Risk characterization and quantification of mycotoxins and their producing fungi in sugarcane juice: A neglected problem in a widely-consumed traditional beverage

Publication date: Available online 7 August 2019Source: Food ControlAuthor(s): Mohamed F. Abdallah, Kris Audenaert, Leonie Lust, Sofie Landschoot, Boris Bekaert, Geert Heasaert, Marthe De Boevre, Sarah De SaegerAbstractSugarcane juice is a traditional drink consumed on a daily basis in Egypt. The current work was conducted to (1) evaluate the multi-mycotoxin contamination in sugarcane juice, (2) identify the profiles of the mycotoxigenic fungi, and (3) assess the risk of mycotoxin exposure among the adult population. Sugarcane juice samples (n = 89) were randomly collected in two seasons from Egypt. Quantification of 13 mycotoxins was done through a validated LC-MS/MS method. The isolated fungal species were identified using the morphological and molecular approaches and a risk assessment was performed using @Risk software.In general, 63% (n = 56) of the samples were contaminated with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and fumonisin B1 (FB1). Juice collected during winter had a contamination range of 0.1–3 μg L−1 for AFB1 and 2.8–57.9 μg L−1 for FB1, while samples from the summer season had a contamination range of 0.3–1.3 μg L−1 for AFB1 only. A multiple locus characterization showed the presence of Aspergillus, especially A. novoparasiticus, and Penicillium species. A remarkable difference in the levels of juice consumption was observed between the two seasons and between male and female consumer groups. However, the exposure levels using the probabilist...
Source: Food Control - Category: Food Science Source Type: research