after hydroxylation and conjugation. EC is also oxidized to
vinyl carbamate (0.5%) by cytochrome P-450 2E1 and further
converted into vinyl carbamate epoxide, which can
bind covalently to DNA, RNA and proteins. The carcinogenic
potential of EC includes gene mutations and DNA
damage. Animal studies have shown that EC causes an
increase in the incidence of tumors in several tissue sites
including lung, liver, and blood vessels (3-5). Consequently,
the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
classified EC as a possible human carcinogen (Group 2B)
in 1974 (6). Recently, IARC upgraded EC to a probable
human carcinogen (Group 2A) in 2007 (7). The concern
over the presence of EC and its toxicity in regularly consumed
food products and alcoholic beverages has raised
global interest to assess the possible risks to human health.
The Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health
Organization Expert Committee on Food Additive (JECFA)
evaluated the exposure to EC in 2005 and concluded that
the intake of EC from foods excluding alcoholic beverages
would be of low concern (8). However, when both alcoholic
beverages and foods were combined, its intake increased
about 4-fold and consequently posed potential carcinogenic