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Hergueta‐Castillo ME, López‐Ruiz R, Garrido Frenich A, Romero‐González R. Characterization of the composition of plant protection products in different formulation types employing suspect screening and unknown approaches. JOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE 2022; 102:5995-6004. [PMID: 35451129 PMCID: PMC9543817 DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.11952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2022] [Revised: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Plant protection products (PPPs) are used extensively in agriculture to control crops. These PPPs, which may be found in different types of formulations, are composed of a designated pesticide (active principle) and other inactive ingredients as co-formulants. They perform specific functions in the formulation, as solvents, preservatives or antifreeze agents, among others. RESULTS A research technique based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled to a Quadrupole-Orbitrap mass analyzer was successfully applied to characterize the composition of six different PPPs in terms of the presence of co-formulants and types of formulations: emulsifiable concentrate (EC), emulsion in water (EW), suspension concentrate and water-dispersible granule. These PPPs (FLINT MAX, MASSOCUR 12.5 EC, IMPACT EVO, TOPAS, LATINO and IMPALA STAR) had antifungal activity, containing one triazole compound as active principle (tebuconazole, penconazole, myclobutanil, flutriafol or fenbuconazole, respectively). Non-targeted approaches, applying suspect and unknown analysis, were carried out and ten compounds were identified as potential co-formulants. Six (glyceryl monostearate, 1-monopalmitin, dimethyl sulfoxide, N,N-dimethyldecanamide, hexaethylene glycol and 1,2-benzisothiazol-3(2H)-one) were confirmed by injecting analytical standards. Finally, these compounds were quantified in the PPPs. CONCLUSION The current study allowed for detecting co-formulants in a wide range of concentrations, between 0.04 (dimethyl sulfoxide) and 19.00 g L-1 (glyceryl monostearate), highlighting the feasibility of the proposed analytical methodology. Moreover, notable differences among the types of formulations of PPPs were achieved, revealing that EC and EW were the formulations that contained the largest number of co-formulants (four out of six detected compounds). © 2022 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Elena Hergueta‐Castillo
- Department of Chemistry and Physics (Analytical Chemistry Area)Research Centre for Mediterranean Intensive Agrosystems and Agri‐Food Biotechnology (CIAIMBITAL), Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, University of AlmeríaAlmeríaSpain
| | - Rosalía López‐Ruiz
- Department of Chemistry and Physics (Analytical Chemistry Area)Research Centre for Mediterranean Intensive Agrosystems and Agri‐Food Biotechnology (CIAIMBITAL), Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, University of AlmeríaAlmeríaSpain
| | - Antonia Garrido Frenich
- Department of Chemistry and Physics (Analytical Chemistry Area)Research Centre for Mediterranean Intensive Agrosystems and Agri‐Food Biotechnology (CIAIMBITAL), Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, University of AlmeríaAlmeríaSpain
| | - Roberto Romero‐González
- Department of Chemistry and Physics (Analytical Chemistry Area)Research Centre for Mediterranean Intensive Agrosystems and Agri‐Food Biotechnology (CIAIMBITAL), Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, University of AlmeríaAlmeríaSpain
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Karaca M, Fischer BC, Willenbockel CT, Tralau T, Marx-Stoelting P, Bloch D. Effects of co-formulants on the absorption and secretion of active substances in plant protection products in vitro. Arch Toxicol 2021; 95:3205-3221. [PMID: 34417632 PMCID: PMC8448693 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-021-03140-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Currently, the authorisation process for plant protection products (PPPs) relies on the testing of acute and topological toxicity only. Contrastingly, the evaluation of active substances includes a more comprehensive set of toxicity studies. Nevertheless, mixture effects of active ingredients and co-formulants may result in increased toxicity. Therefore, we investigated effects of surface active co-formulants on the toxicity of two PPPs focussing on qualitative and quantitative toxicokinetic effects on absorption and secretion. The respective products are based on the active substances abamectin and fluroxypyr-meptyl and were tested for cytotoxicity in the presence or absence of the corresponding surfactants and co-formulants using Caco-2 cells. In addition, the effect of co-formulants on increased cellular permeation was quantified using LC-MS/MS, while potential kinetic mixture effects were addressed by fluorescence anisotropy measurements and ATPase assays. The results show that surface active co-formulants significantly increase the cytotoxicity of the investigated PPPs, leading to more than additive mixture effects. Moreover, analytical investigations show higher efflux ratios of both active substances and the metabolite fluroxypyr upon combination with certain concentrations of the surfactants. The results further point to a significant and concentration-dependent inhibition of Pgp transporters by most of the surfactants as well as to increased membrane fluidity. Altogether, these findings strongly support the hypothesis that surfactants contribute to increased cytotoxicity of PPPs and do so by increasing the bioavailability of the respective active substances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mawien Karaca
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany.,Institute for Chemistry, Technical University of Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 115, 10623, Berlin, Germany
| | - Benjamin Christian Fischer
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Christian Tobias Willenbockel
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Tewes Tralau
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Philip Marx-Stoelting
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany. .,Institute for Chemistry, Technical University of Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 115, 10623, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Denise Bloch
- Department of Pesticides Safety, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
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Lichtenstein D, Mentz A, Sprenger H, Schmidt FF, Albaum SP, Kalinowski J, Planatscher H, Joos TO, Poetz O, Braeuning A. A targeted transcriptomics approach for the determination of mixture effects of pesticides. Toxicology 2021; 460:152892. [PMID: 34371104 DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2021.152892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Revised: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
While real-life exposure occurs to complex chemical mixtures, toxicological risk assessment mostly focuses on individual compounds. There is an increasing demand for in vitro tools and strategies for mixture toxicity analysis. Based on a previously established set of hepatotoxicity marker genes, we analyzed mixture effects of non-cytotoxic concentrations of different pesticides in exposure-relevant binary mixtures in human HepaRG hepatocarcinoma cells using targeted transcriptomics. An approach for mixture analysis at the level of a complex endpoint such as a transcript pattern is presented, including mixture design based on relative transcriptomic potencies and similarities. From a mechanistic point of view, goal of the study was to evaluate combinations of chemicals with varying degrees of similarity in order to determine whether differences in mechanisms of action lead to different mixtures effects. Using a model deviation ratio-based approach for assessing mixture effects, it was revealed that most data points are consistent with the assumption of dose addition. A tendency for synergistic effects was only observed at high concentrations of some combinations of the test compounds azoxystrobin, cyproconazole, difenoconazole, propiconazole and thiacloprid, which may not be representative of human real-life exposure. In summary, the findings of our study suggest that, for the pesticide mixtures investigated, risk assessment based on the general assumption of dose addition can be considered sufficiently protective for consumers. The way of data analysis presented in this paper can pave the way for a more comprehensive use of multi-gene expression data in experimental studies related to mixture toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dajana Lichtenstein
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Berlin, Germany
| | - Almut Mentz
- University of Bielefeld, CeBiTec, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Heike Sprenger
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Berlin, Germany
| | - Felix F Schmidt
- NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tuebingen/Reutlingen, Germany; Signatope GmbH, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Thomas O Joos
- NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tuebingen/Reutlingen, Germany; Signatope GmbH, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany
| | - Oliver Poetz
- NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tuebingen/Reutlingen, Germany; Signatope GmbH, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany
| | - Albert Braeuning
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Berlin, Germany.
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Lichtenstein D, Lasch A, Alarcan J, Mentz A, Kalinowski J, Schmidt FF, Pötz O, Marx-Stoelting P, Braeuning A. An eight-compound mixture but not corresponding concentrations of individual chemicals induces triglyceride accumulation in human liver cells. Toxicology 2021; 459:152857. [PMID: 34273450 DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2021.152857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 06/24/2021] [Accepted: 07/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
In real life, organisms are exposed to complex mixtures of chemicals at low concentration levels, whereas research on toxicological effects is mostly focused on single compounds at comparably high doses. Mixture effects deviating from the assumption of additivity, especially synergistic effects, are of concern. In an adverse outcome pathway (AOP)-guided manner, we analyzed the accumulation of triglycerides in human HepaRG liver cells by a mixture of eight steatotic chemicals (amiodarone, benzoic acid, cyproconazole, flusilazole, imazalil, prochloraz, propiconazole and tebuconazole), each present below its individual effect concentration at 1-3 μM. Pronounced and significantly enhanced triglyceride accumulation was observed with the mixture, and similar effects were seen at the level of pregnane-X-receptor activation, a molecular initiating event leading to hepatic steatosis. Transcript pattern analysis indicated subtle pro-steatotic changes at low compound concentrations, which did not exert measurable effects on cellular triglycerides. Mathematical modeling of mixture effects indicated potentially more than additive behavior using a model for compounds with similar modes of action. The present data underline the usefulness of AOP-guided in vitro testing for the identification of mixture effects and highlight the need for further research on chemical mixtures and harmonization of data interpretation of mixture effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dajana Lichtenstein
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Max-Dohrn-Str. 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Alexandra Lasch
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Pesticides Safety, Max-Dohrn-Str. 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jimmy Alarcan
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Max-Dohrn-Str. 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Almut Mentz
- University of Bielefeld, CeBiTec, Universitätsstr. 27, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Jörn Kalinowski
- University of Bielefeld, CeBiTec, Universitätsstr. 27, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Felix F Schmidt
- NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tübingen, Markwiesenstraße 55, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany; Signatope GmbH, Markwiesenstraße 55, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany
| | - Oliver Pötz
- NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tübingen, Markwiesenstraße 55, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany; Signatope GmbH, Markwiesenstraße 55, 72770, Reutlingen, Germany
| | - Philip Marx-Stoelting
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Pesticides Safety, Max-Dohrn-Str. 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany
| | - Albert Braeuning
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Dept. Food Safety, Max-Dohrn-Str. 8-10, 10589, Berlin, Germany.
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Duke SO. A Journal of the Plague Year. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2021; 77:9-11. [PMID: 33289934 DOI: 10.1002/ps.6175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
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Duke SO. Pest management diversity from the 14th International Union of Pure and Applied Chemists (IUPAC) International Congress of Crop Protection Chemistry. PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE 2020; 76:3309-3310. [PMID: 32909393 DOI: 10.1002/ps.6044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
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