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Toxins
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Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects
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Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects

A special issue of Toxins (ISSN 2072-6651). This special issue belongs to the section "Mycotoxins".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2019) | Viewed by 17364

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Agustín Ariño

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón—IA2 (Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA), Facultad de Veterinaria, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain
Interests: mycotoxins; food safety; feed safety; prevention; risk assessment
Dr. Marta Herrera

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Instituto Agroalimentario de Aragón—IA2 (Universidad de Zaragoza-CITA), Facultad de Veterinaria, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain
Interests: mycotoxins; control; analytical methods; preharvest; risk assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aflatoxins are mycotoxins produced primarily by the fungi Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. These fungi are most commonly found in areas with a hot climate, and aflatoxins are found in food as a result of both pre- and post-harvest fungal contamination. However, climate change has had a significant impact on fungal activity and distribution, influencing also the conditions for mycotoxin production, so that aflatoxins are an emerging problem in areas where previously they were only a problem of imported products.

Aflatoxins are genotoxic carcinogens. They have predominantly been detected in groundnuts (peanuts) and other oilseeds, tree nuts, dried fruits, cereals and derived products (especially from maize and rice), spices, milk and dairy products, baby foods, food supplements, and others.

The focus of this Special Issue is on the food sources, occurrence, and toxicological effects of aflatoxins. Submissions are welcome on the following topics:

  • The contamination risk by aflatoxins in susceptible commodities pre and post harvest;
  • Occurrence data of aflatoxins in products intended for direct human consumption or as ingredients in foodstuffs, as well as in food supplements;
  • Discussion papers on legislated maximum limits for aflatoxins in foodstuffs around the world, including foods for infants and young children;
  • The toxicology of aflatoxins and cancer potencies for different exposures to aflatoxins;
  • Studies on dietary exposure to aflatoxins in different age classes.

Prof. Dr. Agustín Ariño
Dr. Marta Herrera
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxins is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aflatoxins
  • contamination risk
  • occurrence
  • legislation
  • toxicology
  • exposure assessment

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 2345 KiB  
Article
Assessment of the Effect of Satureja montana and Origanum virens Essential Oils on Aspergillus flavus Growth and Aflatoxin Production at Different Water Activities
by Marta García-Díaz, Jessica Gil-Serna, Belén Patiño, Esther García-Cela, Naresh Magan and Ángel Medina
Toxins 2020, 12(3), 142; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12030142 - 25 Feb 2020
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4768
Abstract
Aflatoxin contamination of foodstuffs poses a serious risk to food security, and it is essential to search for new control methods to prevent these toxins entering the food chain. Several essential oils are able to reduce the growth and mycotoxin biosynthesis of toxigenic [...] Read more.
Aflatoxin contamination of foodstuffs poses a serious risk to food security, and it is essential to search for new control methods to prevent these toxins entering the food chain. Several essential oils are able to reduce the growth and mycotoxin biosynthesis of toxigenic species, although their efficiency is strongly influenced by the environmental conditions. In this work, the effectiveness of Satureja montana and Origanum virens essential oils to control Aspergillus flavus growth was evaluated under three water activity levels (0.94, 0.96 and 0.98 aw) using a Bioscreen C, a rapid in vitro spectrophotometric technique. The aflatoxin concentrations at all conditions tested were determined by HPLC-FLD. Aspergillus flavus growth was delayed by both essential oil treatments. However, only S. montana essential oil was able to significantly affect aflatoxin production, although the inhibition percentages widely differed among water activities. The most significant reduction was observed at 0.96 aw, which is coincident with the conditions in which A. flavus reached the highest levels of aflatoxin production. On the contrary, the treatment with S. montana essential oil was not effective in significantly reducing aflatoxin production at 0.94 aw. Therefore, it is important to study the interaction of the new control compounds with environmental factors before their application in food matrices, and in vitro ecophysiological studies are a good option since they provide accurate and rapid results. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects)
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11 pages, 326 KiB  
Article
Lack of Dose- and Time-Dependent Effects of Aflatoxin B1 on Gene Expression and Enzymes Associated with Lipid Peroxidation and the Glutathione Redox System in Chicken
by Benjámin Kövesi, Mátyás Cserháti, Márta Erdélyi, Erika Zándoki, Miklós Mézes and Krisztián Balogh
Toxins 2020, 12(2), 84; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12020084 - 26 Jan 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2526
Abstract
Effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) on lipid peroxidation and glutathione system were investigated in chicken liver. In a three-week feeding trial, different doses (<1.0 μg/kg (control diet), 17.0 µg (diet A1), 92.0 µg (diet A2), and 182.0 µg (diet A3) AFB1 kg/feed) were [...] Read more.
Effects of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) on lipid peroxidation and glutathione system were investigated in chicken liver. In a three-week feeding trial, different doses (<1.0 μg/kg (control diet), 17.0 µg (diet A1), 92.0 µg (diet A2), and 182.0 µg (diet A3) AFB1 kg/feed) were used. Markers of lipid peroxidation, conjugated dienes and trienes showed higher values in A3, while amounts of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were increased in the A1 group at day 21. Glutathione content was lower at day 14 in Group A2. Glutathione peroxidase 4 activity was increased at days 7 and 21 in the A3 group but reduced in the A2 and A3 groups at day 14. The GPX4 gene was downregulated at day 7 in the A2 group, but overregulated at days 14 and 21, and at day 14 in the A3 group. GSS was downregulated at day 14 in the A1 group but overregulated at day 21 in A1 and A2 groups. GSR was downregulated at days 7 and 21 in all treatment groups, but on day 14, induction was observed in the A3 group. The results indicated that AFB1 did not induce dose- or time-dependent effects on the glutathione redox system and its encoding genes at the dose range used, which means that oxidative stress is not the primary effect of AFB1 toxicity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects)
16 pages, 1177 KiB  
Article
Potential Application of Lactic Acid Bacteria to Reduce Aflatoxin B1 and Fumonisin B1 Occurrence on Corn Kernels and Corn Ears
by Tiago de Melo Nazareth, Carlos Luz, Raquel Torrijos, Juan Manuel Quiles, Fernando Bittencourt Luciano, Jordi Mañes and Giuseppe Meca
Toxins 2020, 12(1), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins12010021 - 31 Dec 2019
Cited by 60 | Viewed by 5079
Abstract
Fungal spoilage is an important issue for the food industry, leading to food sensory defects, food waste, economic losses and public health concern through the production of mycotoxins. Concomitantly, the search for safer natural products has gained importance since consumers began to look [...] Read more.
Fungal spoilage is an important issue for the food industry, leading to food sensory defects, food waste, economic losses and public health concern through the production of mycotoxins. Concomitantly, the search for safer natural products has gained importance since consumers began to look for less processed and chemically treated foods. In this context, the aim of this study was to evaluate the antifungal and antimycotoxigenic effect of seven strains of Lactobacillus plantarum. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were grown on Man Rogosa Sharpe (MRS) broth at 37 °C in anaerobic conditions. After that, the cell-free supernatant (CFS) were recovered to determine its antifungal activity by halo diffusion agar test. In addition, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) was determined for each L. plantarum CFS by 96-well microplates method. Additionally, CFS was used as a natural biocontrol agent on corn kernels and corn ears contaminated with Aspergillus flavus and Fusarium verticillioides, respectively. The L. plantarum CECT 749 CFS showed the highest antifungal effect against all essayed strains. Moreover, the employment of this CFS in food reduced the mycotoxin production at a percentage ranging from 73.7 to 99.7%. These results suggest that the L. plantarum CECT 749 CFS could be promising for the biocontrol of corn. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects)
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18 pages, 4714 KiB  
Article
Regulation of Morphology, Aflatoxin Production, and Virulence of Aspergillus flavus by the Major Nitrogen Regulatory Gene areA
by Opemipo Esther Fasoyin, Kunlong Yang, Mengguang Qiu, Bin Wang, Sen Wang and Shihua Wang
Toxins 2019, 11(12), 718; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins11120718 - 10 Dec 2019
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 3972
Abstract
Aspergillus flavus is a renowned plant, animal and human pathogen. areA is a global nitrogen regulatory gene of the GATA transcription factor family, shown to be the major nitrogen regulator. In this study, we identified areA in A. flavus and studied its function. [...] Read more.
Aspergillus flavus is a renowned plant, animal and human pathogen. areA is a global nitrogen regulatory gene of the GATA transcription factor family, shown to be the major nitrogen regulator. In this study, we identified areA in A. flavus and studied its function. The AreA protein contained a signatory zinc finger domain, which is extremely conserved across fungal species. Gene deletion (ΔareA) and over-expression (OE::areA) strains were constructed by homologous recombination to elucidate the role of areA in A. flavus. The ΔareA strain was unable to efficiently utilize secondary nitrogen sources for growth of A. flavus, and it had poorly developed conidiophores, when observed on complete medium, resulting in the production of significantly less conidia than the wild-type strain (WT). Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) production was reduced in ΔareA compared with the WT strain in most conditions tested, and ΔareA had impaired virulence in peanut seeds. areA also played important roles in the sensitivity of A. flavus to osmotic, cell wall and oxidative stresses. Hence, areA was found to be important for the growth, aflatoxin production and pathogenicity of A. flavus. This work sheds light on the function of areA in the regulation of the nitrogen metabolism of A. flavus, and consequently aims at providing new ways for controlling the crossover pathogen, A. flavus. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aflatoxins: Food Sources, Occurrence and Toxicological Effects)
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