Research Publications (Food Safety)

Mycotoxins are difficult to monitor continuously, and a tool to assess the risk would help to judge if there is a particular risk due to the inclusion of certain feed ingredients. For this, the toxin contents of 97 commercial fish feeds have been estimated, and the most prominent toxins in fish feed are calculated to be deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, fumonisins and enniatins.

Zearalenone (ZEN) is a non-steroidal estrogenic mycotoxin produced by Fusarium fungi. ZEN has endocrine disruptor effects and could impair the hormonal balance. Here, we aimed at investigating possible effects of ZEN on metabolism-related pathways and its relation to epigenetic mechanisms in breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7) and breast epithelial (MCF10F) cells.

The aims of this study were to analyse the occurrence of aflatoxins, aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), fumonisins, ochratoxin A (OTA), patulin (PAT), zearalenone (ZEN) and deoxynivalenol (DON) in foodstuffs consumed in Chile between 2008 and 2017 and to estimate the contribution of main contaminated foodstuff in human exposure by the probable daily intake (PDI) estimation.

Edible insects as additional food and/or feed source may represent one important component to solve the problem of food security for a growing human population. Especially for covering the rising demand for protein of animal origin, seven insect species currently allowed as feed constituents in the European Union are gaining more interest. However, before considering insects such as yellow mealworm larvae (Tenebrio molitor) as suitable for, e.g.

Aquaculture has been a growing sector of food production worldwide in the last decades, and now starts to include new, unconventional species from the Phylum Echinodermata, such as sea urchin (Paracentrotus lividus) and sea cucumber (Holothuria tubulosa). However, little is known in this context with regard to food safety aspects arising from toxigenic fungi.

This work characterizes the adsorption of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), ochratoxin A (OTA), and zearalenone (ZEN) by dry micronized olive pomace (OliPom) and grape stems (GrapStem). Their performance was compared with that of three other materials, activated carbon (ActCarb), bentonite (Bent), and a commercial product (ComProd). Experiments were conducted in vitro at several pH values using buffer solutions.

The ability of several chelating mycotoxins to form coordination complexes with the lanthanide metals europium and terbium was explored. The mycotoxins examined included ochratoxin A, citrinin, cyclopiazonic acid (CPA), kojic acid, and tenuazonic acid (TeA). Of these compounds, TeA and CPA resulted in the greatest luminescence. Parameters influencing luminescence of TeA were investigated further.

Recently, it was reported that ochratoxin A (OTA) mycotoxin, produced by a number of Aspergillus and Penicillium fungal species, may cause neuropsychological impairment or mental and emotional disorders but the mechanism of neurotoxicity remains unknown. Adverse effects of OTA in human (SHSY5Y) and mouse (HT22) neuronal cell lines were studied in vitro.

The objectives of the present work were to survey, for the first time, the contamination of Portuguese fresh and dry-cured meat products with ochratoxin A (OTA) and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), and to determine the fungi potentially responsible for this contamination. A total of 128 samples including pork fresh legs, dry-cured legs and shoulders, as well as goat and sheep dry-cured legs were analysed. Mycological analysis of these samples yielded a total of 630 fungal isolates.

Canadian oat harvest samples, deliveries to processors, and train shipments from primary elevators were collected from mid-2014 through mid-2017 and analyzed for 26 mycotoxins and the fungal biomarker ergosterol. Of the 26 mycotoxins, 7 were not detected in any sample. The most frequently measured mycotoxins were beauvericin (in over 95% of samples analyzed), followed by tentoxin, culmorin, alternariol, alternariol methyl ether, and deoxynivalenol.

Essential oils (EOs) are products of plant origin and include mixtures of different chemical compounds. These volatile substances have many interesting properties, including antifungal properties. Fungi may develop under field conditions on crops such as wheat or corn and are able to synthesize mycotoxins, which adversely affect livestock and human health. In the present study, selected EOs were used to inhibit the growth of Fusarium graminearum and F.

Author(s): Hiram A. Wall-Martínez, Xenia Pascari, Aleix Bigordà, Antonio J. Ramos, Sonia Marín, Vicente Sanchis

Author(s): M. Rodríguez-Blanco, A.J. Ramos, V. Sanchis, S. Marín

Author(s): Mohamed Hamdi, Hend Bejaoui, Jorge Sá-Morais, Paula Rodrigues

Author(s): Carolina Fernanda Sengling Cebin Coppa, Amin Mousavi Khaneghah, Paula Alvito, Ricardo Assunção, Carla Martins, Ismail Eş, Bruna Leonel Gonçalves, Diane Valganon de Neeff, Anderson S. Sant'Ana, Carlos Humberto Corassin, Carlos Augusto Fernandes Oliveira

Author(s): M.P. Thanushree, D. Sailendri, K.S. Yoha, J.A. Moses, C. Anandharamakrishnan

Abstract

Background

Among several food and agricultural commodities, spices are valued for their characteristic flavor. They may also impart color and improve the overall keeping quality of the food. Apart from being used in various indigenous recipes and cuisines, spice and spice extracts are used in traditional medicines, cosmetics, and in a range of other applications.

Author(s): Daniela Eliza Marin, Cornelia Braicu, Gabi Dumitrescu, Gina C. Pistol, Roxana Cojocneanu, Ioana Berindan Neagoe, Ionelia Taranu

Author(s): Agnieszka Rogowska, Paweł Pomastowski, Katarzyna Rafińska, Viorica Railean-Plugaru, Michał Złoch, Justyna Walczak, Bogusław Buszewski

Toxins, Vol. 11, Pages 548: Fumonisins at Doses below EU Regulatory Limits Induce Histological Alterations in Piglets

Toxins doi: 10.3390/toxins11090548

Authors:
Terciolo
Bracarense
Souto
Cossalter
Dopavogui
Loiseau
Oliveira
Pinton
Oswald

Toxins, Vol. 11, Pages 541: Assessment of Dried Blood Spots for Multi-Mycotoxin Biomarker Analysis in Pigs and Broiler Chickens

Toxins doi: 10.3390/toxins11090541

Authors:
Marianne Lauwers
Siska Croubels
Siegrid De Baere
Milena Sevastiyanova
Eva Maria Romera Sierra
Ben Letor
Christos Gougoulias
Mathias Devreese

Toxins, Vol. 11, Pages 537: Twenty-Eight Fungal Secondary Metabolites Detected in Pig Feed Samples: Their Occurrence, Relevance and Cytotoxic Effects In Vitro

Toxins doi: 10.3390/toxins11090537

Authors:
Barbara Novak
Valentina Rainer
Michael Sulyok
Dietmar Haltrich
Gerd Schatzmayr
Elisabeth Mayer

Toxins, Vol. 11, Pages 519: Development of an UPLC-MS/MS Method for the Analysis of Mycotoxins in Rumen Fluid with and without Maize Silage Emphasizes the Importance of Using Matrix-Matched Calibration

Toxins doi: 10.3390/toxins11090519

Authors:
Sandra Debevere
Siegrid De Baere
Geert Haesaert
Michael Rychlik
Veerle Fievez
Siska Croubels

Toxins, Vol. 11, Pages 518: Heterologous Expression and Characterization of A Novel Ochratoxin A Degrading Enzyme, N-acyl-L-amino Acid Amidohydrolase, from Alcaligenes faecalis

Toxins doi: 10.3390/toxins11090518

Authors:
Honghai Zhang
Yunpeng Zhang
Tie Yin
Jing Wang
Xiaolin Zhang

Zearalenone (ZEA) is a common mycotoxin produced by fungi within the genus Fusarium. However, few studies have examined the direct effects of the toxin on the mammary glands. In the present study, the effects of ZEA treatment on bovine mammary epithelial cells (MAC-T) from dairy cows were investigated.

Contamination by fungi may pose a threat to the long-term operation of the International Space Station because fungi produce organic acids that corrode equipment and mycotoxins that harm human health. Microgravity is an unavoidable and special condition in the space station. However, the influence of microgravity on fungal metabolism has not been well studied. Clinostat rotation is widely used to simulate the microgravity condition in studies carried out on Earth.