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Buildings are another source of mycotoxins and people living or working in areas with mold increase their chances of adverse health effects. Molds growing in buildings can be divided into three groups – primary, secondary, and tertiary colonizers. Each group is categorized by the ability to grow at a certain water activity requirement.
This disease was the turning point for the use of the term mycotoxin. In the 1960s, about 100,000 turkey poults died near London, England due to peanut meal that was contaminated by Mycotoxins produced by Aspergillus flavus. Studies showed that the age group that was most affected was turkeys from two to twenty weeks old.
Mycotoxicology is the branch of mycology that focuses on analyzing and studying the toxins produced by fungi, known as mycotoxins. [1] In the food industry it is important to adopt measures that keep mycotoxin levels as low as practicable, especially those that are heat-stable.
Mycotoxin-contaminated grain and other food products have a significant impact on human and animal health globally. According to the World Health Organization, roughly 25% of the world's food may be contaminated by mycotoxins. [58] Prevention of mold exposure from food is generally to consume food that has no mold growths on it. [48]
An "incident" of chemical food contamination may be defined as an episodic occurrence of adverse health effects in humans (or animals that might be consumed by humans) following high exposure to particular chemicals, or instances where episodically high concentrations of chemical hazards were detected in the food chain and traced back to a particular event.
They have been found in both pet and human foods, as well as in feedstocks for agricultural animals. Animals fed contaminated food can pass aflatoxin transformation products into milk, milk products, and meat. [2] For example, contaminated poultry feed is the suspected source of aflatoxin-contaminated chicken meat and eggs in Pakistan. [3]
Citrinin is a mycotoxin which is often found in food. It is a secondary metabolite produced by fungi that contaminates long-stored food and it can cause a variety of toxic effects, including kidney, liver and cell damage. Citrinin is mainly found in stored grains, but sometimes also in fruits and other plant products.
Vomitoxin belongs to a class of mycotoxins (trichothecenes) which are strong inhibitors of protein synthesis; [4] exposure to vomitoxin causes the brain to decrease its uptake of the amino acid tryptophan and, in turn, its synthesis of serotonin. Reduced levels of serotonin are believed to be responsible for the anorexic effects of DON and ...