Genotoxicity assessment of deoxynivalenol in the Caco-2 cell line model using the Comet assay.

The genotoxic risk associated with deoxynivalenol (DON), a prevalent trichothecene mycotoxin which contaminates cereal-based products has not yet been deeply explored. In this work, the alkaline version of the Comet assay was used to evaluate DNA damage stemming from DON exposure in both dividing and differentiated Caco-2 cells, an epithelial intestinal cell line. To avoid false positive results, cytotoxic and apoptotic thresholds were firstly established using the MTS and neutral red assays and the Hoestch staining method, respectively.