Assessment of Aflatoxin Exposure among Indian PopulationSAnithaauthorWhat impact does dietary exposure to aflatoxins has on hepatocellular carcinoma in India? Assessing the connection between aflatoxin contamination in the diets, Hepatitis B virus infection and liver cirrhosis through Hospital based study in Andhra Pradesh, India Chronic exposure to aflatoxins was shown to cause impaired growth in children, immune suppression and liver cirrhosis, interference in micronutrient metabolism and reduced human and animal productivity. Acute severe intoxication can result in death. Most importantly, aflatoxin was shown to interact synergistically with Hepatitis B virus (HBV) / Hepatitis C virus infection. It increases the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most common cancers in the developing countries with >400,000 new cases per annum. A joint FAO and WHO committee concluded that reduced intake of aflatoxins in HBV endemic places will have a greater impact on reducing the incidence of HCC. This requires knowledge on the level of aflatoxin exposure in populations, dietary sources of contamination and household dietary practices leading to frequent food contamination in order to identify high risk groups and to develop preventive interventions to mitigate human exposure to aflatoxins. Aflatoxins in human body are metabolized by the liver enzymes and produces aflatoxin 8,9-epoxide, which reacts with albumin in the liver to form AFB1-albumin adducts that are major biomarkers found in peripheral blood. In order to protect human health it is important to be able to estimate aflatoxin-albumin adduct in human blood. Among many methods available for estimation immunochemical methods are simple, cost effective and adaptable to situations in developing countries. Hence this study is proposed to assess the aflatoxin exposure in Indian populations using ELISA which will lead to the development of preventive interventions to minimize the risk of liver disorders and HCC. This thesis is divided into 9 chapters containing subsections. Chapter 1 and chapter 2 contains the introduction and review of literature. Chapter 3 contains materials and methods for the development of antibodies to detect aflatoxin-albumin adduct in human blood samples. Chapter 4 contains Results. Chapter 5 and 6 contains discussion, summary and conclusion. Chapter 7 contains references, Chapter 8 contains appendix and Chapter 9 contains Annexure I, II and Master charts.Plant PathologyPlant VirologyAgriculture-Farming, Production, Technology, Economics2011Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences;Department of Medical OncologyThesis