Fumonisin B1 in maize, wheat and barley grain in Serbia

Abstract

A wide variety of commodities in the world have been analyzed for fumonisins contamination. However, they have mostly been reported in maize and maize-based foods and feeds. Just a few scientific researches were conducted to obtain results on natural contamination of wheat and barley with these mycotoxins. This survey was conducted to evaluate fumonisin B1 contamination in maize, wheat and barley grain in Serbia. A total of 203 maize, 180 wheat and 120 barley samples were obtained from different local warehouses between October 2007 and June 2009. Concentration of FB1 were analysed with the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Positive results were found in 70.7%, 60.6% and 34.1%, in the maize, wheat and barley samples, respectively. FB 1 concentration varied from 750 to 4900 μg kg-1, and the mean levels recorded were: 1225.7 kg-1 in maize; 852.7 μg kg-1 in wheat; and 768.2 μg kg-1 in barley. The mycotoxin contamination of cereals was affected by factors such as origin resistance, droughtstress, and insect damage and differed between the years of investigation The results obtained in this survey revealed that FB1 is frequent contaminant of cereal grains in Serbia. Considering that these products are consumed in large amounts either directly or as components of foods and feeds, the levels of contamination reported herein indicate a potential threat to animal and public health.

Širok spektar proizvoda u svetu je analiziran na kontaminaciju fumonizinima. Međutim, prisustvo ovog mikotoksina uglavnom je zabeleženo u zrnu kukuruza i hrani na bazi kukuruza. Malo je istraživanja o prirodnoj kontaminaciji pšenice i ječma fumonizinima. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je da se ispita kontaminacija fumonizinom B1 zrna kukuruza, pšenice i ječma u Srbiji. Ukupan broj od 203 uzoraka zrna kukuruza, 180 uzoraka zrna pšenice i 120 uzoraka zrna ječma sakupljenih u različitim lokalitetima Srbije u periodu oktobar 2007. - jun 2009. godine. Koncentracija FB1 u zrnu žita je analizirana ELISA testom. FB1 je utvrđen u 72% uzoraka zrna kukuruza, 60,6% uzoraka zrna pšenice i 34,1% uzoraka zrna ječma. Koncentracija ovog mikotoksina je varirala od 750 do 4900 μg kg-1, sa srednjim vrednostima: 1225,7 kg-1 u kukuruzu; 852,7 μg kg-1 u pšenici; i 768,2 μg kg-1 u ječmu. Kontaminacija zrna sa FB1 je varirala u zavisnosti od mnogih faktora, kao što je otpornost biljke, stres suše, povrede od insekata i razlikovala se u ispitivanim godinama. Rezultati ovog istraživanja ukazali su da je FB1 značajan kontaminant zrna žita u Srbiji. S obzirom da se ovi proizvodi koriste u velikim količinama, bilo kao hrana za ljude, bilo kao hrana za životinje, utvrđeni stepen kontaminacije ukazuje na visok potencijalni rizik po javno zdravlje.