Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Grilled Meats from Restaurants

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are a group of lipophilic compounds that can be generated during the preparation of food items at elevated temperatures. They are regarded as potentially genotoxic and carcinogenic to human beings, related to increased incidence of breast and colo-rectal cancers, oxidative DNA injury, and bad effects on children neuro-differentiation, and thus considered of public health concern. The samples were extracted by magnesium sulfate and sodium acetate in acetonitrile, then purified in magnesium sulfate, primary secondary amine and silica gel, and finally measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). A total of thirty samples of grilled beef steak, beef kofta and chicken (ten each) were collected from different restaurants. Benzo[a]pyrene was recorded with the highest average level (3.63µg/kg) in grilled kofta samples, but it was not detected in chicken samples. On the other hand, PAH4, PAH8 and ƩPAHs content were more abundant in grilled beef steak (5.32, 9.97 and 56.91µg/kg), meanwhile they recorded the least concentrations in grilled chicken from different restaurants. Furthermore, benzo[a]pyrene exceeded the permissible limits of European Commission and Egyptian National Food Safety Authority in grilled kofta samples, further studies are needed to investigate the limits of exposure to these harmful compounds from meats and other food items.