Mycotoxins are toxic secondary metabolites produced by fungi. They pose significant global food safety concerns because they can cause both acute and chronic health hazards. While information provision and technological interventions play a critical role in reducing mycotoxin risks, existing evidence on health-centric information remains mixed and limited to aflatoxins in cereals and grains, leaving spices underexplored. Moreover, technological interventions alone may be ineffective without adequate awareness and active management practices. This study investigates the effects of health-centric information and moisture management interventions, alongside general information on mycotoxin mitigation and government post-harvest quality improvement training, on the adoption of key post-harvest practices expected to reduce mycotoxin risks. A randomized controlled trial was conducted among 810 black pepper farmers in the Matale District, Sri Lanka. The results reveal that a bundled intervention emphasising health-centric information significantly enhanced the adoption of all key post-harvest quality improvement practices, reducing unsafe practices such as threshing barefoot and drying on bare floors, while improving recommended practices such as fresh grading, dry grading, blanching, and storage. In contrast, the bundled intervention emphasizing moisture management had limited impact, primarily on blanching and storage. These findings suggest that the bundled intervention, emphasizing health-centric information, motivates farmers to adopt critical postharvest quality-improvement practices expected to reduce mycotoxin risk, thereby potentially contributing to improving spice quality and enhancing consumer safety.
Chronic dietary exposure to low concentrations of deoxynivalenol (DON), a trichothecene mycotoxin found in cereal products, disrupts immune homeostasis and exacerbates allergic inflammation. Chlorella sorokiniana (CS) can adsorb DON and reduce its systemic absorption. However, whether this DON-binding activity protects against DON-induced immune dysregulation remains unclear. Here, we investigated the effects of CS on DON-induced toxicity and DON-exacerbated allergic dermatitis. In vitro, murine DC2.4 dendritic cells were exposed to DON in the presence or absence of CS-treated DON preparations. DON reduced cell viability and ATP-dependent luminescence while increasing IL-1β and TNFα production in a concentration-dependent manner. Pretreatment with CS attenuated these cytotoxic and pro-inflammatory effects. In vivo, chronic low-dose DON exposure aggravated toluene diisocyanate–induced allergic dermatitis, as demonstrated by increased ear swelling, scratching behavior, inflammatory cell infiltration, dermal edema, and cutaneous expression of Il4, Il13, and Il33. DON also increased dendritic, activated CD4+ T, and IgE+ B cell populations; type 2 cytokine production; and serum IgE levels. Oral CS administration attenuated local and systemic allergic responses. Contrastingly, CS exerted limited effects on allergic inflammation in mice not exposed to DON, indicating that its protective activity was primarily associated with the mitigation of DON toxicity rather than with nonspecific immunosuppression. Both conventional and pulverized CS reduced several DON-associated inflammatory responses. An in vitro binding assay confirmed that CS decreased residual DON concentrations. These findings demonstrate that CS reduces the bioavailability and immunotoxic effects of DON and may represent a functional dietary strategy for preventing the mycotoxin-associated exacerbation of allergic inflammation.
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a chemically stable and ubiquitous mycotoxin that poses persistent threats to environmental safety and public health due to its potent nephrotoxicity and carcinogenicity. Given the limitations of conventional physical and chemical remediation, biological detoxification has emerged as a sustainable and high-efficiency alternative. This review systematically evaluates three core biological strategies: biological inhibition via nutrient competition and metabolic interference; biosorption through non-covalent binding by microbial cell wall components; and biodegradation, focusing on the enzymatic cleavage of the amide bond or lactone ring. We highlight recent breakthroughs in OTA- degrading enzymes, such as carboxypeptidases and amidohydrolases, emphasizing their catalytic pathways and potential for recombinant expression. Furthermore, the practical applications, industrial challenges, and safety considerations of these green technologies are discussed. This work provides a comprehensive theoretical framework for developing eco-friendly and targeted strategies to safeguard the global food chain and mitigate environmental mycotoxin contamination. OTA is widespread, stable, and poses major global health risks. Biological detoxification offers an eco-friendly and efficient OTA removal. OTA detoxification involves inhibition, biosorption, and biodegradation. Enzymes (amidohydrolases, carboxypeptidases) show high detox potential. OTA biological detoxification applications face stability, safety, and regulatory challenges.
This study applied a polyphasic characterization approach and LC-MS/MS analysis to elucidate fungal and mycotoxin contamination dynamics during conventional (CPRP) and improved (IPRP) postharvest processing and a 90-day storage of rice in Nigeria. Three hundred and twenty-five fungal isolates belonging to 21 genera (10 moulds, one crust fungus, 10 yeasts) and 54 species were recovered from rice across both processing chains. The CPRP chain had greater diversity of fungal genera compared to the IPRP chain. Aspergillus predominated both processing chains while yeasts occurred only in the CPRP chain. Species belonging to Aspergillus sections Aspergillus, Candidi, Flavi and Nidulantes, and Penicillium section Citrina predominated in stored rice in the two processing chains. A total of 106 extrolites including several uncommon extrolites and potential species markers were identified in agar cultures of 38 strains from 19 mould species. Fifteen mycotoxins were detected in rice along the processing and storage chains. Processing of rice in the IPRP chain and hermetic storage for 90 days reduced total aflatoxins by 9
