established by the EU Commission. The 25% soybean protein replacement with Hermetia illucens larvae meal in the diet of laying hens was more suitable and closer to the optimal level than 50%.

This research aimed to evaluate the effects of the inclusion of honey bee pollen (HBP) in meagre (Argyrosoumus regius) juveniles’ diets on growth performance, diet digestibility, intestinal morphology, and immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, stress-related molecular markers and biochemical blood profile of fish were evaluated, together with mineral trace and toxic element concentration in pollen and diets. Specimens of meagre (360) of 3.34 ± 0.14 g initial body weight, were randomly allocated to twelve 500 L circular tanks (30 fish per tank). Four diets were formulated: a control diet and three experimental diets with 1%, 2.5%, and 4% of HBP inclusion. All the growth parameters and crude protein and ether extract digestibility coefficients were negatively linearly affected by increased HBP inclusion (p < 0.0001). Histology of medium intestine showed slight signs of alterations in group HPB1 and HPB2.5 compared to control. Fish from HBP4 group showed severe alterations at the intestinal mucosa level. Immunohistochemical detection of TNF-α in the medium intestine showed the presence of TNF-α+ cells in the lamina propria, which resulted in accordance with the increased level of the TNF-α protein detected by immunoblotting in the liver. This stress situation was confirmed by the increased hepatic level of HSP70 (p < 0.05) in fish fed the HBP4 diet and by the linear decrease of total serum protein levels in HBP-containing diets (p < 0.0001). These negative effects can be related to the ultrastructure of the bee pollen grain walls, which make the bioactive substances unavailable and can irritate the intestine of a carnivorous fish such as meagre.

This study assesses the PAH and heavy metal levels in muscle of warty crabs (Eriphia verrucosa), from the northern coast of the Campania region improving the data on toxic contaminants in this crustacean. The results showed a minimal PAH contamination; the mean concentrations were as follows: 0.2, 1.6 and 1.7 μg kg^-1 wet weight (ww) for BaP, PAH4 and PAH6, respectively. Regarding the levels of the two PAHs not included in the European regulations, the BkF mean concentration was 0.1 μg kg^-1 ww, while DahA was detected only in 10.7% of samples. Pb and Cr were also detected at low levels with mean values of 0.068 and 0.468 mg kg^-1 ww, respectively; instead, high As levels, with a mean value of 5.021 mg kg^-1 ww, were found. Considering the EWIs and the ILCRs calculated in this study, the PAH, Pb and Cr contamination levels found in the edible part of the crabs resulted safe for human consumption. Contrariwise, the ILCR calculated for the As exceeded the acceptable level of cancer risk, although the calculation did not refer to the inorganic form which is the only one recognized as carcinogenic. Hence, this study shows that warty crabs can accumulate environmental contaminants in their muscle tissue representing an important route of exposure to these toxics for the local population that regularly consumes them. This finding highlights the importance of monitoring the presence of these pollutants in crabs and in general in all fish and seafood in order to ensure food safety for consumers.

The aim of this study was to carry out a quali-quantitative analysis of the presence of non-essential and essential trace elements in freshwater crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) edible tissues to establish the healthiness of this product and to evaluate the pollution status of the sampling sites included in the present study. P. clarkii is one of the most common species of freshwater crustaceans in Italy, regularly consumed by local people. Moreover, the crayfish, due to its trophic position and diet, can be considered as an excellent bioindicator of the health status of the ecosystem. We collected sixty crayfish samples from two different sites in Campania (Italy): Villa Literno and Sessa Aurunca. Concentrations of trace elements were determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Our data showed low concentrations of Cd, Hg and Pb, with values below the European Commission MRL (Commission Regulation (EC) 1881/2006). We suggest that data obtained from this study showed that crayfish collected from Villa Literno and Sessa Aurunca were safe for human consumption. Furthermore, the results of this research indicated mild contamination of heavy metals of the sampling sites, indicating a good health status of the area’s aquatic ecosystem.

Hepatoblastoma incidence has been associated with different environmental factors even if no data are reported about a correlation between aflatoxin exposure and hepatoblastoma initiation. Considering that hepatoblastoma develops in infants and children and aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), the aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) hydroxylated metabolite, can be present in mothers’ milk and in marketed milk products, in this study we decided to test the effects of AFM1 on a hepatoblastoma cell line (HepG2). Firstly, we evaluated the effects of AFM1 on the cell viability, apoptosis, cell cycle, and metabolomic and cytokinomic profile of HepG2 cells after treatment. AFM1 induced: (1) a decrease of HepG2 cell viability, reaching IC₅₀ at 9 µM; (2) the blocking of the cell cycle in the G0/G1 phase; (3) the decrease of formiate levels and incremented level of some amino acids and metabolites in HepG2 cells after treatment; and (4) the increase of the concentration of three pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α, and the decrease of the anti-inflammatory interleukin, IL-4. Our results show that AFM1 inhibited the growth of HepG2 cells, inducing both a modulation of the lipidic, glycolytic, and amino acid metabolism and an increase of the inflammatory status of these cells.