Abstract Aflatoxins are mainly produced by certain strains of Aspergillus flavus , which are found in diverse agricultural crops. In many lower-income countries, aflatoxins pose serious public health issues since the occurrence of these toxins can be considerably common and even extreme. Aflatoxins can negatively affect health of livestock and poultry due to contaminated feeds. Additionally, they significantly limit the development of international trade as a result of strict regulation in high-value markets. Due to their high stability, aflatoxins are not only a problem during cropping, but also during storage, transport, processing, and handling steps. Consequently, innovative evidence-based technologies are urgently required to minimize aflatoxin exposure. Thus far, biological control has been developed as the most innovative potential technology of controlling aflatoxin contamination in crops, which uses competitive exclusion of toxigenic strains by non-toxigenic ones. This technology is commercially applied in groundnuts maize, cottonseed, and pistachios during pre-harvest stages. Some other effective technologies such as irradiation, ozone fumigation, chemical and biological control agents, and improved packaging materials can also minimize post-harvest aflatoxins contamination in agricultural products. However, integrated adoption of these pre- and post-harvest technologies is still required for sustainable solutions to reduce aflatoxins contamination, which enhances food security, alleviates malnutrition, and strengthens economic sustainability.
#1Abigael O Awuor(CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)H-Index: 1
#2Ellen E. Yard(CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)H-Index: 29
Last. Lauren Lewis(CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)H-Index: 15
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ABSTRACTAcute aflatoxin exposure can cause death and disease (aflatoxicosis) in humans. Aflatoxicosis fatality rates have been documented to be as high as 40% in Kenya. The inclusion in the diet of calcium silicate 100 (ACCS100), a calcium montmorillonite clay, may reduce aflatoxin bioavailability, thus potentially decreasing the risk of aflatoxicosis. We investigated the efficacy, acceptability and palatability of ACCS100 in a population in Kenya with recurring aflatoxicosis outbreaks. Healthy ...
Last. Peter J. Cotty(UA: University of Arizona)H-Index: 60
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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF); United States Agency for International Development (USAID); Bundesministerium fur wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung (BMZ, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development); AgResults; MycoRed; CGIAR A4NH Research Program; CGIAR MAIZE Research Program; Meridian Institute on behalf of the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA); United States Department of Agriculture - Foreign Agricultural Service; Austrian Developmen...
Last. Giuseppe Meca(University of Valencia)H-Index: 25
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Abstract Food spoilage caused by mycotoxigenic fungi represents an important food safety problem. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are used as starter cultures in a larger number of food products. In this study, 16 strains of LAB were cultivated in MRS broth under anaerobiosis. Then, cell free supernatants were obtained by centrifugation and their antifungal activity against Aspergillus parasiticus and Penicillium expansum was tested using the disc-diffusion method. Furthermore, the LABs that showed i...
#2Keliani Bordin(PUCPR: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná)H-Index: 12
Last. Giuseppe Meca(University of Valencia)H-Index: 25
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Abstract Aflatoxins (AFs) are mycotoxins produced mainly by the molds Aspergillus flavus , Aspergillus parasiticus and A . nomius . These mycotoxins are contaminants of cereals. AFB 1 , the most abundant and toxic metabolite, is known to cause several toxic responses, such as hepatotoxicity, teratogenicity and mutagenicity. Isothiocyanates (ITCs) are natural compounds produced by the enzymatic hydrolysis of glucosinolates (GLs), which have shown potent antimicrobial activity in food applications...
Abstract This study was designed to determine if a calcium montmorillonite clay (Novasil Plus, NSP), can significantly reduce aflatoxin M 1 (AFM 1 ) concentrations in milk without affecting dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield, milk composition, vitamin A, or riboflavin concentrations. The study was designed using 15 lactating dairy cows randomly assigned to one of 5 treatment groups in a 5 × 5 Latin square experimental design. The cows were treated with diets containing AFB 1 at 0 or 121 ppb and...
Abstract The degradation of aflatoxins AFB1, AFB2, AFG1 and AFG2 after treatment of their solutions in triple distilled water with ozone was studied and the ability of ozone, even at low concentrations, to degrade aflatoxins was proved. Ozone concentrations of 8.5, 13.5, 20, 25 and 40 ppm were applied at different temperatures on aflatoxin solutions in triple distilled water of 10 ppb and 2 ppb and the complete and rapid elimination of AFB1 and AFG1 was observed while AFB2 and AFG2 remain more o...
An estimated 500 million of the poorest people in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and Asia are exposed to mycotoxins at levels that substantially increase mortality and morbidity (Pitt et al., 2012). The problem is not newly recognized. Shortly after the discovery of aflatoxins, the impact on child health was brought into immediate focus. After the reporting of several deaths in children in Africa due to consumption of aflatoxin- contaminated meal, a decision was made in 1966 by the FAO/WHO/ ...
Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze the possible utilization of flavanones obtained as by-products of the citrus industry, naringin (NAR), hesperidin (HES) and neohesperidin (NEO), to inhibit the production of aflatoxins (AFs) from Aspergillus flavus. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was applied to optimize experimental conditions in terms of the different flavanones concentrations used. Through this methodology these optimal combinations were calculated: HES-NAR: 0.206–0.037 mM, HES...
#1Bei Wang(UC Davis: University of California, Davis)H-Index: 14
#2Noreen Mahoney(ARS: Agricultural Research Service)H-Index: 30
Last. Liming Zhao(ECUST: East China University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 13
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Abstract Aflatoxins primarily accumulate in the hull and bran layers of rough rice making these by-products of rice milling unsuitable for animal feed or human consumption. Contaminated rough rice is also a potential source of aflatoxin exposure to workers handling the grain during post-harvest storage and processing. Currently, no technologies are available to remove or detoxify these toxic and mutagenic fungal metabolites from contaminated rough rice. Pulsed light (PL) is a novel technology wi...
The effects of chemical, physical, and cooking treatments on the reduction of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), B2, G1, and G2 in soybean matrix were investigated. A HPLC-FLD with a Kobra cell system was used for the quantitative analysis of aflatoxins (AFs). To decrease the level of AFs during the soaking process, the contaminated soybeans were submerged in organic acid solutions. The reduction rates of AFB1 in 1.0 N citric acid, lactic acid, succinic acid, and tartaric acid for 18 h were 94.1%, 92.7%, 62.0...
Abstract The spatiotemporal trends in aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), fumonisin B1 (FB1), and deoxynivalenol (DON) accumulation were analyzed in a range of food commodities (maize, groundnut, pearl millet, rice, and wheat) in village settings in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, India. Samples (n = 1549) were collected across six communities and six time points spanning a calendar year and were analyzed for mycotoxins using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. AFB1 and FB1 were common across surveyed villages, with mod...
The use of microorganisms for Aflatoxin B1 elimination has been studied as a new alternative tool and it is known that cell wall carried out a critical role. For that reason, cell wall and soluble intracellular fraction of eight yeasts with AFB1 detoxification capability were analysed. The quantitative and qualitative comparative label-free proteomic allowed the identification of diverse common constituent proteins, which revealed that putative cell wall proteins entailed less than 10% of the to...
Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a potent carcinogenic mycotoxin that contaminates numerous crops pre- and post-harvest. To protect foods and feeds from such toxins without resorting to pesticides, the use of plant extracts has been increasingly studied. The most interesting candidate plants are those with strong antioxidative activity because oxidation reactions may interfere with AFB1 production. The present study investigates how an aqueous extract of Mimosa tenuiflora bark affects both the growth of A...
#2C. Kwoseh(KNUST: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 6
Last. Dirk E. Maier(Iowa State University)H-Index: 4
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The study was undertaken to identify the major mycotoxigenic fungi, aflatoxin and fumonisin levels in prepared poultry feeds in Ghana. Three hundred and fifty (350) prepared feed samples were randomly collected from 133 commercial poultry farms, 76 feed processors and eight (8) feed vendors in three major poultry producing regions of Ghana over two seasons. Fungi were isolated using the serial dilution method on potato dextrose agar and identified using standard methods of identification. Total ...
Abstract Grains are susceptible to contamination by molds; some cause spoilage and others produce certain mycotoxins that cause a serious health threat to humans and animals. Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus ochraceus and their mycotoxins, aflatoxins and ochratoxin A, are natural contaminants of various agricultural commodities. Control of these molds and their mycotoxins in food commodities is of utmost importance; therefore, the target of this research was to explore the effects of gamma irr...
Abstract Magnetic graphene oxide/TiO2(MGO/TiO2) nanocomposite was synthesized for the reduction of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in corn oil. The photodegradation of synthesized nanocomposites on AFB1 in corn oil under different treatment conditions and its effect on the quality of corn oil were investigated. The doping of magnetic GO effectively enhanced the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 both under UV light and visible light. The reduction of AFB1 in corn oil reached 96.4% after illumination for 120 mi...
India is the largest jute and fifth largest maize producing country in the world. In India maize is commonly stored and transported in jute bags which are used multiple times. Aflatoxin contaminati...
The effectiveness of a UV-A light emitting diode system (LED) to reduce the concentrations of aflatoxin B1, aflatoxin M1 (AFB1, AFM1) in whole milk (WM) was investigated. Irradiation experiments were conducted using an LED system operating at 365 nm. Known concentrations of aflatoxins were spiked in WM and irradiated at quantified UV doses which was calculated based on the average volumetric intensity. LC-MS/MS product ion scans were used to identify and semi-quantify photodegraded products of A...
Aflatoxins (AFs) are among the most harmful fungal secondary metabolites imposing serious health risks on both household animals and humans. The more frequent occurrence of aflatoxins in the feed and food chain is clearly foreseeable as a consequence of the extreme weather conditions recorded most recently worldwide. Furthermore, production parameters, such as unadjusted variety use and improper cultural practices, can also increase the incidence of contamination. In current aflatoxin control me...