Distribution of fungi and their toxic metabolites in melon and sesame seeds marketed in two major producing states in Nigeria

Abstract In this study, melon (n = 60) and sesame (n = 60) seeds purchased from markets within Benue and Nasarawa states, respectively, in Nigeria, during two seasons (dry and wet), were analysed for fungal and mycotoxin contamination in order to determine the safety of these foods for human consumption. Molecular analysis revealed the following seven fungal taxonomic groups in the foods: Aspergillus section Candidi, Aspergillus section Flavi, Aspergillus section Nigri, Cladosporium, Fusarium fujikuroi species group, Penicillium, and Pleosporales/Didymellaceae. A total of 78 microbial metabolites, including several mycotoxins, occurred in the foods. The most frequent mycotoxins in melon and sesame were aflatoxin B1 (occurrence: 76%) and alternariol monomethyl ether (occurrence: 59%), respectively. However, higher mean total aflatoxin levels occurred in sesame (17 μg kg−1) than in melon (11 μg kg−1). About 28 and 5% of melon and sesame, respectively, exceeded the 4 μg kg−1 total aflatoxin limit for oilseeds intended for direct human consumption in the European Union. Additionally, fumonisin B1 and moniliformin occurred only in sesame, whilst ochratoxins A and B occurred only in melon; ochratoxin B being reported for the first time in this food. Our data indicated seasonal variations in the fungal and mycotoxin contamination levels in both foods.

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Mycotoxin Contamination of Edible Non-Timber Forest Products in Cameroon

Toxins ◽

10.3390/toxins11070430 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 430

Author(s):

Joseph Fovo Djeugap ◽

Sita Ghimire ◽

Immaculate Wanjuki ◽

Anne Muiruri ◽

Jagger Harvey

Keyword(s):

Moisture Content ◽

Forest Products ◽

Congo Basin ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽

Human Consumption ◽

The European Union ◽

Mycotoxin Contamination ◽

Legal Limit ◽

Non Timber Forest Products

The prevalence and concentrations of three major mycotoxins, total aflatoxin (AFs), fumonisin (F), and zearalenone (ZEN), were determined on seven edible non-timber forest products (ENTFP) in Cameroon. A total of 210 samples consiting of 30 samples from each ENTFP commodity was collected from farmers and local markets in three agroecological zones of Cameroon and analyzed for moisture content and mycotoxins. Mycotoxins were analyzed using commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits and results were validated using the VICAM fluorometric method. The European Union regulation of mycotoxins for human consumption (N°1881/2006) was adopted as reference. The moisture content of samples varied from 5.0% to 22.6%. Aflatoxin contamination was detected in 84.3% samples and only 5.7% exceeded the legal limit (10 ppb). Similarly, 53% of samples were contaminated with fumonisin and 5% of samples exceeded the legal limit (1000 ppb). Zearalenone contamination was detected in 92% of samples and 21% of samples exceeded the legal limit (100 ppb). This is the first report on mycotoxin contamination of ENTFP in the Congo Basin forest. The findings of this study will form a basis for educating farmers and other stakeholders of ENTFP values chain on mycotoxins and mycotoxin mitigation measures to produce safe ENTFP for local and international markets.

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Validation of HPLC and Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) Techniques for Detection and Quantification of Aflatoxins in Different Food Samples

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods9050661 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. 661 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sharaf S. Omar ◽

Moawiya A. Haddad ◽

Salvatore Parisi

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Limit Of Detection ◽

Food Samples ◽

Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay ◽

Human Consumption ◽

The European Union ◽

Total Aflatoxin ◽

Limit Of Quantification ◽

Coffee Beans ◽

Almost All

Background: In Jordan as in other worldwide countries, mycotoxins are considered a serious national problem in food supplies. As a result, almost all nations are setting and adopting different regulations targeting the control of mycotoxins levels in the domestic food supply, including the problem of reliable sampling and analysis methods. Objective: It is necessary to improve and give evidence of analytical abilities of laboratories within Jordan and developing countries enabling them to monitor mycotoxins effectively in food to overcome non-tariff obstacles. Methods: We analyzed 40 samples from wheat, corn, dried fig and dried coffee beans for total aflatoxin content using High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Enzyme Linked Immunesorbent Assay (ELISA) methods. Results: 40% of samples from wheat, 60% from corn, 30% from dried fig, and 50% from dried coffee beans were found positive when speaking of total aflatoxins, with average values between 1.14 and 4.12 μg/kg. Obtained results allow considering all tested food samples as fit for human consumption if compared with the labeled regulatory limit of allowed aflatoxins in the European Union. In detail, the limit of detection and the limit of quantification for methods used in this study were significantly lower than the maximum limits established by the European Union. Highlights: The procedure used in this study is suitable for detection of mycotoxins at very low concentration.

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What's eating North America's edible insect industry? An examination of psychological, cultural and regulatory barriers

Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems ◽

10.1017/s1742170521000314 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-4

Author(s):

Christl Li ◽

Sean B. Cash ◽

Julie Lesnik ◽

Timothy S. Griffin ◽

Joel Mason ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nutritional Value ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Human Consumption ◽

Edible Insects ◽

The European Union ◽

Edible Insect ◽

The Us ◽

Structural Barrier ◽

Regulatory Barriers ◽

Specific Regulation

Abstract Although research has demonstrated the positive nutritional value and environmental benefits associated with edible insect consumption, several factors challenge the growth and development of the edible insect industry for human consumption in the US and Canada. Cultural and psychological factors account for much of the aversion US and Canadian consumers display. The absence of specific regulation also constitutes a structural barrier to more widespread production and sale of edible insects. Compared to the US, the European Union has a more developed edible insect industry and has enacted legislation that removes some of the barriers. As consumer awareness of the putative health benefits of edible insects increases, more comprehensive regulations may emerge to keep pace with the growth of this industry. Overall, a multi-disciplinary approach that addresses both benefits and barriers to consumption is needed to facilitate a robust market for edible insects in the US and Canada.

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Identification and quantification of dicarboxylic fatty acids in head tissue of farmed Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

European Food Research and Technology ◽

10.1007/s00217-021-03747-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Katja Lehnert ◽

Mamun M. Rashid ◽

Benoy Kumar Barman ◽

Walter Vetter

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Fatty Acid ◽

Linoleic Acid ◽

Low Income ◽

Oreochromis Niloticus ◽

Nile Tilapia ◽

Daily Intake ◽

Acid Methyl Ester ◽

Human Consumption ◽

The European Union

AbstractNile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) was grown in Bangladesh with four different feeding treatments as part of a project that aims to produce fish in a cost-effective way for low-income consumers in developing countries. Fillet and head tissue was analysed because both tissues were destined for human consumption. Gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analyses of transesterified fatty acid methyl ester extracts indicated the presence of ~ 50 fatty acids. Major fatty acids in fillet and head tissue were palmitic acid and oleic acid. Both linoleic acid and polyunsaturated fatty acids with three or more double bonds were presented in quantities > 10% of total fatty acids in fillet, but lower in head tissue. Erucic acid levels were below the newly proposed tolerable daily intake in the European Union, based on the consumption of 200 g fillet per day. Moreover, further analysis produced evidence for the presence of the dicarboxylic fatty acid azelaic acid (nonanedioic acid, Di9:0) in head tissue. To verify this uncommon finding, countercurrent chromatography was used to isolate Di9:0 and other dicarboxylic acids from a technical standard followed by its quantification. Di9:0 contributed to 0.4–1.3% of the fatty acid profile in head tissue, but was not detected in fillet. Fish fed with increasing quantities of flaxseed indicated that linoleic acid was the likely precursor of Di9:0 in the head tissue samples.

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Characterization of Alternaria Species Associated with Heart Rot of Pomegranate Fruit

Journal of Fungi ◽

10.3390/jof7030172 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 172

Author(s):

Francesco Aloi ◽

Mario Riolo ◽

Simona Marianna Sanzani ◽

Annamaria Mincuzzi ◽

Antonio Ippolito ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Elongation Factor ◽

Monomethyl Ether ◽

Alternariol Monomethyl Ether ◽

Translation Elongation ◽

Microscopic Features ◽

Alternaria Species ◽

Rot Disease ◽

Multigene Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Pomegranate Fruit

This study was aimed at identifying Alternaria species associated with heart rot disease of pomegranate fruit in southern Italy and characterizing their mycotoxigenic profile. A total of 42 Alternaria isolates were characterized. They were obtained from pomegranate fruits with symptoms of heart rot sampled in Apulia and Sicily and grouped into six distinct morphotypes based on macro- and microscopic features. According to multigene phylogenetic analysis, including internal transcribed spacer (ITS), translation elongation factor 1-α (EF-1α), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) and a SCAR marker (OPA10-2), 38 isolates of morphotypes 1 to 5 were identified as Alternaria alternata, while isolates of morphotype 6, all from Sicily, clustered within the Alternaria arborescens species complex. In particular, isolates of morphotype 1, the most numerous, clustered with the ex-type isolate of A. alternata, proving to belong to A. alternata. No difference in pathogenicity on pomegranate fruits was found between isolates of A. alternata and A. arborescens and among A. alternata isolates of different morphotypes. The toxigenic profile of isolates varied greatly: in vitro, all 42 isolates produced tenuazonic acid and most of them other mycotoxins, including alternariol, alternariol monomethyl ether, altenuene and tentoxin.

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Discovery of New Genera Challenges the Subtribal Classification of Tok-Tok Beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Sepidiini)

Insect Systematics and Diversity ◽

10.1093/isd/ixab006 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Olivia M Gearner ◽

Marcin J Kamiński ◽

Kojun Kanda ◽

Kali Swichtenberg ◽

Aaron D Smith

Keyword(s):

Dna Sequences ◽

Species Group ◽

Phylogenetic Placement ◽

Darkling Beetles ◽

Species Groups ◽

Taxonomic Groups ◽

Inference Methods ◽

A New Species ◽

Coleoptera Tenebrionidae

Abstract Sepidiini is a speciose tribe of desert-inhabiting darkling beetles, which contains a number of poorly defined taxonomic groups and is in need of revision at all taxonomic levels. In this study, two previously unrecognized lineages were discovered, based on morphological traits, among the extremely speciose genera Psammodes Kirby, 1819 (164 species and subspecies) and Ocnodes Fåhraeus, 1870 (144 species and subspecies), namely the Psammodes spinosus species-group and Ocnodes humeralis species-group. In order to test their phylogenetic placement, a phylogeny of the tribe was reconstructed based on analyses of DNA sequences from six nonoverlapping genetic loci (CAD, wg, COI JP, COI BC, COII, and 28S) using Bayesian and maximum likelihood inference methods. The aforementioned, morphologically defined, species-groups were recovered as distinct and well-supported lineages within Molurina + Phanerotomeina and are interpreted as independent genera, respectively, Tibiocnodes Gearner & Kamiński gen. nov. and Tuberocnodes Gearner & Kamiński gen. nov. A new species, Tuberocnodes synhimboides Gearner & Kamiński sp. nov., is also described. Furthermore, as the recovered phylogenetic placement of Tibiocnodes and Tuberocnodes undermines the monophyly of Molurina and Phanerotomeina, an analysis of the available diagnostic characters for those subtribes is also performed. As a consequence, Phanerotomeina is considered as a synonym of the newly redefined Molurina sens. nov. Finally, spectrograms of vibrations produced by substrate tapping of two Molurina species, Toktokkus vialis (Burchell, 1822) and T. synhimboides, are presented.

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Antimycotoxigenic Activity of Beetroot Extracts against Altenaria alternata Mycotoxins on Potato Crop

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11094239 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (9) ◽

pp. 4239

Author(s):

Nesrine H. Youssef ◽

Sameer H. Qari ◽

Said I. Behiry ◽

Eldessoky S. Dessoky ◽

Ehab I. El-Hallous ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Potato Crop ◽

Reduction Rate ◽

Acid Methyl Ester ◽

Ethanol Extract ◽

Monomethyl Ether ◽

Morphological Identification ◽

Hexadecanoic Acid ◽

Alternariol Monomethyl Ether ◽

Alternaria Species ◽

Main Components

Alternaria species, mainly air-borne fungi, affect potato plants, causing black spots symptoms. Morphological identification, pathogenicity assessment, and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) molecular identification confirmed that all isolates were Alternaria alternata. The annotated sequences were deposited in GenBank under accession numbers MN592771–MN592777. HPLC analysis revealed that the fungal isolates KH3 (133,200 ng/g) and NO3 (212,000 ng/g) produced higher levels of tenuazonic acid (TeA) and alternariol monomethyl ether (AME), respectively. Beet ethanol extract (BEE) and beet methanol extract (BME) at different concentrations were used as antimycotoxins. BME decreased the production of mycotoxins by 66.99–99.79%. The highest TeA reduction rate (99.39%) was reported in the KH3 isolate with 150 µg/mL BME treatment. In comparison, the most effective AME reduction rate (99.79%) was shown in the NO3 isolate with 150 µg/mL BME treatment. In the same way, BEE application resulted in 95.60–99.91% mycotoxin reduction. The highest TeA reduction rate (99.91%) was reported in the KH3 isolate with 150 µg/mL BEE treatment, while the greatest AME reduction rate (99.68%) was shown in the Alam1 isolate with 75 µg/mL BEE treatment. GC-MS analysis showed that the main constituent in BME was the antioxidant compound 1-dodecanamine, n,n-dimethyl with a peak area of 43.75%. In contrast, oxirane, methyl- (23.22%); hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester (10.72%); and n-hexadecanoic acid (7.32%) were the main components in BEE found by GC-MS. They are probably antimicrobial molecules and have an effect on the mycotoxin in general. To our knowledge, this is the first study describing the antimycotoxigenic activity of beet extracts against A. alternata mycotoxins-contaminated potato crops in Egypt, aimed to manage and save the environment.

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Identity Preservation of Genetically Modified Organisms in the Food Chain: Requirements, Methods, and Costs

Journal of AOAC International ◽

10.1093/jaoac/85.3.762 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 85 (3) ◽

pp. 762-767 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Graham Brookes

Keyword(s):

Supply Chain ◽

Food Supply ◽

Genetically Modified Organisms ◽

Production Systems ◽

Agronomic Traits ◽

Animal Feed ◽

Herbicide Tolerance ◽

Human Consumption ◽

The European Union ◽

Food Supply Chain

Abstract The use of the technology of genetic modification (GM) in European agriculture and the food supply chain is currently controversial. Because of strong anti-GM technology sentiments, the use of ingredients derived from plants containing GM have largely been eliminated from foods manufactured for direct human consumption by the food supply chain in much of the European Union (EU). During the past year, the attention of those opposed to the technology has turned to the use of GM ingredients in livestock production systems by incorporation of GM soy and maize in animal feed. A discussion is presented of the key issues relating to this subject, focusing on how supplies of GM or non-GM products are segregated or how their identities are preserved. The discussion is centered on GM maize and soybeans into which agronomic traits, such as herbicide tolerance and/or insect resistance, have been incorporated. These are currently the only crops into which some varieties containing GM have been approved for use in the EU.

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Sensory Quality and Histamine Formation during Controlled Decomposition of Tuna (Thunnus thynnus)

Journal of Food Protection ◽

10.4315/0362-028x-59.2.167 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 59 (2) ◽

pp. 167-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 81

Author(s):

EMILIO I. LÓPEZ-SABATER ◽

JOSÉ J. RODRÍGUEZ-JEREZ ◽

MANUELA HERNÁDEZ-HERRERO ◽

ARTUR X. ROIG-SAGUÉS ◽

MARIA T. MORA-VENTURA

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Shelf Life ◽

Sensory Quality ◽

Health Hazard ◽

Human Consumption ◽

The European Union ◽

Histamine Production ◽

Histamine Formation ◽

Hazard Levels ◽

The U.S

Histamine production was studied during controlled tunafish decomposition at 0, 8, and 20°C. The influence of the location of the anatomic section on the amount of histamine formed and the incidence of histidine decarboxylating bacteria were also considered. By the time of sensory rejection, histamine levels in tunafish sections stored at 0 and 20°C were still below the hazard levels and the allowable levels established by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Union. Toxic amounts were only formed after the tunafish was considered organoleptically unsuitable for human consumption. However, at 8°C, levels of histamine between 100 and 200 mg/l00 g of fish were found before tuna reached the rejection point. Hence, physical appearance was not a good criterion for estimating the shelf life and especially the histamine-related health hazard when tuna was stored at 8°C, a common temperature in many home refrigerators.

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Food Safety Governance and Guardianship: The Role of the Private Sector in Addressing the EU Ethylene Oxide Incident

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods11020204 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 204

Author(s):

Aleksandra Kowalska ◽

Louise Manning

Keyword(s):

Food Safety ◽

Ethylene Oxide ◽

Collaborative Governance ◽

Vital Role ◽

Animal Origin ◽

The European Union ◽

Sesame Seeds ◽

Safety Issues ◽

Food And Feed ◽

The Eu

Sesame seeds within the European Union (EU) are classified as foods not of animal origin. Two food safety issues associated with sesame seeds have emerged in recent years, i.e., Salmonella contamination and the presence of ethylene oxide. Fumigation with ethylene oxide to reduce Salmonella in seeds and spices is not approved in the EU, so its presence in sesame seeds from India was a sentinel incident sparking multiple trans-European product recalls between 2020–2021. Following an interpretivist approach, this study utilises academic and grey sources including data from the EU Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) database to inform a critical appraisal of current EU foods not of animal origin legislation and associated governance structures and surveillance programs. This is of particular importance as consumers are encouraged towards plant-based diets. This study shows the importance of collaborative governance utilizing data from company testing and audits as well as official regulatory controls to define the depth and breadth of a given incident in Europe. The development of reflexive governance supported by the newest technology (e.g., blockchain) might be of value in public–private models of food safety governance. This study contributes to the literature on the adoption of risk-based food safety regulation and the associated hybrid public–private models of food safety governance where both regulators and private organizations play a vital role in assuring public health.

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