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Toxins Dec 2020Spices are imported worldwide mainly from developing countries with tropical and/or subtropical climate. Local conditions, such as high temperature, heavy rainfall, and... (Review)
Review
Spices are imported worldwide mainly from developing countries with tropical and/or subtropical climate. Local conditions, such as high temperature, heavy rainfall, and humidity, promote fungal growth leading to increased occurrence of mycotoxins in spices. Moreover, the lack of good agricultural practice (GAP), good manufacturing practice (GMP), and good hygienic practice (GHP) in developing countries are of great concern. This review summarizes recent data from a total of 56 original papers dealing with mycotoxins and microfungi in various spices in the last five years. A total of 38 kinds of spices, 17 mycotoxins, and 14 microfungi are discussed in the review. Worldwide, spices are rather overlooked in terms of mycotoxin regulations, which usually only cover aflatoxins (AFs) and ochratoxin A (OTA). In this paper, an extensive attention is devoted to the limits on mycotoxins in spices in the context of the European Union (EU) as well as other countries. As proven in this review, the incidence of AFs and OTA, as well as other mycotoxins, is relatively high in many spices; thus, the preparation of new regulation limits is advisable.
Topics: Aflatoxins; Animals; Food Contamination; Fungi; Humans; Internationality; Mycotoxins; Spices; Time Factors
PubMed: 33322380
DOI: 10.3390/toxins12120789 -
Experimental Biology and Medicine... Mar 2022Increased environmental pollution and unhealthy lifestyle are blamed for escalated chronic diseases. Exposure to aflatoxins was recently suggested to have a role in the...
Increased environmental pollution and unhealthy lifestyle are blamed for escalated chronic diseases. Exposure to aflatoxins was recently suggested to have a role in the increased incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Diet modification and consumption of different functional food are now gaining attention, especially in diabetes management. This study investigates the effect of a diet containing barley microgreen against diabetes induced by streptozotocin with or without aflatoxin administration in rats. Barley microgreen was rich in 3'-Benzyloxy-5,6,7,4'-tetramethoxyflavone (48.8% of total) followed by 5β,7βH,10α-Eudesm-11-en-1α-ol (18.46%). Streptozotocin injection and/or aflatoxin administration significantly elevated glucose level, decreased insulin level, decreased β-cell function, deteriorated liver and kidney function parameters, and induced oxidative stress in the liver. Histopathology revealed irregular small-sized islets and decreased area % of insulin-positive beta cells in the pancreas, hepatic degeneration, nephropathy, and neuropathy in diabetic and/or aflatoxin administered rats compared to control. Barley microgreen diet fed to diabetic rats with or without aflatoxin alleviated all evaluated parameters. Barley microgreen diet also ameliorated the toxic effect of aflatoxin. In conclusion, exposure to aflatoxin aggravated diabetes and its complication. The incorporation of barley microgreen in the diet was able to control type 2 diabetes mellitus and the improved outcomes observed with barley microgreen treatments involved or occurred in conjunction with improved biomarkers of oxidative stress.
Topics: Aflatoxins; Animals; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2; Diet; Hordeum; Insulin; Rats; Streptozocin
PubMed: 34796731
DOI: 10.1177/15353702211059765 -
Journal of Dairy Science May 2023In the past few years there has been a growing trend in the prevalence of aflatoxins, attributable to climate change, in substances destined for animal feeding, together...
In the past few years there has been a growing trend in the prevalence of aflatoxins, attributable to climate change, in substances destined for animal feeding, together with an increase in dairy product consumption. These facts have triggered great concern in the scientific community over milk pollution by aflatoxin M. Therefore, our study aimed to determine the transfer of aflatoxin B from the diet into milk as AFM in goats exposed to different concentrations of AFB, and its possible effect on the production and serological parameters of this species. For this purpose, 18 goats in late lactation were divided into 3 groups (n = 6) and exposed to different daily doses of aflatoxin B (T1 = 120 µg; T2 = 60 µg, and control = 0 µg), during 31 d. Pure aflatoxin B was administered 6 h before each milking in an artificially contaminated pellet. The milk samples were taken individually in sequential samples. Milk yield and feed intake were recorded daily, and a blood sample was extracted on the last day of exposure. No aflatoxin M was detected, either in the samples taken before the first administration, or in the control group ones. The aflatoxin M concentration detected in the milk (T1 = 0.075 µg/kg; T2 = 0.035 µg/kg) increased significantly on a par with the amount of aflatoxin B ingested. The amount of aflatoxin B ingested did not have any influence on aflatoxin M carryover (T1 = 0.066% and T2 = 0.060%), these being considerably lower than those described in dairy goats. Thus, we concluded that the concentration of aflatoxin M in milk follows a linear relationship with respect to the aflatoxin B ingested, and that the aflatoxin M carryover was not affected by the administration of different aflatoxin B doses. Similarly, no significant changes in the production parameters after chronic exposure to aflatoxin B were observed, revealing a certain resistance of the goat to the possible effects of that aflatoxin.
Topics: Female; Animals; Lactation; Aflatoxin B1; Florida; Milk; Aflatoxins; Aflatoxin M1; Animal Feed; Goats; Food Contamination
PubMed: 36907759
DOI: 10.3168/jds.2022-22704 -
Toxins Jun 2023Peanut seeds are susceptible to infection, which has a severe impact on the peanut industry and human health. However, the molecular mechanism underlying this defense...
Peanut seeds are susceptible to 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 infection between Zhonghua 6 and Yuanza 9102 by transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis. A total of 5768 DEGs were detected in the transcriptomic study. Further functional analysis showed that some DEGs were significantly enriched in pectinase catabolism, hydrogen peroxide decomposition and cell wall tissues of resistant varieties at the early stage of infection, while these genes were differentially enriched in the middle and late stages of infection in the nonresponsive variety Yuanza 9102. Some DEGs, such as those encoding transcription factors, disease course-related proteins, peroxidase (POD), chitinase and phenylalanine ammonialyase (PAL), were highly expressed in the infection stage. Metabolomic analysis yielded 349 differential metabolites. Resveratrol, cinnamic acid, coumaric acid, ferulic acid in phenylalanine metabolism and 13S-HPODE in the linolenic acid metabolism pathway play major and active roles in peanut resistance to A. flavus. Combined analysis of the differential metabolites and DEGs showed that they were mainly enriched in phenylpropane metabolism and the linolenic acid metabolism pathway. Transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses further confirmed that peanuts infected with activates various defense mechanisms, and the response to is more rapid in resistant materials. These results can be used to further elucidate the molecular mechanism of peanut resistance to infection and provide directions for early detection of infection and for breeding peanut varieties resistant to aflatoxin contamination.
Topics: Humans; Transcriptome; Aspergillus flavus; Arachis; alpha-Linolenic Acid; Plant Breeding; Aflatoxins; Seeds
PubMed: 37505683
DOI: 10.3390/toxins15070414 -
BMC Veterinary Research May 2022The adverse effect of aflatoxin in broilers is well known. However, dietary supplementation of Saccharomyces cell wall and/or Nanocurcumin may decrease the negative...
BACKGROUND
The adverse effect of aflatoxin in broilers is well known. However, dietary supplementation of Saccharomyces cell wall and/or Nanocurcumin may decrease the negative effect of aflatoxin B1 because of the bio-adsorbing feature of the functional ingredients in Yeast Cell Wall and the detoxification effect of curcumin nanoparticles. The goal of this study was to see how Saccharomyces cell wall/Nanocurcumin alone or in combination with the aflatoxin-contaminated diet ameliorated the toxic effects of aflatoxin B1 on broiler development, blood and serum parameters, carcass traits, histology, immune histochemistry, liver gene expression, and aflatoxin residue in the liver and muscle tissue of broilers for 35 days. Moreover, the withdrawal time of aflatoxin was measured after feeding the aflatoxicated group an aflatoxin-free diet. Broiler chicks one day old were distributed into five groups according to Saccharomyces cell wall and/or nanocurcumin with aflatoxin supplementation. The G1 group was given a formulated diet without any supplements. The G2 group was supplemented with aflatoxin (0.25 mg/kg diet) in the formulated diet. The G3 group was supplemented with aflatoxin (0.25 mg/kg diet) and Saccharomyces cell wall (1 kg/ton diet) in the formulated diet. The G4 group was supplemented with aflatoxin (0.25 mg/kg diet) and nanocurcumin (400 mg/kg) in the formulated diet. The G5 group was supplemented with aflatoxin (0.25 mg/kg diet) and Saccharomyces cell wall (1 kg/ton diet) in combination with nanocurcumin (200 mg/kg) in the formulated diet.
RESULTS
According to the results of this study, aflatoxin supplementation had a detrimental impact on the growth performance, blood and serum parameters, carcass traits, and aflatoxin residue in the liver and muscle tissue of broilers. In addition, aflatoxin supplementation led to a liver injury that was indicated by serum biochemistry and pathological lesions in the liver tissue. Moreover, the shortening of villi length in aflatoxicated birds resulted in a decrease in both the crypt depth ratio and the villi length ratio. The expression of CYP1A1 and Nrf2 genes in the liver tissue increased and decreased, respectively, in the aflatoxicated group. In addition, the aflatoxin residue was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) decreased in the liver tissue of the aflatoxicated group after 2 weeks from the end of the experiment.
CONCLUSION
Saccharomyces cell wall alone or with nanocurcumin attenuated these negative effects and anomalies and improved all of the above-mentioned metrics.
Topics: Aflatoxin B1; Aflatoxins; Animal Feed; Animals; Cell Wall; Chickens; Diet; Dietary Supplements; Foodborne Diseases; Saccharomyces
PubMed: 35568841
DOI: 10.1186/s12917-022-03256-x -
Brazilian Journal of Microbiology :... Jun 2021Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are biologically active molecules that can eradicate bacteria by destroying the bacterial membrane structure, causing the bacteria to...
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are biologically active molecules that can eradicate bacteria by destroying the bacterial membrane structure, causing the bacteria to rupture. However, little is known about the extent and effect of AMPs on filamentous fungi. In this study, we synthesized small molecular polypeptides by an inexpensive heat conjugation approach and examined their effects on the growth of Aspergillus flavus and its secondary metabolism. The antimicrobial agents significantly inhibited aflatoxin production, conidiation, and sclerotia formation in A. flavus. Furthermore, we found that the expression of aflatoxin structural genes was significantly inhibited, and the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level was reduced. Additionally, the antimicrobial agents can change membrane permeability. Overall, our results demonstrated that antimicrobial agents, safe to mammalian cells, have an obvious impact on aflatoxin production, which indicated that antimicrobial agents may be adopted as a new generation of potential agents for controlling aflatoxin contamination.
Topics: Aflatoxins; Antifungal Agents; Aspergillus flavus; Fungal Proteins; Pore Forming Cytotoxic Proteins; Reactive Oxygen Species; Secondary Metabolism; Spores, Fungal
PubMed: 33447936
DOI: 10.1007/s42770-021-00423-4 -
Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) May 2021This paper presents a comprehensive review of the detection of aflatoxin compounds using carbon allotrope-based sensors. Although aflatoxin M1 and its derivative... (Review)
Review
This paper presents a comprehensive review of the detection of aflatoxin compounds using carbon allotrope-based sensors. Although aflatoxin M1 and its derivative aflatoxin B1 compounds have been primarily found in milk and other food products, their presence above a threshold concentration causes disastrous health-related anomalies in human beings, such as growth impairment, underweight and even carcinogenic and immunosuppressive effects. Among the many sensors developed to detect the presence of these compounds, the employment of certain carbon allotropes, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene, has been highly preferred due to their enhanced electromechanical properties. These conductive nanomaterials have shown excellent quantitative performance in terms of sensitivity and selectivity for the chosen aflatoxin compounds. This paper elucidates some of the significant examples of the CNTs and graphene-based sensors measuring Aflatoxin M1 (ATM1) and Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) compounds at low concentrations. The fabrication technique and performance of each of the sensors are shown here, as well as some of the challenges existing with the current sensors.
Topics: Aflatoxin B1; Aflatoxin M1; Animals; Food Contamination; Graphite; Humans; Milk; Nanotubes, Carbon
PubMed: 34064254
DOI: 10.3390/s21113602 -
International Journal of Environmental... Feb 2020This review aims to update the main aspects of aflatoxin production, occurrence and incidence in selected countries, and associated aflatoxicosis outbreaks. Means to... (Review)
Review
This review aims to update the main aspects of aflatoxin production, occurrence and incidence in selected countries, and associated aflatoxicosis outbreaks. Means to reduce aflatoxin incidence in crops were also presented, with an emphasis on the environmentally-friendly technology using atoxigenic strains of . Aflatoxins are unavoidable widespread natural contaminants of foods and feeds with serious impacts on health, agricultural and livestock productivity, and food safety. They are secondary metabolites produced by species distributed on three main sections of the genus (section , section , and section ). Poor economic status of a country exacerbates the risk and the extent of crop contamination due to faulty storage conditions that are usually suitable for mold growth and mycotoxin production: temperature of 22 to 29 °C and water activity of 0.90 to 0.99. This situation paralleled the prevalence of high liver cancer and the occasional acute aflatoxicosis episodes that have been associated with these regions. Risk assessment studies revealed that Southeast Asian (SEA) and Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries remain at high risk and that, apart from the regulatory standards revision to be more restrictive, other actions to prevent or decontaminate crops are to be taken for adequate public health protection. Indeed, a review of publications on the incidence of aflatoxins in selected foods and feeds from countries whose crops are classically known for their highest contamination with aflatoxins, reveals that despite the intensive efforts made to reduce such an incidence, there has been no clear tendency, with the possible exception of South Africa, towards sustained improvements. Nonetheless, a global risk assessment of the new situation regarding crop contamination with aflatoxins by international organizations with the required expertise is suggested to appraise where we stand presently.
Topics: Aflatoxins; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Child; Food Contamination; Fungi; Humans; Incidence; India; Kenya; Liver Neoplasms; Middle Aged; Risk Assessment; South Africa
PubMed: 32070028
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17041215 -
Medical Mycology Journal 2021Aflatoxin produced by Aspergillus flavus is known to be strongly related to liver injury (hepatocellular carcinoma) and immune system damage involving leukocytes. This...
UNLABELLED
Aflatoxin produced by Aspergillus flavus is known to be strongly related to liver injury (hepatocellular carcinoma) and immune system damage involving leukocytes. This toxin suppresses both the cell-mediated immune system and macrophage function, and decreases the production of complement and interferon molecules.
PURPOSE
To evaluate the presence of aflatoxin in infectious lesions as well as how the toxin is taken up by leukocytes.
METHOD
Pathological specimens from a patient who died from aspergillosis caused by aflatoxin-producing A. flavus were used. Anti-aflatoxin B antibody was reacted with paraffin-embedded lesion specimens from the heart, kidney, and thyroid gland of the patient and observed microscopically.
RESULT
Positive reactions were detected in fungal elements and leukocytes (neutrophils and macrophages) in inflammatory lesions.
CONCLUSION
Within the patient's body, A. flavus likely produced aflatoxin, which then was taken up by neutrophils and macrophages.These results suggest that leukocyte function and the immune mechanism are locally suppressed by aflatoxin.
Topics: Aflatoxin B1; Aflatoxins; Aspergillosis; Aspergillus flavus; Fungi; Humans
PubMed: 34471034
DOI: 10.3314/mmj.20-00020 -
Toxins Jan 2021Since its first patent (1897), commercial dry feed (CDF) for dogs has diversified its formulation to meet the nutritional needs of different breeds, age, or special... (Review)
Review
Since its first patent (1897), commercial dry feed (CDF) for dogs has diversified its formulation to meet the nutritional needs of different breeds, age, or special conditions and establish a foundation for integration of these pets into urban lifestyles. The risk of aflatoxicosis in dogs has increased because the ingredients used to formulate CDF have also proliferated, making it difficult to ensure the quality required of each to achieve the safety of the entire CDF. This review contains a description of the fungi and aflatoxins detected in CDF and the ingredients commonly used for their formulation. The mechanisms of action and pathogenic effects of aflatoxins are outlined; as well as the clinical findings, and macroscopic and microscopic lesions found in aflatoxicosis in dogs. In addition, alternatives for diagnosis, treatment, and control of aflatoxins (AF) in CDF are analyzed, such as biomarkers of effect, improvement of blood coagulation, rate of elimination of AF, control of secondary infection, protection of gastric mucosa, reduction of oxidative stress, use of chemo-protectors, sequestrants, grain-free CDF, biocontrol, and maximum permitted limits, are also included.
Topics: Aflatoxins; Animal Feed; Animals; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Food Contamination; Foodborne Diseases; Fungi; Mycotoxicosis; Secondary Metabolism
PubMed: 33467754
DOI: 10.3390/toxins13010065