Effect of di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) on the fruit quality of cucumber and the health risk

Di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) widely used as plastic films' plasticizer, can cause agricultural pollution which is of increasing concern because of the food safety issues. Cucumber ( Cucumis sativus Linn.), commonly cultured in greenhouse, was exposed to DBP stress to gain more information about the ecological risk of DBP in this study. Changes of DBP residues and fruit quality of cucumber at different DBP concentrations (0, 5, 10, 20, 40 mg/kg of dry soil) were investigated in pot experiments using an agricultural soil under greenhouse condition, respectively. DBP residue in cucumber fruits ranged from 0.5326 to 1.8938 mg/kg, and the quality of cucumber fruits (organic acids, vitamin C, soluble protein, and soluble sugar) were influenced by DBP stress. Moreover, the health risk assessment was evaluated by estimate daily intakes (EDI) and the target hazard quotient (THQ) was analyzed. Under 40 mg/kg DBP condition, the highest value of EDI was 2.49 mu g/kg bw/day and the THQ ranged from 0.000700 to 0.0249. Although the risk of DBP in cucumber fruits was lower than the threshold limit value of risk, the potential health risk was not a negligible issue.