European country [59]. four. Final Remarks HBM has contributed to the availability of data related to COX-2 Modulator list exposure to mycotoxins in the Portuguese population. The identified exposure determinants may very well be the starting point for further research and well being promotion policies and applications, especially in population groups that had been located to be more often connected with larger exposure to mycotoxins. Among the quite a few mycotoxins that had been incorporated within the studies, OTA and AFs have been the predominant ones. A recent HBM study demonstrated infant exposure to OTA and AFs [60]. Certainly, some breastfed infants presented exposure levels to AFs that had been five occasions greater than the TDI value proposed in [36] (0.2 ng kg-1 b.w.), plus the mother’s consumption of chocolate and rice, a lower amount of education, and also the period when the samples have been collected (summer and at the beginning of lactation) were prospective determinants of exposure [28]. Serum concentrations of OTA were enhanced in rural populations in the central region of Portugal [54]. Furthermore, the offered evidence demonstrated a high exposure to urinary biomarker in residents from Alentejo area [56]. Despite the fact that to a lesser extent, the contribution of occupational exposure to mycotoxins was also demonstrated in distinct operating settings. Despite the Portuguese participation inside the European Human Biomonitoring Plan HBM4EU, the present study revealed the restricted nature of the existing information and facts concerning the evaluation of Portuguese exposure to the selected hazardous substances. The difficulty in mobilizing a representative sample (by gender, age, area, and informed agreement) to study a wide range of well being indicators and obtain far more robust final results was also identified as a limitation. This has not simply hindered an integrated view in the trouble, but has also hampered constant comparisons involving obtained results, ultimately resulting inside a difficulty in implementing policies primarily based on scientific proof. Therefore, much more HBM studies are necessary to better characterize Portuguese exposure towards the chosen health-hazardous contaminants/pollutants and compare the results with total exposure levels determined in other European populations. The paucity of precise and effectively validated biomarkers, too because the lack of data around the toxicokinetics that persist for these chemical substances, hinders objective risk assessments. Furthermore, for many chemicals, the lifetime health impacts connected with exposure stay unknown and guidance is largely missing. These limitations have been in line with all the mainMolecules 2022, 27,10 ofhurdles and challenges of HBM, contemplating the risk assessment of chemical compounds identified by EU and extra-EU regulators [3]. In spite in the recognized limitations, HBM tends to make it probable to CK2 Inhibitor review assess trends in temporal exposure, to characterize geographical patterns of exposure, evaluate diverse population groups, and recognize vulnerable subpopulations [7] to serve as the starting point for the implementation of preventive measures and assess the effectiveness of policy actions [93].Author Contributions: Conceptualization, A.P.; writing–original draft preparation, S.D., A.M.P.T.P., L.J.G.S., C.S.M.L. and M.O.; writing–review and editing, S.D., A.M.P.T.P., L.J.G.S., M.O., S.M. and also a.P.; supervision, A.P., C.L. and S.M.; funding acquisition, A.P., C.L. and S.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version with the manuscript. Funding: This work received financial sup