MYCOTOXINS
Mycotoxins are toxic secondary metabolites produced by many filamentous fungi belonging to the phylum Ascomycota. Phytotoxicity or antimicrobial activity which is an example of additional effects can be found in some mycotoxins. Mycotoxins are often handled in a separate category from "fungal and yeast poisons" substances [2]. Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium, which are members of the fungal genus, frequently and dangerously cause contamination of foods and feeds with mycotoxins [3,4]. On foods and feeds, Aspergillus and Penicillium species often thrive while in storage conditions. Fusarium species usually infect field crops such as corn, barley and wheat and multiply in these plants [5,6]. Nowadays, although certain mycotoxins regularly contaminate foods and animal feeds, more than 300 mycotoxins have been identified and reported so far. Ochratoxins (OT), aflatoxins (AF), trichothecenes containing deoxynivalenol (DON) and T-2 toxin, patulin, fumonicins, and zearalenone (ZEA) are common mycotoxins [7,8].
Observed mycotoxin contamination in food has
become one of the global problems. Mycotoxin contamination can occur as the
crop plant is growing before harvest or during the processing, packaging,
distribution and storage of food products that occurs after harvest, and this
causes serious problems in food safety [8,9]. If crops and grains are stored at
high temperatures, and under conditions that cause prolonged humidification
which is considered unsuitable storage conditions, it, unfortunately, causes
mold growth and mycotoxin contamination [6]. While the rice was considered to
be the least favorable for mycotoxin contamination, maize is the most [10]. It
is observed that mycotoxins are chemically and thermally stable as a result of
food processing such as boiling, cooking, baking, roasting, frying and
pasteurization. As a result of the animal eating contaminated feed, animal
products such as meat, eggs and milk are contaminated with mycotoxins. As a
result of consuming these animal products, mycotoxins threaten human health
[4,11]. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the World Health
Organization (WHO), the Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the European
Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which are national and international public health
and government authorities, address this global issue by adopting strict
regulatory guidelines on mycotoxin contamination in foods and feeds. In Table
1, the US FDA and EU limits for mycotoxin levels in food and animal feed, major
toxins, major manufacturers and some commonly contaminated food products are
listed.
Mycotoxins are recognized
worldwide as unavoidable and unpredictable contaminants in food and feed. These
chemicals, besides posing a serious risk for food safety, human and animal
health, also cause great economic losses in the agricultural industry. Although
many methods have been implemented to control or minimize the formation of
mycotoxins in foods around the world, mycotoxin contamination of foods still
remains a problem for the whole world. Various sensitive and accurate
analytical methods have been developed to minimize the exposure of humans and
animals to mycotoxins. While HPLC-FLD method is used to perform single
mycotoxin analysis, HPLC-MS / MS is a method used to determine multiple
mycotoxins simultaneously. ELISA and rapid antibody-based strip test kits, of
various immunological tests, are commercially available to detect mycotoxins in
different food products [1].
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CONTENT: Türkan ELÇİM
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REFERENCES
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