Research Publications (Food Safety)

Abstract Aflatoxin and other mycotoxin contamination are major threats to global food security and present an urgent need to secure the global food crop against spoilage by mycotoxigenic fungi. Cocoa material is noted for naturally low aflatoxin contamination. This study was designed to assess the potential for harnessing cocoa‐associated filamentous fungi for the biocontrol of aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus.

Abstract The province of Isabela is the top maize producer in the Philippines. The intensive cultivation and the tropical climate in the region may favour fungal growth and aflatoxin contamination in maize grains. Thus, the study aimed to determine the occurrence of aflatoxin and mycotoxigenic Aspergillus species in maize varieties in this region.

Abstract BACKGROUND Mycotoxins contamination in food and feed has emerged as an issue of serious concern because they pose serious health risks to both humans and livestock. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of two rumen‐derived Enterococcus spp. on fermentation and hygienic quality of artificially contaminated corn silages.

Magnetic nanoporous materials represent a new emerging category of magnetic materials for construction of magnetic resonance sensors. In this study, we adopted the metal–organic framework materials, MIL-101(Fe), as the precursor to prepare series nanoporous-carbon-Fe3O4 (NPC-Fe3O4) composites.

Mycotoxins are natural food and feed contaminants produced by several molds. The primary mode of exposure in humans and animals is through mixtures. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and sterigmatocystin (STER) are structurally related mycotoxins that share the same biosynthetic route. Few in vivo genotoxicity assays have been performed with STER.

A systematic study was carried out on 638 wheat and paddy grains (including fresh and stored samples) collected in 2021 from Shanghai, China, to identify the major mycobiota and their toxigenic abilities. A total of 349 fungi, namely, 252 Fusarium, 53 Aspergillus, and 44 Alternaria, were characterized by morphological and molecular identification.

Aflatoxins are potent carcinogenic compounds, mainly produced by fungi species of the genus Aspergillus in the soil. Because of their stability, they are difficult to remove completely, even under extreme conditions. Aflatoxin contamination is one of the main causes of safety in peanuts, maize, wheat and other agricultural products. Aflatoxin contamination originates from the soil.

The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of early harvest in preventing aflatoxins in peanuts under drought-stress conditions. A field experiment was conducted on the 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 growing seasons in a greenhouse with an irrigation system to induce three drought stress conditions: no stress, mild, and severe stress. In addition, three harvest dates were proposed: two weeks earlier, one week earlier, and ideal harvest time.

Aflatoxins and fumonisins, commonly found in maize and maize-derived products, frequently co-occur and can cause dangerous illness in humans and animals if ingested in large amounts. Efforts are being made to develop suitable analytical methods for screening that can rapidly detect mycotoxins in order to prevent illness through early detection.

Introduction Arecae semen, which is derived from the dried ripe seed of Areca catechu L., has been commonly used as one of the major traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). Three types of crude herbal preparations, namely, raw Arecae semen (AS), Arecae semen tostum (SAS), and Arecae semen carbonisata (FAS), are available for different clinical applications in TCMs.

Aflatoxin (AF) contamination, caused by Aspergillus flavus, compromises the food safety and marketability of commodities, such as maize, cotton, peanuts, and tree nuts. Multigenic inheritance of AF resistance impedes conventional introgression of resistance traits into high-yielding commercial maize varieties. Several AF resistance-associated quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and markers have been reported from multiple biparental mapping and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in maize.

Aflatoxin is the most common type of mycotoxins in contaminated corn, peanuts and rice, which affects the livestock and ultimately endangers human health.

Sample homogeneity dictates whether analyzing a test portion of an entire sample can provide representative information about incurred mycotoxins. In this study, we evaluated particle-size-distribution-based homogeneity of laboratory mycotoxin samples using laser diffraction particle size analysis and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Guide 35: 2017.

Journal of Separation Science, EarlyView. In this study, for the first time, a deep eutectic solvent-based microwave-assisted extraction was combined with ionic liquid–based temperature controlled liquid phase microextraction for the extraction of several aflatoxins from cheese samples.

Cereal-based products, nuts and dried fruits are staple foods for the Algerian population. However, these foodstuffs may be sources of harmful mycotoxins, with negative impacts on human health.

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), a potent food-borne hepatocarcinogen, is the most toxic aflatoxin that induces liver injury in humans and animals. Species-specific sensitivities of aflatoxins cannot be fully explained by differences in the metabolism of AFB1 between animal species. The gut microbiota are critical in inflammatory liver injury, but it remains to reveal the role of gut microbiota in AFB1-induced liver injury. Here, mice were gavaged with AFB1 for 28 days.

The presence of mycotoxins in meat and meat products can result from contaminated feed carry-over, from contamination with toxigenic molds during processing and storage, and from contaminated spices and ingredients. The occurrence of mycotoxins in dry fermented sausage is described worldwide; however, scarce information is available for Brazilian products.

This study proposes a novel qualitative and quantitative analysis method for wheat mildew degree and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) by microwave detection technology combined with multi-task learning strategy. The team developed a miniaturized microwave detection device with double heterodyne mixing structure, and used this device to obtain the transmission indexes (amplitude and phase) of moldy wheat samples.

Introduction

Aflatoxins (AFT) identified as a Group 1 human carcinogen naturally contaminate various types of food and could increase the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) through dietary intake. Chongqing municipality is located in Southwest China with subtropical monsoon climate which is conducive to AFT contamination in crops. However, the burden of HCC caused by the dietary exposure of the population in Chongqing to AFT has not been quantified.

Methods

Physical adsorbents for detoxification are widely used in vegetable oil industry. So far, the high-efficiency and low-cost adsorbents have not been well explored. Here, a hierarchical fungal mycelia@graphene oxide@Fe3O4 (FM@GO@Fe3O4) was fabricated as an efficient adsorbent for simultaneous removal of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and zearalenone (ZEN). The morphological, functional and structural characteristics of the prepared adsorbents were systematic investigated.

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of a feed additive containing bentonite and enzymatically hydrolyzed yeast on the intestinal health and growth of newly weaned pigs under chronic dietary exposure to fumonisin and aflatoxin.

Due to the impact of the climate change on mycotoxins production and their occurrence in foods, it is important to consider the potential accumulation of unexpected mycotoxins in matrices susceptible to be contaminated such as apples. In this regard, a fit-for-purpose LC–MS/MS method to determine co-occurring mycotoxins in apple purees has been proposed, considering the fungal profile isolated from stored apple fruits.

Peanut seeds are susceptible to Aspergillus flavus infection, which has a severe impact on the peanut industry and human health. However, the molecular mechanism underlying this defense remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to analyze the changes in differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differential metabolites during A. flavus infection between Zhonghua 6 and Yuanza 9102 by transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis.

A dose-response assay in a central composite design platform was conducted to investigate the responses (performance, immunity, and meat quality) of quail chicks to dietary tryptophan (Trp), melatonin (MEL), and N,N-dimethylglycine (DMG) exposed to aflatoxin B1&nbsp

Aspergillus flavus is a major aflatoxin B1, posing significant health concerns to humans, crops, and producer fungi. Due to the undesirable consequences of the usage of synthetic fungicides, biological control using yeasts has gained more attention. In this study, eight isolates of epiphytic yeasts belonging to Moesziomyces sp., Meyerozyma sp.