Investigation of aflatoxin M1 levels in milk samples consumed in The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

AFM1 is the hydroxylated metabolite of AFB1, which is formed in the liver by cytochrome P450 enzymes and can be secreted into the urine, feces and milk of mammals. Since AFM1 is a carcinogenic, cytotoxic, teratogenic, mutagenic and genotoxic agent, it poses a significant health risk to both humans and animals.This study was conducted to determine the presence of AFM1 in raw and UHT cow milk consumed in the TRNC and to determine whether it poses a risk to public health. In the survey, a total of 20 UHT cow milk samples from 2 milk brands produced in the TRNC and offered for consumption in the market and 22 raw cow milk samples collected from the different dairies were analyzed for the presence of AFM1 by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-fluorescence detection after immunoaffinity cleanup. AFM1 could not be detected in any of the analyzed raw and UHT cow milk samples. The LOD and LOQ values of the HPLC-FLD method were 1.038 and 3.145 μg L-1, respectively. The mean recovery and repeatability values of the method, which obtained by spiking and analyzing blank samples at three fortification levels were 95.6% and 4.9%, respectively. These values prove the reliability of the method. Although AFM1 content in milk samples consumed in the TRNC does not pose a significant risk to public health, continuous monitoring of more milk samples and animal feed is necessary to reduce possible consumer exposure.