Occurrence of ochratoxin A in feline kidneys and pet foods for cats

Introduction The aim of this work was to detect the ochratoxin A content of pet foods for cats as well as the exposure of feline kidneys. Furthermore a possible correlation between ochratoxin A (OTA)-content in the kidney and pathological changes of the kidney should be established. Material and methods In total, 101 feline kidneys and 55 pet foods for cats were investigated to determine OTA contents. Immuno-affinity columns were used for sample clean-ups and High Performance Liquid Chromatography was used for OTA analysis. Results The underlying samples showed 39 kidneys with positive OTA contents, the range of contents amounted from 0.11 - 5.18 mu g/kg original substance. 14 pet foods out of 55 (40 wet feed, 10 dry feed, 5 wet diets) showed positive levels of OTA in a range between 0.31 - 2.41 mu g/kg dry substance. No significant correlation between the occurrence of OTA in feline kidneys and pertinent pathological changes could be established. In 74.5% of the pet food samples for cats OTA was not detected. Only low contents were found in the remaining 25.5%. Conclusion These OTA concentrations are far below the threshold values for human food. Therefore, to a large extend OTA can be ruled out as a cause of renal diseases in Austrian cats. No data exist about the risk of a long term exposure and its effects on cat's health so far and for clarification further investigations would be necessary.